Editing Michael Curtiz (section)

=== Actor ===
Curtiz became attracted to the theater when he was a child in Hungary. He built a little theatre in the cellar of his family home when he was 8 years old, where he and five of his friends re-enacted plays. They set up the stage, with scenery and props, and Curtiz directed them.

After he graduated from college at age 19, he took a job as an actor with a travelling theatre company, where he began working as one their [[Strolling players|travelling players]].<ref name=Kingsley /> From that job, he became a pantomimist with a circus for a while, but then returned to join another group of travelling players for a few more years. They played [[Ibsen]] and [[Shakespeare]] in various languages, depending on what country they were in. They performed throughout Europe, including France, Hungary, Italy, and Germany, and he eventually learned five languages.<ref name=Kingsley /> He had various responsibilities:
{{blockquote|We had to do everything{{mdash}}make bill posters, print programmes, set scenery, mend wardrobe, sometimes even arrange chairs in the auditoriums. Sometimes we travelled in trains, sometimes in stage coaches, sometimes on horseback. Sometimes we played in town halls, sometimes in little restaurants with no scenery at all. Sometimes we gave shows out of doors. Those strolling actors were the kindest-hearted people I have ever known. They would do anything for each other.<ref name=Kingsley>Kingsley, Grace. "Troupers Know Life: Strolling Players in Europe Lead Life of Romance, Says Curtiz, Warner Director", ''Los Angeles Times'', September 25, 1927, p. 15</ref>}}