Arne Elsholtz (August 14, 1944 – April 26, 2016) was a German voice actor and dialogue director. He was one of the most well-known dubbing actors in Germany and he was also responsible for directing the German dubs of some international productions.

Biography

Elsholtz was born in Pritzwalk to actors

Peter Elsholtz Peter Ludwig Wilhelm Elsholtz (20 October 1907 – 30 August 1977) was a German stage and film actor.Giesen p.193 Selected filmography * ''The Castle in Flanders'' (1936) * ''Truxa'' (1937) * '' The Ruler'' (1937) * ''Ride to Freedom'' (1937) * ...

and Karin Vielmetter and he was the younger brother of actress Edith Elsholtz. Due to the connections his father had in the acting industry, Elsholtz began training as an actor with Marlise Ludwig in Berlin, where he would later act on stage. He eventually found a talent for dubbing and directing voices since 1964 and he quickly built up a reputation as one of the most powerful voice dubbers in Germany. Among the actors he dubbed included

Tom Hanks Thomas Jeffrey Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. Known for both his comedic and dramatic roles, he is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide, and is regarded as an American cultural icon. Ha ...

, Bill Murray,

Jeff Goldblum Jeffrey Lynn Goldblum (; born October 22, 1952) is an American actor and musician. He has starred in some of the highest-grossing films of his era, such as ''Jurassic Park'' (1993) and '' Independence Day'' (1996), as well as their sequels. ...

Kevin Kline Kevin Delaney Kline (born October 24, 1947) is an American actor. He is the recipient of an Academy Award and three Tony Awards. In addition, he has received nominations for two British Academy Film Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and five ...

and

Eric Idle Eric Idle (born 29 March 1943) is an English actor, comedian, musician and writer. Idle was a member of the British surreal comedy group Monty Python and the parody rock band The Rutles, and is the writer of the music and lyrics for the Broadwa ...

. Elsholtz dubbed Hanks in his award-winning performances, which includes ''

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

'' and ''

Forrest Gump ''Forrest Gump'' is a 1994 American comedy-drama film directed by Robert Zemeckis and written by Eric Roth. It is based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom and stars Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Mykelti Williamson and ...

''. His other roles include Steve Guttenberg and Matt McCoy's roles in the ''

Police Academy A police academy, also known as a law enforcement training center, police college, or police university, is a training school for police cadets, designed to prepare them for the law enforcement agency they will be joining upon graduation, or othe ...

'' films. He also dubbed Joseph Marcell's role as Geoffrey Butler in ''

The Fresh Prince of Bel Air ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' is an American television sitcom created by Andy and Susan Borowitz for NBC. It aired from September 10, 1990, to May 20, 1996. The series stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart t ...

'' (from which he also served as a dialogue director) and

Sam Hui Samuel Hui Koon-kit (born 6 September 1948), usually known as Sam Hui, is a Hong Kong musician, singer, songwriter and actor. He is credited with popularising Cantopop both via the infusion of Western-style music and his usage of vernacular Cantone ...

as King Kong in '' Aces Go Places''. He dubbed many of Eric Idle's roles in many of the

Monty Python Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four ...

films. In Elsholtz's animated dub roles, he provided the German voice of

Manny Manny is a common nickname for people with the given name Manuel, Emanuele, Immanuel, Emmanuel, Herman, or Manfred. People * Manny Acosta (born 1981), Panamanian pitcher in the Mexican Baseball League * Manny Acta (born 1969), Dominican Major ...

in the ''

Ice Age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gree ...

'' films (excluding the fifth film, as he passed away before the German dub production was complete) and

Hades Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...

in the 1997 Disney film ''

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

'' and the subsequent

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

as well as Lord Macintosh in '' Brave'' and Tom Hanks' characters in '' The Polar Express''. As a voice director, Elsholtz had directed the German voice dubs of many foreign films and television shows. These include '' The Godfather Saga'', '' The Empire Strikes Back'', '' Return of the Jedi'', ''

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (or simply ''E.T.'') is a 1982 American science fiction film produced and directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Melissa Mathison. It tells the story of Elliott, a boy who befriends an extraterrestrial, d ...

'' and many more. His career was an actor was rare, but he had on-screen appearances on ''

Escape from East Berlin ''Escape from East Berlin'' is a 1962 American-West German thriller film directed by Robert Siodmak and starring Don Murray, Christine Kaufmann and Werner Klemperer. It was shot at the Tempelhof Studios in Berlin. The film's sets were designed ...

''. He also served as a commentator and announcer for commercials and radio shows such as

Verona Pooth Verona Pooth (née Feldbusch; born 30 April 1968) is a German television personality, model, and occasional actress. In 1993, she was Miss Germany and Miss Intercontinental and represented Germany at the Miss Universe 1993 contest. Early life ...

Sat.1 Sat.1 is a German free-to-air television channel that is a part of the ProSiebenSat.1 Media Group. It is considered the first privately owned television network in Germany, having been launched in January 1984 as ''PKS'' ''(Programmgesellschaf ...

variety show. From 2001 until 2003, he provided the German commentary for the '' Wer wird Millionär?'' video games.

Death

Elsholtz died in a Berlin hospital on April 26, 2016, at the age of 71. He was survived by his daughter, Sissi.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Elsholtz, Arne 1944 births 2016 deaths People from Pritzwalk German male voice actors German male stage actors German male radio actors German male television actors German male film actors German voice directors 20th-century German male actors 21st-century German male actors