Trivia

Naively insisted that his Jewish wife accompany him to a film industry Artist's Association in 1941 Germany. At the dinner Nazi Propaganda head Joseph Goebbels was charmed by Mrs. Gottschalk until he was informed that she was Jewish. Goebbels personally told Joachim he had to be divorced from her - so she could be sent away and he could continue his successful acting career. Unable to leave the country and unwilling to abandon his family to certain death in a concentration camp, Joachim, his wife, Meta (b. 13 August 1902), and their eight year old son Michael (b. 19 February 1933) sealed themselves in the family home and gassed themselves to death.

As most people feared the Nazi authorities, only some courageous colleagues including Brigitte Horney, Gustav Knuth and Werner Hinz attended his funeral (1941).

On 6 November 1941, minutes before the expected arrival of the Gestapo at their house in Berlin-Grunewald, Gottschalk and his wife committed suicide by gas poisoning after sedating their son, who died with them. Though warned by Minister Goebbels, Brigitte Horney and Wolfgang Liebeneiner, as well as other artists like Gustav Knuth, Hans Brausewetter, Werner Hinz, and Ruth Hellberg attended the funeral.

During an engagement in Stuttgart, he met with his later wife, the Jewish actress Meta Wolff (1902-1941). Both married on 3 May 1930 in Halberstadt, shortly before Hitler came to power. They had a son, Michael, who was born in February 1933.

The German Post-war movie Marriage in the Shadows (1947) is based on the tragic events, surrounding his family's death.

Was the son of physician.

The 2002 drama Times Like These written by John O'Keefe is based on the individual tragedy of Joachim Gottschalk and his family.

When the Nazi-Propaganda ministry discovered that Gottschalk's wife Meta was a Jew, he was faced with the choice to separate with his wife immediately or to be called up for the Wehrmacht and to be sent to the front. But Gottschalk feared: However he would decide, wife and son would come into a concentration camp anyway. Therefore he refused the judicial separation. After that his wife and their son got the information that they will be deported to Theresienstadt. Joachim Gottschalk applied for the permission to accompany his family, but the entreaty was rejected.

Although he took part in only seven movies he acted in no less than four times with the bewitching actress Brigitte Horney. If the political circumstances had been differently, a new film dream pair had been come into being.

Joachim Gottschalk attended the Gymnasium high school in Cottbus and from 1924 worked for four years on seagoing vessels.

A late honor was given to the family Gottschalk in 1999. Their last resting place was announced to a grave of honor of Berlin. With that they erected a dignified monument to an actor who almost fall into oblivion.

Made his stage debut at the Württembergische Volksbühne in Stuttgart, where he got to know his future wife Meta.

Imposed with a working prohibition Gottschalk found work once more in 1941 in the new medium television (since 1935, but with a very restricted number of recipients) for the play "Karl und Anna. The program was played live every time and televised directly. For the ninth telecast Gottschalk didn't appear in the studio.

The actor Joachim Gottschalk worked as a sailor on a training ship of the merchant navy. With the earned money he financed his play instructions he received in Berlin.

He began an theatrical education in Cottbus and Berlin.

Pushed into a corner Joachim Gottschalk and his relatives committed suicide in the night before the deportation. Their death wasn't published in the newspapers, Gottschalk's movies weren't forbidden..

His engagement concentrated on the theater for the time being. When he received a first film offer in 1937 he refused for fear. He didn't want to attract unnecessary attention, especially because he was married with the actress Meta Wolff (with Jewish origin). Gottschalk's talent prevailed against his fear and in 1938 he acted for the first time in a film production. His character - a quiet appearance and an under-cooled performance - fascinated.

Uncle of Ingrid Andree.