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The Reichskulturkammer (RKK or State Chamber of Culture) was a very complex and important department of the German government. Without exception, anyone and everyone involved in "all forms of artistic creation or activity which are made public, appear in print or are transmitted through the air" were required to be members and carry an identification card from one of the chambers of the Reichskulturkammer in order to be employed anywhere in Germany, or German occupied territory.

This is the original late-war Third Reich Mitglieds Ausweis or membership identity document issued to the owner of the Capitol movie theater in Dortmund, Hermann Wagenknecht. He was a member of the Fachgruppe Film (Professional Group Movies) of the Reichsfilmkammer (State Movie Chamber) of the Reichskulturkammer.

This rare 3-3/4 x 5-3/8 inch 4-panel green cardstock ID was issued to Wagenknecht on 19 October 1944 and shows his movie theater had 362 “police approved” seats. While the ID was officially issued in Berlin, Wagenknecht’s Fachgruppe Filmtheater was part of the RKK chapter Düsseldorf.

On panel 3 of this rare Nazi ID there are 12 preprinted 30 x 30 mm spaces for the signature of a local leader of the RKK chapter in question, showing that every year Hermann Wagenknecht’s membership in the RKK Fachgruppe Film had to be approved. It is interesting to note that the years this ID could be used was from 1943 until 1954! This RKK membership ID was issued to Wagenknecht’s in 1944 and that is the only year he used it. Since the city of Dortmund was the target of heavy Allied bombing in 1944, we suspect that the Capitol movie theater may have gone out of business.

This original 80+ year old Nazi Reichsfilmkammer membership identity document is in very nice condition, exactly as shown. We have never seen another RKK membership ID for a movie theater owner. It is very rare!

Those chambers included the Motion Picture Chamber, the Chamber of Visual Arts, the Literature Chamber, Press Chamber, Theater Chamber, Music Chamber and Radio Chamber. The Presidents of each chamber formed a National Advisory Committee which was supplemented by a Reich Culture Senate composed of "persons of outstanding cultural attainments". Along with Dr. Joseph Goebbels, the Reichsminister für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda (State Minister for National Community Clarification and Publicity), these people oversaw every aspect of everything that got into print or was performed in Nazi Germany.