Michael Andreas Mellinger (30 May 1929 – 17 March 2004) was a German actor in film, television, theatre and radio. He was best known for his appearances on the West End and supporting role in the film '' Goldfinger'' (1964).

Biography

Born in

Kochel Kochel am See is a municipality and a town in the district of Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen in Bavaria, on the shores of Kochelsee. The municipality consists of the districts Altjoch, Brunnenbach, Ort, Pessenbach, Pfisterberg, Walchensee and Ried. ...

, Bavaria, Mellinger came from a theatrical background; both his parents were actors.Michael Mellinger obituary by Anthony Burton, ''The Stage''.
/ref> He was sent to boarding school in England, and then qualified at

North London Polytechnic The University of North London (UNL) was a university in London, England, formed from the Polytechnic of North London (PNL) in 1992 when that institution was granted university status. PNL, in turn, had been formed by the amalgamation of the No ...

as a radio engineer. As recorded in his obituary in ''The Stage'': "He made his skills available to his adopted country by joining the

Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is a corps of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's Professional Engineers". History Prior to REME's for ...

. During the war he served in

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

and

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

with Radio SEAC, doubling as a disc jockey. However, before joining REME, Winston Churchill issued his order: 'Collar the lot'. Ironically, Mellinger, together with many German Jewish refugees who had fled Hitler, was classified as an enemy alien. He was taken to a detention camp at Kempton Park before being put on The Dunera for internment in Australia.... During his internment Mellinger practised, as best he could, his passion for the theatre and developed his talent as a musician. Upon his release he joined the British Army." He subsequently trained at the

Central School of Speech and Drama The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama was founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as The Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for young actors and other students. It became a ...

and in the 1950s was a member of the singing group The Harmonics. For more than 50 years he worked successfully in theatre, film, television and radio. He was a member of the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

and

Berliner Ensemble The Berliner Ensemble () is a German theatre company established by actress Helene Weigel and her husband, playwright Bertolt Brecht, in January 1949 in East Berlin. In the time after Brecht's exile, the company first worked at Wolfgang Langhoff ...

. His notable film credits include '' Goldfinger'' (1964)"Michael Mellinger (Kisch)", James Bond multimedia.
/ref> and ''

Carry On Up the Khyber ''Carry On Up the Khyber'' is a 1968 British comedy film, the 16th in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It stars ''Carry On'' regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, Bernard Bresslaw and Peter Butt ...

'' (1968).

Selected filmography

* ''

Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N. ''Captain Horatio Hornblower'' (a.k.a. ''Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N.'' in the UK, "R.N." standing for "Royal Navy") is a 1951 British naval swashbuckling war film in Technicolor from Warner Bros., produced by Gerry Mitchell, directed by Rao ...

'' (1951) - Spanish Officer (uncredited) * ''

South of Algiers ''South of Algiers'' (U.S. ''The Golden Mask'') is a 1953 British travel adventure film, directed by Jack Lee and starring Van Heflin, Wanda Hendrix and Eric Portman. It is based on an original screenplay by Robert Westerby, and was partly ...

'' (1953) - Spahi N.C.O * ''

They Who Dare ''They Who Dare'' is a 1954 British Second World War war film directed by Lewis Milestone and starring Dirk Bogarde, Denholm Elliott and Akim Tamiroff. The story is based on Operation Anglo that took place during World War II in the Dodecanese ...

'' (1954) - Toplis * '' The Beachcomber'' (1954) - Medical Orderly * ''

Radio Cab Murder ''Radio Cab Murder'' is a 1954 British crime film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Jimmy Hanley, Lana Morris and Sonia Holm. It was made at Walton Studios and on location around Kensington and Notting Hill in London. The film's sets were ...

'' (1954) - Tim * ''

Stars in Your Eyes ''Stars in Your Eyes'' is a 1956 British musical film directed by Maurice Elvey. Plot As the world of vaudeville gradually loses its attraction, more and more entertainers are losing their jobs. In hopes of fixing their financial problems, a gro ...

'' (1956) - Night Club Proprietor * ''

Three Crooked Men ''Three Crooked Men'' is a 1958 British crime film directed by Ernest Morris and starring Gordon Jackson. Plot Three crooks break into a store hoping to gain access to the bank next door. The store keeper has remained in the rear of the stor ...

'' (1958) - Vince * ''

The Secret Man ''The Secret Man'' is a 1917 American silent Western film, directed by John Ford and featuring Harry Carey. Two of the five reels of the film survive at the Library of Congress film archive. Plot As described in a film magazine, Cheyenne Harr ...

'' (1958) - Tony Norwood * ''

Man on a String ''Man on a String'' is a 1960 American neo-noir crime film directed by Andre DeToth and starring Ernest Borgnine and Kerwin Mathews. It was the last film that DeToth directed in the United States. Plot A government intelligence agency in Washin ...

'' (1960) - Detective * ''

The Password Is Courage ''The Password Is Courage'' is a 1962 British comedy-drama war film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, based on John Castle's 1954 World War II memoir of the same name. Written, produced, and directed by Andrew L. Stone, the film stars Dirk Bogarde, Mar ...

'' (1962) - Feldwebel * ''

Siege of the Saxons ''Siege of the Saxons'' is a 1963 British adventure film directed by Nathan H. Juran and released by Columbia Pictures. Starring Janette Scott and Ronald Lewis, the film is set in the time of King Arthur, but, as with many Arthurian themed fil ...

'' (1963) - Thief (uncredited) * '' Goldfinger'' (1964) - Kisch * ''

It Happened Here ''It Happened Here'' (also known as ''It Happened Here: The Story of Hitler's England'') is a 1964 British black-and-white film written, produced and directed by Kevin Brownlow and Andrew Mollo, who began work on the film as teenagers. The film ...

'' (1964) - Announcer (uncredited) * ''

'' (1968) - Chindi * ''

The Assassination Bureau ''The Assassination Bureau Limited'' (also known as ''The Assassination Bureau'' in the United States) is a 1969 British Technicolor black comedy adventure film, produced by Michael Relph, directed by Basil Dearden, and starring Oliver Reed, D ...

'' (1969) - Venice Police Sergeant (uncredited) * ''

Puppet on a Chain ''Puppet on a Chain'' is a novel by Scottish author Alistair MacLean. Originally published in 1969 with a cover by Norman Weaver, it is set in the late 1960s narcotics underworld of Amsterdam and other locations in the Netherlands. Plot intro ...

'' (1971) - Hotel Manager * ''

Licking Hitler "Licking Hitler" is the 12th episode of the eighth series of the BBC anthology ''Play for Today'' British TV series. The episode was originally broadcast on 10 January 1978. "Licking Hitler" was written and directed by David Hare (playwright), Da ...

'' (1978) - Karl * '' The Awakening'' (1980) - Hamid * '' Eye of the Needle'' (1981) - Portuguese Man * '' Ascendancy'' (1983) - Schulz * ''

Until September ''Until September'' is a 1984 romantic drama film directed by Richard Marquand and starring Karen Allen and Thierry Lhermitte. The plot concerns an American tourist and a French banker who fall in love in Paris. Plot Moe Alexander (Karen Allen) i ...

'' (1984) - Colonel Viola * ''

The March The March can refer to: * March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a 1963 civil rights event * Salt March, when Gandhi in 1930 walked to protest the British salt tax in India * Sherman's March to the Sea during the American Civil War * Long March i ...

'' (1990) - Gert Kellner * ''

Gladiator A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...

'' (2000) - Trainer 2 (extended edition) * '' Charlotte Gray'' (2001) - Old Man Roudil * '' Dirty Pretty Things'' (2002) - German Man * ''Das Apfelbaumhaus'' (2004) - Albert (final film role)

References

External links

* 1929 births 2004 deaths German male film actors German male television actors German expatriates in England Male actors from Bavaria Jewish German male actors People from Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen {{Germany-screen-actor-stub