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René Giessen
René Giessen (born 24 December 1944, Prague) is a German musician, composer and conductor. Giessen is widely known for playing the harmonica in various cover-versions of the title melody of famous German Winnetou-movies from the 1960s starring Pierre Brice and Lex Barker. This melody was composed by German composer Martin Böttcher and originally was played by Johnny Müller. At the time the original themes from the Karl May movies were published they held top positions in the German charts and can be considered a landmark in German film music history. The success of these movies originated a whole new genre later known as the "Spaghetti Westerns" where once again the harmonica plays a dominant role (there is even a character by the name of Harmonica in Sergio Leone's movie ''Once Upon a Time in the West ''Once Upon a Time in the West'' ( , "Once upon a time (there was) the West") is a 1968 epic Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone, who co-wrote it with Se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate oceanic climate, with relatively warm summers and chilly winters. Prague is a political, cultural, and economic hub of central Europe, with a rich history and Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architectures. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Bohemia and residence of several Holy Roman Emperors, most notably Charles IV (r. 1346–1378). It was an important city to the Habsburg monarchy and Austro-Hungarian Empire. The city played major roles in the Bohemian and the Protestant Reformations, the Thirty Years' War and in 20th-century history as the capital of Czechoslovakia between the World Wars and the post-war Communist era. Prague is home to a number of well-known cultural attractions, many of which survived the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johnny Müller
Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females. Variant forms of Johnny include Johnnie, Johnney, Johnni and Johni. The masculine Johnny can be rendered into Scottish Gaelic as . Notable people and characters named Johnny or Johnnie include: People Johnny * Johnny Adams (born 1932), American singer * Johnny Aba (born 1956), Papua New Guinean professional boxer * Johnny Abarrientos (born 1970), Filipino professional basketball player * Johnny Abbes García (1924–1967), chief of the government intelligence office of the Dominican Republic * Johnny Abel (1947–1995), Canadian politician * Johnny Abrego (born 1962), former Major League baseball player * Johnny Ace (1929–1954), American rhythm and blues singer * John Laurinaitis, (born 1962) also known as Johnny Ace, American wrestler an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1944 Births
Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free France, Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command First Army (France), French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in North Africa. ** Landing at Saidor: 13,000 US and Australian troops land on Papua New Guinea, in an attempt to cut off a Japanese retreat. * January 8 – WWII: Philippine Commonwealth troops enter the province of Ilocos Sur in northern Luzon and attack Japanese forces. * January 11 ** President of the United States Franklin D. Roosevelt proposes a Second Bill of Rights for social and economic security, in his State of the Union address. ** The Nazi German administration expands Kraków-Płaszów concentration camp into the larger standalone ''Konzentrationslager Plaszow bei Krakau'' in occupied Poland. * January 12 – WWII: Winston Churchill and Charles de Gaulle begin a 2-day conference in Marrakech ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ennio Morricone
Ennio Morricone (; 10 November 19286 July 2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and trumpeter who wrote music in a wide range of styles. With more than 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as more than 100 classical works, Morricone is widely considered one of the most prolific and greatest film composers of all time. His filmography includes more than 70 award-winning films, all Sergio Leone's films since ''A Fistful of Dollars'', all Giuseppe Tornatore's films since '' Cinema Paradiso'', ''The Battle of Algiers'', Dario Argento's ''Animal Trilogy'', ''1900'', '' Exorcist II'', ''Days of Heaven'', several major films in French cinema, in particular the comedy trilogy '' La Cage aux Folles I'', '' II'', '' III'' and ''Le Professionnel'', as well as '' The Thing'', ''Once Upon a Time in America'', '' The Mission'', ''The Untouchables'', ''Mission to Mars'', '' Bugsy'', ''Disclosure'', ''In the Line of Fire'', ''Bulworth'', ''Ripley's Game'', and ''Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Once Upon A Time In The West
''Once Upon a Time in the West'' ( , "Once upon a time (there was) the West") is a 1968 epic Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone, who co-wrote it with Sergio Donati based on a story by Dario Argento, Bernardo Bertolucci, and Leone. It stars Henry Fonda, cast against type as the villain, Charles Bronson as his nemesis, Jason Robards as a bandit, and Claudia Cardinale as a newly widowed homesteader. The widescreen cinematography was by Tonino Delli Colli, and the acclaimed film score was by Ennio Morricone. After directing ''The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'', Leone decided to retire from Westerns and aimed to produce his film based on the novel '' The Hoods'', which eventually became ''Once Upon a Time in America''. However, Leone accepted an offer from Paramount Pictures providing Henry Fonda and a budget to produce another Western. He recruited Bertolucci and Argento to devise the plot of the film in 1966, researching other Western films in the process. After Clint ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sergio Leone
Sergio Leone (; 3 January 1929 – 30 April 1989) was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter credited as the pioneer of the Spaghetti Western genre and widely regarded as one of the most influential directors in the history of cinema. Leone's film-making style includes juxtaposing extreme close-up shots with lengthy long shots. His movies include the ''Dollars Trilogy'' of Westerns featuring Clint Eastwood: ''A Fistful of Dollars'' (1964), '' For a Few Dollars More'' (1965), and ''The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'' (1966); and the ''Once Upon a Time'' films: ''Once Upon a Time in the West'' (1968), ''Duck, You Sucker!'' (1971), and ''Once Upon a Time in America'' (1984). Early life Born on 3 January 1929 in Rome, Leone was the son of the cinema pioneer Vincenzo Leone (known as director Roberto Roberti or Leone Roberto Roberti) and silent film actress Edvige Valcarenghi (Bice Valerian). During his schooldays, Leone was a classmate of his later musical collabora ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spaghetti Westerns
The Spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's film-making style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most of these Westerns were produced and directed by Italians. Leone's films and other core Spaghetti Westerns are often described as having eschewed, criticized, or even "demythologized" many of the conventions of traditional U.S. Westerns. This was partly intentional and partly the context of a different cultural background. Terminology According to veteran Spaghetti Western actor Aldo Sambrell, the phrase "Spaghetti Western" was coined by Spanish journalist Alfonso Sánchez in reference to the Italian food spaghetti. Spaghetti Westerns are also known as Italian Westerns or, primarily in Japan, Macaroni Westerns. In Italy, the genre is typically referred to as western all'italiana (Italian-style Western). Italo-Western is also used, espec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karl May Movies
Karl May film adaptations are films based on stories and characters by German author Karl May (1842–1912). The characters Old Shatterhand, Winnetou, and Kara Ben Nemsi are very famous in Central Europe. In most of the film versions the novels were reworked to a great extent, some movies using only the names of characters invented by Karl May. For example, in the book ''Der Schatz im Silbersee'' (''The Treasure of Silver Lake'') the main character was called "Old Firehand" – in the movie he was renamed "Old Shatterhand" (played by American actor Lex Barker) after the more famous character. The movies ''Old Shatterhand'' (''Apaches' Last Battle'') and ''Winnetou and Old Firehand'' (''Thunder at the Border'') are not based on any of May's works, but were completely invented by the screenwriters. Several TV productions, such as ''Das Buschgespenst'' and ''Kara Ben Nemsi Effendi'', were much closer to the novels. In foreign distribution, most of the movie titles were not translate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Martin Böttcher
Martin Böttcher (17 June 1927 – 20 April 2019) was a German composer, arranger and conductor. The beginning Böttcher (on foreign records and articles often written "Bottcher" or "Boettcher", the latter being the correct transliteration of the German umlaut "ö") began taking piano lessons at an early age. But his first passion was flying, and he wanted to become a test pilot. Not yet seventeen years old, he got his military training in the German Luftwaffe. However, due to lack of fuel, he never went into action. As a prisoner of war, Böttcher managed to get hold of a guitar and taught himself to play it. Following his release from captivity, he went to Hamburg. There he started his musical career with the then ''Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk'', in the dance and entertainment orchestra which had been newly founded by ''Willi Steiner'', and which was held in high esteem in England. He also gained important experience as an arranger for film composers, among them Michael Jary an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musician
A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who write both music and lyrics for songs, conductors who direct a musical performance, or performers who perform for an audience. A music performer is generally either a singer who provides vocals or an instrumentalist who plays a musical instrument. Musicians may perform on their own or as part of a group, band or orchestra. Musicians specialize in a musical style, and some musicians play in a variety of different styles depending on cultures and background. A musician who records and releases music can be known as a recording artist. Types Composer A composer is a musician who creates musical compositions. The title is principally used for those who write classical music or film music. Those who write the music for popular songs may b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lex Barker
Alexander Crichlow Barker Jr. (May 8, 1919 – May 11, 1973), known as Lex Barker, was an American actor. He was known for playing Tarzan for RKO Pictures between 1949 and 1953, and portraying leading characters from Karl May's novels, notably as Old Shatterhand in a film series by the West German studio Constantin Film. At the height of his fame, he was one of the most popular actors in German-speaking cinema, and received Bambi Award and Bravo Otto nominations for the honor. Early life Barker was born in Rye, New York, the second child of Alexander Crichlow Barker Sr., a wealthy Canadian-born building contractor and stockbroker, and his American wife, the former Marion Thornton Beals. He had an elder sister, Frederica Amelia "Freddie" Barlow (1917–1980). Raised in New York City and Port Chester, New York, he attended the Fessenden School and graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy. He played American football and the oboe. He attended Princeton University, but dropped out to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pierre Brice
Pierre-Louis Le Bris (6 February 1929 – 6 June 2015), known as Pierre Brice, was a French actor, best known as portraying fictional Apache-chief Winnetou in German films based on Karl May novels. Life and films Brice was born in Brest, Brittany, France. When he was 19, Brice enlisted in the French Army and fought in the First Indochina War. While patrolling in Indochina, one of his team triggered a mine and its explosion sent Brice whirling through the air, but left him virtually unhurt. Member of the Commandos Marine, special forces units of the French Navy, he served later as a paratrooper during the Algerian War. From 1962 to 1968 he acted in a total of eleven West German Western movies adapted from novels by German author Karl May, in which he played the fictional Native American chief Winnetou of the Mescalero Apache tribe, alongside Lex Barker (7 movies), Stewart Granger (3 movies) and Rod Cameron (1 movie) as co-stars. After the films he also played this role at t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
