BERSTL, JULIUS

(Gordon Mitchell, pseud., 1893-1975)

   Playwright, dramaturg. Berstl began working as a dramaturg in the Wilhelmine period, first at the Kleines Theater in Berlin (1909-1913), then at the Lessing. After military service, Berstl worked for Viktor Barnowsky beginning in 1919. Berstl's successes as a playwright included Dover-Calais (1926), Scribbys Suppen sind die Besten (Scribby's Soups Are the Best, 1929), Napi (1930), and Penelope (1930). Alongside his theater activities, he worked extensively in the dramatic publishing business at the Drei Masken Verlag and later became part-owner of the Gustav Kiepenheuer publishing firm. Berstl emigrated to London in 1936 and wrote radio drama in English for the BBC under the name Gordon Mitchell.