Kurt Großkurth

Kurt Großkurth (or Grosskurth; 11 May 1909 – 29 May 1975) was a German actor and singer.

Biography

Grosskurth was born in Langenselbold, Germany, in 1909.

He grew up in Rhineland-Palatinate. In the 1920s, he followed his father's wish and went on to study hotel management in Essen, London and Heidelberg. In the early 1930s, he discovered his passion for the stage and he picked up acting and singing in Bavaria. He quickly started performing as a singer, mostly around the Munich area, and guest starred as a tenor in Hamburg and Berlin. After the war, he got hired by several theaters and performed in operettas in Düsseldorf, Munich and Cologne, repeatedly directed by star conductor Franz Marszalek. As the 50s rolled along, he became a familiar movie figure throughout the country. He appeared as a supporting act in a considerable number of productions, which consisted mainly of lighthearted comedies and operettas. Although never seen in a lead role, he performed alongside virtually all of the major actors from post-war Germany. His entire film career spans over ninety movie and TV productions from 1949 to 1975. Several times within two decades, he appeared in the cast of five or six movies coming out the same year. He played the recurring character of a mayor in a popular TV series in the 60s, he could be heard on the radio, and with the 70s came burgeoning international recognition as he landed small roles in major productions. He plays parts in Luchino Visconti's '' Ludwig'' as well as in Edward Dymytryk's ''Bluebeard'' and in the French George Franju movie ''La ligne d'ombre''. He's also part of the cast in Hollywood classic ''Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory'', although his portrayal of character Harold Gloop, a stereotypical thick butcher, remains uncredited.

Death

Großkurth died in Bad Aibling, Germany, shortly after his 66th birthday, on 29 May 1975, from a traffic accident.

His urn stands on the cemetery wall of Grünwald, near Munich.

Filmography

*1950: ''Wedding with Erika'' as Jakob
*1952: ''The Smugglers' Banquet'' as Dikke Charles
*1953: ''Arlette Conquers Paris'' as Kommissar
*1953: '' The Divorcée'' (uncredited)
*1953: ''The Night Without Morals''
*1953: ''The Little Town Will Go to Sleep''
*1954: ''Rose-Girl Resli''
*1954: '' Daybreak''
*1954: '' Hoheit lassen bitten'' as Ahlsen
*1954: ''Sun Over the Adriatic'' as Ronic
*1955: '' The Spanish Fly'' as Hartmann
*1955: '' Love's Carnival'' as Nachtportier
*1956: ''Magic Fire'' as Magdeburg Theatre Manager
*1956: ' as Direktor Otto
*1956: '' Holiday am Wörthersee'' as Mr. Groß, Hotelkönig aus Chicago
*1956: '' Karussell der Liebe''
*1956: '' Hurra - die Firma hat ein Kind'' as Fabrikant Emil Winninger
*1956: ''Manöverball'' as Ehemann
*1956: ''The Old Forester House'' as Herr Engel
*1956: '' The Hunter of Fall'' as Zollbeamter Niedergstötter
*1957: ''Die verpfuschte Hochzeitsnacht'' as Raucher im Zug
*1957: '' Tired Theodore'' as Walter Steinberg
*1957: ''Two Bavarians in the Harem'' as Selam, Obereunuche (uncredited)
*1957: ' as Zappke
*1957: '' Greetings and Kisses from Tegernsee'' as Amandus
*1958: ''Mikosch, the Pride of the Company'' as Otto Schummrich
*1958: ' as Director Schuehlein
*1958: ' as Angerholzer
*1958: ''Gräfin Mariza'' as Dragomir
*1958: ' as Schorsch Glöckle
*1959: ''La Paloma''
*1959: '' Hunting Party''
*1959: ''Mikosch of the Secret Service'' as Otto Schummrich
*1959: ''Mandolins and Moonlight''
*1959: ' as Maximilian Moosbach, Bürgermeister
*1959: ''Kein Mann zum Heiraten'' as Leo Hammerschmidt
*1960: ''Hit Parade 1960'' as Kaffehausbesitzer
*1960: ''Conny and Peter Make Music'' as Sulzbach
*1960: ''Willy the Private Detective'' as Ernst Abelmann
*1960:'' We Will Never Part'' as Marcello Ponella
*1961: '' Der fröhliche Weinberg'' (TV Movie)
*1961: ''Am Sonntag will mein Süßer mit mir segeln gehn'' as Himberger, Evelyns Vater
*1961: ''Our Crazy Aunts'' as Herrmann Schmatzer
*1962: ''Drei Liebesbriefe aus Tirol'' as Direktor A.B. Cobold
*1962: ' as Otto Wehrkamp, Konservenfabrikant
*1962: ''Dance with Me Into the Morning'' as Himself
*1962: '' Wenn die Musik spielt am Wörthersee'' as Chauffeur Adalbert
*1962: ''The Post Has Gone'' as Teutobald Stolze
*1962: ''Die lustigen Vagabunden'' / ''Das haben die Mädchen gern'' as Tavernenwirt
*1963: ''Our Crazy Nieces'' as Hyacinth Grad
*1963: '' Übermut im Salzkammergut'' as Ruppich
*1963: ''Hochzeit am Neusiedler See'' / ''Das Spukschloß im Salzkammergut'' as Rudi Lustig
*1964: ''Our Crazy Aunts in the South Seas'' as Hyacinth
*1964: ''Holiday in St. Tropez'' as Carlos Fonti
*1964: ''Seven Hours of Gunfire'' as St. James
*1965: ''The Last Tomahawk'' as Koch
*1966: ''Spukschloß im Salzkammergut''
*1966: ' as Max
*1967: ''Heubodengeflüster'' as Pischke
*1970: ''Die Jungfrauen von Bumshausen'' as Bürgermeister Ehrentraut
*1971: ''Olympia - Olympia'' (TV Movie)
*1971: ''Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory'' as Mr. Gloop (uncredited)
*1971: ''Obszönitäten'' / ''Mädchen, die sich lieben lassen'' as Der reiche Alte
*1972: ''Bluebeard'' as Von Sepper's Friend
*1972: ''Ludwig II'' as Minister of Finance
*1973: ''The Countess Died of Laughter'' as Monk
*1973: '' La ligne d'ombre'' as Alfred and Ernest Jacobus

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Grosskurth, Kurt
1909 births
1975 deaths
German male stage actors
German male film actors
German male television actors
People from Main-Kinzig-Kreis
20th-century German male actors
Road incident deaths in Germany