Helmut Qualtinger (; 8 October 1928 – 29 September 1986; alt. sp.: ''Helmuth Qualtinger''; birthname: ''Helmut Gustav Friedrich Qualtinger'') was an

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

, writer, reciter and

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

performer.

Biography

He was born Helmut Gustav Friedrich Qualtinger in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

First Austrian Republic The First Austrian Republic (german: Erste Österreichische Republik), officially the Republic of Austria, was created after the signing of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye on 10 September 1919—the settlement after the end of World War I w ...

to a

secondary education Secondary education or post-primary education covers two phases on the International Standard Classification of Education scale. Level 2 or lower secondary education (less commonly junior secondary education) is considered the second and final pha ...

teacher and his wife, stemming from the bourgeoise class of the

Bildungsbürgertum ''Bildungsbürgertum'' () is a social class that emerged in mid-18th-century Germany, as the educated social stratum of the bourgeoisie, men and women who had received an education based upon the metaphysical values of Idealism and Classical s ...

, his father being a follower of the German

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

movement. While at school Qualtinger's interest in literature and acting became obvious and he founded a youth theater as a pupil. Afterwards he initially studied medicine and literature, but quit university to become a newspaper reporter and film critic for local press, while beginning to write his own texts for cabaret performances and theater plays. Qualtinger continued as an actor at student theaters and

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...

s and attended the

Max Reinhardt Seminar The Max Reinhardt Seminar (Reinhardt Seminar) is the School of Drama at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, Austria. It is located in the Palais Cumberland, Penzingerstraße 9, in Vienna's 14th district (). History A ''Lehr ...

as a guest student.

Cabaret

Beginning in 1947, he appeared in cabaret performances. In 1949, Qualtinger's first theatrical play, ''Jugend vor den Schranken'' (Youth in front of Barriers), was staged in

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

and caused furor for portraying teenagers and their rebellious behaviour. Up to 1961, Qualtinger collaborated on various cabaret programmes with the ''Namenlosen Ensemble'' (Nameless Ensemble, founded 1952) made up of

Gerhard Bronner Gerhard Bronner (23 October 1922 in Favoriten, Vienna – 19 January 2007 in Vienna) was an Austrian composer, writer, musician and a cabaret artist, known for his contribution to Austrian culture in the post-World War II period. Life Born t ...

, Carl Merz,

Louise Martini Louise or Luise may refer to: * Louise (given name) Arts Songs * "Louise" (Bonnie Tyler song), 2005 * "Louise" (The Human League song), 1984 * "Louise" (Jett Rebel song), 2013 * "Louise" (Maurice Chevalier song), 1929 *"Louise", by Clan of ...

, Peter Wehle,

Georg Kreisler Georg Kreisler (18 July 1922 – 22 November 2011) was an Austrian–American Viennese-language cabarettist, satirist, composer, and author. He was particularly popular in the 1950s and 1960s. From 2007 he lived in Salzburg, Austria, with his fou ...

, and

Michael Kehlmann Michael Kehlmann (21 September 1927 – 1 December 2005) was an Austrian television film director and theatre director, screenwriter and actor. During 1951–1953, Kehlmann was the manager of the "Kleines Theater im Konzerthaus", Vienna. He was awa ...

. He also continued to write commentaries, mostly satirical, for Austrian news papers e.g. from 1955 to 1961 for the

Kurier ''Kurier'' is a German-language daily newspaper based in Vienna, Austria. History and profile ''Kurier'' was founded as ''Wiener Kurier'' by the United States Forces in Austria (USFA) in 1945, during the Allied occupation after World War II. ...

together with his acting colleague Carl Merz. The chansons presented in these cabaret revues, for example ''„Papa wird's scho richten“'' (Daddy's gonna fix it), and his ''„Travnicek dialogs“'' with Bronner became (in)famous to the history of Austrian cabaret. Mr. Travnicek is a typical ''little man'' character, mostly in a bad mood. He is asked questions only to reveal his odd, sometimes misanthropic views on things going on.

Acting

Qualtinger also played several serious theater, TV and film parts, the film ''Kurzer Prozess'' and the ''Alpensaga'' TV series were among those well received. The short one-man play '' Der Herr Karl'', which was written by Qualtinger and Merz, broadcast on Austrian TV in 1961 with Qualtinger playing the lead character and later on also performed on stage, made him well known across German-speaking countries. " Herr Karl", a grocery store clerk, is telling the story of his life and deeds to an imaginary colleague (the camera/spectator) – from the days of the

after the end of the

Habsburg empire The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...

(1918), leading up to the transformation into the Austrofascist regime (1934) and the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...

(annexation) by

Germany (1938), followed by

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 opposin ...

and finally the occupation by Allied forces until the mid-1950s, seen from the perspective of one who is a prototypical opportunist. Qualtinger's portrayal of the

petit-bourgeois ''Petite bourgeoisie'' (, literally 'small bourgeoisie'; also anglicised as petty bourgeoisie) is a French term that refers to a social class composed of semi-autonomous peasants and small-scale merchants whose politico-economic ideological s ...

collaborator came at a time when "normality" had just been restored and involvement of Austrians in the fascist and later Nazi movements was being downplayed and wished to be "forgotten", causing a stir and many enemies for the authors, Qualtinger even received anonymous threats of murder for his part as "Mr. Everyman" as a hanger-on. Already seriously ill, he made his final acting appearance in 1986 as the heretic monk "Remigio da Varagine" in ''

The Name of the Rose ''The Name of the Rose'' ( it, Il nome della rosa ) is the 1980 debut novel by Italian author Umberto Eco. It is a historical murder mystery set in an Italian monastery in the year 1327, and an intellectual mystery combining semiotics in fiction, ...

'', along with

Sean Connery Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...

and

F. Murray Abraham F. Murray Abraham (born Murray Abraham; October 24, 1939) is an American actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen, he came to prominence for his acclaimed leading role as Antonio Salieri in the drama film '' Amadeus'' (1984) for which he wo ...

Recitations

Beginning with the 1970s, Qualtinger frequently performed recital tours of his own and other texts, including excerpts from

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

's ''

Mein Kampf (; ''My Struggle'' or ''My Battle'') is a 1925 autobiographical manifesto by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler. The work describes the process by which Hitler became antisemitic and outlines his political ideology and future plans for Germ ...

'' and Karl Kraus' ''Die letzten Tage der Menschheit'' (

The Last Days of Mankind ''The Last Days of Mankind'' (german: Die letzten Tage der Menschheit) is a satirical play by Karl Kraus. It is considered one of the most important of Kraus's works. One third of the play is drawn from documentary sources and is highly realist ...

). His recitals were very popular and resulted in several records being published.

Pranks

Qualtinger was also known for his, sometimes crude,

practical joke A practical joke, or prank, is a mischievous trick played on someone, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. ...

s. In May 1945 just as the Second World War had ended he staged a confiscation of a mansion as an "appointed Commissioner for Culture", using a self-signed letter of authorization and a "

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

Star" symbol on his clothing for legitimation. Qualtinger intended to found a theater and was about to recruit actors when his coup was uncovered and he was jailed for three months by the Soviet occupation force. In 1951, he managed to launch a false report in several newspapers, a so-called ''canard'' (germ. "Zeitungsente"), announcing the visit of a (fictional) famous

Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...

poet named ''Kobuk'' (author of "The Burning Igloo") to Vienna. Reporters who assembled at the railway station however were to witness the "Inuit poet", in fur coat and cap, stepping from the train. Asked about his "first impressions of Vienna", Qualtinger commented in broad Viennese dialect, ''"Haaß is's do (It's hot here)!"'' Helmut Qualtinger died in Vienna on 29 September 1986, of a

liver The liver is a major Organ (anatomy), organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the Protein biosynthesis, synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for ...

condition.

Filmography

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Qualtinger, Helmut 1928 births 1986 deaths Austrian male film actors Austrian male stage actors Austrian male television actors Austrian male writers Burials at the Vienna Central Cemetery Kabarettists Writers from Vienna Male actors from Vienna Deaths from liver disease 20th-century Austrian male actors German Film Award winners