Ernst Schröder (27 January 1915 – 26 July 1994) was a popular German theatre, film and TV actor.

Life

Born in Herne, Schröder began his acting career at the nearby

Bochum Bochum ( , also , ; wep, Baukem) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia. With a population of 364,920 (2016), is the sixth largest city (after Cologne, Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Essen and Duisburg) of the most populous Germany, German federal state o ...

Theatre in 1934, under the director

Saladin Schmitt Saladin Schmitt (18 September 1883 – 14 March 1951), real name Joseph Anton Schmitt, also active under the pseudonym Harald Hoffmann) was a German theatre director. Life Born in Bingen am Rhein, Schmitt came from a family of wine merchants a ...

. He worked there until 1936, also working as assistant director and Stage Designer. After working at

Bielefeld Bielefeld () is a city in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe Region in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population of 341,755, it is also the most populous city in the administrative region (''Regierungsbezirk'') of Detmold and the ...

and

Wuppertal Wuppertal (; "''Wupper Dale''") is, with a population of approximately 355,000, the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia as well as the 17th-largest city of Germany. It was founded in 1929 by the merger of the cities and to ...

, he moved to the Schiller Theatre in Berlin in 1938, which became his artistic home and the location of his greatest triumphs, particularly after the Second World War. During the war he served briefly in the army, was wounded, and returned to the Schiller Theatre in 1942. When in 1944 the theatre was closed, he returned to serve in the army, and ended the war in Italy as a prisoner. He returned to the theatre in 1946 and rapidly re-established his reputation. He was a member of the jury at the

7th Berlin International Film Festival The 7th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 21 June to 2 July 1957. The International Federation of Film Critics awarded FIPRESCI Award for the first time this year. The Golden Bear was awarded to the American film '' 12 Angr ...

in 1957. He was considered one of the greatest character actors of the German theatre, enjoying larger than life roles. He was frequently compared with the pre-war star

Heinrich George Georg August Friedrich Hermann Schulz (9 October 1893 – 25 September 1946), better known as Heinrich George (), was a German stage and film actor. Career Weimar Republic George is noted for having spooked the young Bertolt Brecht in his first ...

. In addition, he frequently acted in Zurich and

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. Although he concentrated on stage work, both as actor and director, he occasionally appeared in film roles, most notably as German General Hans von Salmuth in the

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film The Longest Day. He achieved broader popularity in the 1970s, appearing more frequently on television, particularly in crime shows like ''

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'' and '' Der Alte''. In 1980, his daughter, the actress Christiane Schröder (18 January 1942 – 17 September 1980), committed suicide by jumping off the

Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the U.S. city of San Francisco, California—the northern tip of the San Francisco Pen ...

in San Francisco. In 1981, he staged a production of Shakespeare's ''

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'' at the

Bad Hersfeld The festival and spa town of Bad Hersfeld (''Bad'' is "spa" in German; the Old High German name of the city was ''Herolfisfeld'') is the district seat of the Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany, roughly 50 km southeast ...

Festival. At the end of the 1980s he returned to television in the role of 'Lauritz Lorentz' in the series of ' (''Lorentz and Sons''). In 1991–92, he appeared as the narrator in a dramatised radio version of ''The Lord of the Rings''. Throughout his career, Schröder also dubbed the voices of popular English-speaking actors into German. Amongst others, he provided the voices for

Charles Boyer Charles Boyer (; 28 August 1899 – 26 August 1978) was a French-American actor who appeared in more than 80 films between 1920 and 1976. After receiving an education in drama, Boyer started on the stage, but he found his success in American fi ...

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor, dancer and film director. On stage and in film, Cagney was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He ...

William Conrad William Conrad (born John William Cann Jr., September 27, 1920 – February 11, 1994) was an American actor, producer, and director whose entertainment career spanned five decades in radio, film, and television, peaking in popularity when he s ...

Rex Harrison Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (5 March 1908 – 2 June 1990) was an English actor. Harrison began his career on the stage in 1924. He made his West End debut in 1936 appearing in the Terence Rattigan play ''French Without Tears'', in what ...

Herbert Lom Herbert Charles Angelo Kuchačevič ze Schluderpacheru (11 September 1917 – 27 September 2012), known professionally as Herbert Lom (), was a Czech-British actor who moved to the United Kingdom in 1939. In a career lasting more than 60 ye ...

Spencer Tracy Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the first actor to win two cons ...

and

Peter Ustinov Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (born Peter Alexander Freiherr von Ustinov ; 16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, filmmaker and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits ...

. At the age of 79, Schröder was diagnosed with cancer at a Berlin hospital. He committed suicide on 26 July 1994 by jumping out of a window.

Theatre

Filmography

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schroder, Ernst 1915 births 1994 deaths Suicides by jumping in Germany German male stage actors German male film actors German male television actors Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany People from Herne, North Rhine-Westphalia 20th-century German male actors 1994 suicides German Army personnel of World War II