Ferenc Zenthe (born Ferenc Rameshofer; 20 April 1920 – 30 July 2006) was a Hungarian actor, honored with being chosen as an Actor of the Nation, the

Kossuth Prize The Kossuth Prize ( hu, Kossuth-díj) is a state-sponsored award in Hungary, named after the Hungarian politician and revolutionist Lajos Kossuth. The Prize was established in 1948 (on occasion of the centenary of the March 15th revolution, the ...

and the

Meritorious Artist Merited Artist of the Russian Federation (russian: link=no, Заслуженный артист Российской Федерации, ''Zasluzhenny artist Rossiyskoy Federatsii'') is an honorary title in the Russian Federation. The title is ...

Award of Hungary. Best known from the historical series '' A Tenkes Kapitánya'' and pioneering soap opera ''

Szomszédok ''Szomszédok'' (''Neighbours'') was a Hungarian television series that ran between 1987–1999 and produced 331 episodes, airing its grand finale on December 31, 1999. The series aired on state-owned broadcaster Magyar Televízió (Hungarian Tele ...

'', he was regarded as one of the great talents of his generation.

Life and career

Ferenc Zenthe was born on 20 April 1920 in Salgóbánya (now part of

Salgótarján Salgótarján (; sk, Šalgotarján) is city with county rights in Hungary, the capital of Nógrád county, north-eastern Hungary, making it the third smallest county capital based on population. The nearby Salgó castle is a well-known tourist ...

) as the only son of a 50-year-old mining engineer. He attended the Cistercian high school of

Eger Eger ( , ; ; also known by other alternative names) is the county seat of Heves County, and the second largest city in Northern Hungary (after Miskolc). A city with county rights. Eger is best known for its castle, thermal baths, baroque bui ...

, then attended four semesters in the University of Economics in Budapest, which he left to join the Academy of Performing Arts in 1941, but ended his studies after one year because of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He joined the National Theatre of Pécs in 1945, and after two seasons, the Kisfaludy Theatre of Győr (now the

National Theatre of Győr The National Theatre of Győr is a theatre in Győr, Hungary. Opened on 2 November 1978, it is the main theatre of the Győr-Moson-Sopron region. Until January 1, 1992, it bore the name Kisfaludy Károly Theatre. In 2008 the number of visitors w ...

). In 1949 he joined the Csokonai Theatre of Debrecen, and in 1952 the Madách Theatre of Budapest, where he stayed for the rest of his life. Beloved by the audience from the start of his career, he received numerous film and television roles in the restarting Hungarian film industry. His first role was the one of army general Sándor Nagy in ''Föltámadott a Tenger'', then the leading role of ''Rákóczi hadnagya''. This followed a series of romantic/comedic roles: a ''Kétszer kettő néha 5'', ''Mese a 12 találatról'', ''Kölyök'', ''Fapados szerelem''. In 1963 he got the leading role of the first series produced by the Hungarian Television: ''A Tenkes kapitánya'' (The Captain of Tenkes). As the leery Máté Eke in one of the greatest success of early Hungarian television, Zenthe's fame grew potentially. He led the cast of the

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology) ...

-nominated ''

The Revolt of Job ''The Revolt of Job'' ( hu, Jób lázadása) is a 1983 Hungarian film directed by Imre Gyöngyössy and Barna Kabay. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Lackó is a Hungarian orphan whom a Jewish couple adopts. ...

'' in 1983. Beside movies and stage roles, he was mainly known from TV series like ''Tüskevár'', ''Fekete Város'', ''Bors'', and particularly ''

'': from 1987, he formed the grumbling old taxi driver Uncle Taki in the first sitcom of the Hungarian Television, which achieved cult status in its 12-year run. Ferenc Zenthe also performed numerous voiceovers, and was the cast member of Europe's longest running radio play, ''Szabó család'', for which he recorded scenes even from his deathbed . Ferenc Zenthe died of pneumonia on 30 July 2006, and was buried in the

Farkasréti Cemetery Farkasréti Cemetery or Farkasrét Cemetery ( hu, Farkasréti temető) is one of the most famous cemeteries in Budapest. It opened in 1894 and is noted for its extensive views of the city (several people wanted it more to be a resort area than a c ...

Awards

* 1954, 1968

Jászai Mari Award The Jászai Mari Award is a state award, which was created by the Hungarian government in 1953 as an award for theatrical arts. The award was named in honour of the Hungarian actress Mari Jászai. It originally ran, from 1955 to 1976, and was aw ...

* 1975 Merited Artist Award * 1984 Award of Film Critics * 1989 Distinguished Artist Award * 1992 Erzsébet Award * 1993 Award of the Hungarian Actor's Guild * 1995 Order of Merit of the Hungarian Republic, Officer's Cross * 1997

* 2000 Honorary citizenship in

Siklós Siklós ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=/, Šikloš, Шиклош) is the 4th largest town in Baranya county, Hungary. The Malkocs Bey Mosque was built by the order of the Malkoçoğlu family. Notable people *George Mikes, British author most famous ...

* 2003 Honorary citizenship in his hometown of

* 2005 Hungarian Heritage Award * 2005 Actor of the Hungarian Nation

Filmography

* ''Rákóczi hadnagya'' (1953) * ''Föltámadott a tenger'' (1953) * ''Kétszer kettő néha 5'' (1954) * ''Gábor diák'' (1955) * ''Mese a 12 találatról'' (1956) * ''A nagyrozsdási eset'' (1957) * ''Csendes otthon'' (1957) * ''Szerelem csütörtök'' (1959) * ''Kard és kocka'' (1959) * ''Kölyök'' (1959) * ''Fapados szerelem'' (1960) * ''Az arc nélküli város'' (1960) * ''Alázatosan jelentem!'' (1960) * ''Felmegyek a miniszterhez'' (1961) * ''Jó utat autóbusz!'' (1961) * ''Különös tárgyalás'' (1961) * ''Mindenki gyanús'' (1961) * ''Angyalok földjén'' (1962) * ''Meztelen diplomata'' (1963) * ''Tücsök'' (1963) * ''Hivatalos utazás'' (1963) * ''Lajos király válik ''(1964) * ''Játék a múzeumban'' (1965) * ''Két találkozás'' (1965) * ''Patyolat akció'' (1965) * ''A férfi egészen más'' (1966) * ''Énekesmadár'' (1967) * ''Egri csillagok'' (1968) * ''A beszélő köntös'' (1968) * ''Szemüvegesek'' (1968) * ''Legenda a páncélvonatról'' (1969) * ''Az örökös'' (1969) * ''Őrjárat az égen'' (1969) * ''Végállomás, kiszállni!'' (1970) * ''A gyilkos a házban van'' (1970) * ''Márton bátyám'' (1970) * ''Vargabetű'' (1970) * ''Hahó Öcsi!'' (1970) * ''Vidám elefántkór'' (1970) * ''Tisztújítás'' (1970) * ''Valaki a sötétből'' (1970) * ''Játék olasz módra'' (1970) * ''Barátság'' (1970) * ''Jó estét nyár, jó estét szerelem!'' (1971) * ''Fegyház a körúton'' (1971) * ''Remetekan'' (1971) * ''Öngyilkos'' (1971) * ''Fuss, hogy utolérjenek'' (1972) * ''Az ördög cimborája'' (1972) * ''Romantika'' (1972) * ''Illatos út a semmibe'' (1972) * ''A vőlegény nyolckor érkezik'' (1972) * ''Irgalom (1973) * ''Egy szerelem három éjszakája'' (1973) * ''A törökfejes kopja'' (1973) * ''Egy srác fehér lovon'' (1973) * ''Bekötött szemmel'' (1974) * ''Csata a hóban'' (1975) * ''A méla tempefői'' (1975) * ''A tragédia próbája'' (1975) * ''Beszterce ostroma'' (1976) * ''Csaló az üveghegyen'' (1976) * ''Robog az úthenger'' (1976) * ''Utolsó a padban'' (1976) * ''Sir John Falstaff'' (1977) * ''Családi kör'' (1977) * ''Mire megvénülünk'' (1978) * ''A világ közepe'' (1979) * ''Égigérő fű'' (1979) * ''A világ közepe'' (1979) * ''Petőfi'' (1980) * ''A Pogány Madonna'' (1980) * ''A névtelen vár'' (1981) * ''Csak semmi pánik'' (1982) * ''Különös házasság'' (1983) * '' Jób lázadása'' (1983) * ''Erdő'' (1984) * ''Megfelelő ember kényes feladatra'' (1984) * ''Leányvásár'' (1984) * ''Utazás az öreg autóval'' (1985) * ''A három nővér'' (1985) * ''Az elvarázsolt dollár'' (1985) * ''II. József'' (1985) * ''A csodakarikás'' (1986) * ''A fantasztikus nagynéni'' (1986) * ''Gyökér és vadvirág'' (1987) * ''Halál sekély vízben'' (1993) * ''Európa messze van'' (1994) * ''Komédiások'' (2000) * ''Zsaruvér és Csigavér I.: A királyné nyakéke'' (2001) * ''Csocsó, avagy éljen május elseje!'' (2001) * ''Zsaruvér és Csigavér II.: Több tonna kámfor'' (2002) * ''Magyar vándor'' (2004)

Television Series

* ''A Tenkes kapitánya'' (1963) * ''Princ, a katona'' (1966) * ''Oly korban éltünk'' (1966) * ''Tüskevár'' (1967) * ''Őrjárat az égen'' (1969) * ''Bors'' (1968) * ''Rózsa Sándor'' (1970) * ''A fekete város'' (1971) * ''Vivát, Benyovszky!'' (1975) * ''

'' (1987-1999) * ''Kerek világ'' (1988) * ''Komédiások'' (2000) * ''Sobri'' (2003)

References

External links