- In 1937 he left Germany and with the help of Ernst Lubitsch he went to the USA. Unfortunately he was not able to get work there, so he made the fatal decision to return to Europe. In 1939 he went to Holland to Willy Rosen and his Theater der Prominente and stood there even when the German occupied the country.
- Max Ehrlich took part in over 40 movies and directed ten of it in his career. He published several records and wrote the book "From Adalbert to Zilzer", in which he wrote humorous stories and anecdotes about many of his colleagues.
- As a Jew he wasn't able to work under the National Socialists and he appeared in Vienna. But his performances were also disturbed there and he went to Switzerland and Holland with his theater group.
- The actor Max Ehrlich belonged to the celebrated cabaret artists of the 30's whose tragic end was sealed by the National Socialists. A destiny he had to share with the actors Otto Wallburg and Kurt Gerron among others.
- Following the 1938 pogrom "Kristallnacht," he decided to leave Germany definitively. Both of his farewell performances immediately sold out, so that a third presentation on 2 April 1939 was added. Here, in front of a full house of fans, calling out their affection and encouragement, Ehrlich made his final appearance in Germany.
- The homesickness was stronger than the fear and Max Ehrlich returned to Germany in 1935, at a time when Jewish artist were able to work under restricted conditions.
- While at Westerbork, he created and became director of the "Camp Westerbork Theatre Group," a cabaret troupe that during its eighteen-month existence staged six major theatre productions, all within the concentration camp's confines. A majority of the actors were famous Jewish show business personalities; prominent artists from Berlin and Vienna, such as Willy Rosen, Erich Ziegler, Camilla Spira, and Kurt Gerron; or well known Dutch performers, like Esther Philipse, Jetty Cantor, and Johnny & Jones. At its high point, the group counted fifty-one members, including a full team of musicians, dancers, choreographers, artists, tailors, and make-up, lighting, and other technicians, as well as stage hands. Most of the shows combined elements of revue and cabaret -songs and sketches- but, on one occasion, the program included a revue-operetta, Ludmilla, or Corpses Everywhere-a production whose theme sadly was a premonition of the actors' and other prisoners' fate. While some scenes were implicitly critical, of course, the Theatre Group at no time produced openly political cabaret or directly attacked the Nazi regime. To do so would have violated the most fundamental condition for the troupe's and its members' survival, as life in Westerbork was dominated by the persistent threat of deportation on the next transport to an unknown but deeply feared fate in the East. So, standing helplessly and unaided before the fascists' executioners and their lackeys, the Theatre Group, of necessity, limited itself to entertaining its audiences and to momentarily distracting them from the surrounding horrors. But in so doing, it also gave their captive audiences renewed hope and the courage to face an otherwise unbearable existence.
- He was arrested in 1943 and was brought to the concentration camp Westerbork. There he became - similar to Kurt Gerron in Theresienstadt - the director of a theater group called "Camp Westerbork Theater Group" - existing from prisoners. The group could realise six main theater production in this camp and the group comprised till 50 members, often well-known artists from Berlin, Vienna and Holland.
- During the summer of 1944, increasing numbers of transports carried Westerbork's prisoners to the extermination camps in the East. Of 104,000 camp inmates, fewer than 5,000 survived. In the last transport to leave Westerbork, on 4 September 1944, Ehrlich was number 151 on the list of victims.
- In 1933, the National Socialists seized power and stopped Ehrlich and his other Jewish colleagues from working in Germany. As a result, he left for Vienna to appear with the Rudolf Nelson Revue. However, there too, Austrian anti-Semites interrupted the show with cries of "Jews, get out of Vienna." Consequently, the troupe left for The Netherlands, stopping en route for stage appearances in Switzerland.
- He became a very popular cabaret artist in the next years. He appeared by Max Reinhardt, took part in revues and was very successful.
- The deportation from Westerbork reached dramatic dimensions in 1944, finally Max Ehrlich was also deported to Auschwitz with the last transport. There he was gassed on October 1, 1944.
- The humorous actor was soon confronted with the political brutality, which ended his career abruptly.
- He began his career at different stages where his comical talent thrilled the audience to enthusiasm. It didn't take a long time when he appeared in a movie for the first time.
- Eyewitnesses recount that, after reaching Auschwitz, he was recognized by a Hauptsturmführer. As a result, Ehrlich was subjected to additional torture: brought before a group of SS officers holding their loaded guns aimed at him, he was ordered to tell jokes.
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