Pavle "Paja" Vuisić ( sr-cyr, Павле "Паја" Вуисић; 10 July 1926 – 1 October 1988) was a Yugoslav actor, known as one of the most recognizable faces of former Yugoslav cinema.

Biography

He was born in

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

as Pavle Vujisić to father Mišo, a police force agent and mother Radmila. He was named after his grandfather Pavle, Montenegrin

jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the Uni ...

and

brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...

. His great-grandfather was Milosav Mišnin Vujisić, famous hero from Donja Morača and commander of the guard of Prince Danilo. He joined the

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод� ...

and fought at the

Syrmian Front The Syrmian Front ( sh, Srijemski front/Sremski front) was an Axis line of defense during World War II. It was established as part of the Eastern Front in late October 1944 in Syrmia and east Slavonia, northwest of Belgrade. After the Yugosla ...

. He studied law and literature, and worked as a journalist for

Radio Belgrade Radio Belgrade ( sr, Радио Београд, ) is a state-owned and operated radio station in Belgrade, Serbia. It has four different programs (Radio Belgrade 1, Radio Belgrade 2, Radio Belgrade 3, and Radio Belgrade 202), a precious archive ...

before getting a small role in 1950 film '' Čudotvorni mač''. After that he tried to become a professional actor, but failed to complete his enrollment at the Drama Arts Academy in Belgrade. His first major role was in 1955 film ''Šolaja''. He was never a star, but he quickly established himself as one of the most dependable and versatile character actors. In his long and prolific career he played many different roles, both dramatic and comical, and earned great respect from almost any director with whom he worked. He is arguably best known for his role in 1972 TV series '' Kamiondžije'' (''Truck Drivers''), where he was paired with comedian

Miodrag Petrović Čkalja Miodrag Petrović ( sr-cyr, Миодраг Петровић, , 1 April 1924 – 20 October 2003), known by his stage name Čkalja (Чкаља), was a Serbian actor and one of the most popular comedians of former Yugoslavia. Biography He performed ...

. One of the acting awards in Serbia (for lifetime acting achievement in movies, awarded at film festival in

Niš Niš (; sr-Cyrl, Ниш, ; names in other languages) is the third largest city in Serbia and the administrative center of the Nišava District. It is located in southern part of Serbia. , the city proper has a population of 183,164, while ...

) is named after him.

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

said in interview for former Yugoslav television RTZ that he considered Pavle Vuisić as the best actor in the world. His legacy is housed by Adligat.

Selected filmography

* '' The Magic Sword'' (1950) - Vitez * '' Perfidy'' (1953) - Mornar * '' The Gypsy Girl'' (1953) - Guta * '' Point 905'' (1960) - Pajo Šerpa * ''

La steppa ''La steppa'' is a 1962 Italian adventure film directed by Alberto Lattuada. It was entered into the 12th Berlin International Film Festival. Cast * Charles Vanel - Pére Christophore * Daniele Spallone - Iégoruska * Cristina Gaioni - La f ...

'' (1962) - Kuzmiciov * '' Double Circle'' (1963) - Krčmar Marko * '' Svanuće'' (1964) - Ilija * ''

Prometheus of the Island ''Prometheus of the Island'' ( sh, Prometej s otoka Viševice), also known in English as ''Prometheus from the island of Viševica'', is a 1964 Yugoslav film directed by Vatroslav Mimica. It won the Big Golden Arena for Best Film at the 1965 Pul ...

'' (1964) - Šjor Žane * ''

To Come and Stay ''To Come and Stay'' (''Doći i ostati'') is a 1965 Croatian film directed by Branko Bauer. See also *Cinema of Croatia *List of Croatian films A list of films produced in Croatia. For an A-Z list of Croatian films see :Croatian films. 1910 ...

'' (1965) - Mileta * '' Monday or Tuesday'' (1966) - Markov otac * ''

The Rats Woke Up ''The Rats Woke Up'' ( sr, Buđenje pacova) is a 1967 Yugoslavian drama film directed by Živojin Pavlović. It was entered into the 17th Berlin International Film Festival where Pavlović won the Silver Bear for Best Director. Cast * Severin B ...

'' (1967) - Krmanoš * '' Bomb at 10:10'' (1967) - Man with the glasses * ''

Macedonian Blood Wedding ''Macedonian Blood Wedding'' (original title: Македонска кървава свадба, transliterated as Makedonska Karvava Svadba) is a play by the Bulgarian publicist, Voydan Chernodrinski. It was first published and shown in theater ...

'' (1967) - Pop Damjan * '' Kad čuješ zvona'' (1969) - Gara * '' An Event'' (1969) - Đed Jura * ''

Battle of Neretva Case White (german: Fall Weiss), also known as the Fourth Enemy Offensive ( sh, Četvrta neprijateljska ofenziva/ofanziva), was a combined Axis strategic offensive launched against the Yugoslav Partisans throughout occupied Yugoslavia during W ...

'' (1969) - Šofer * '' Black Seed'' (1971) - Maki * ''

Walter Defends Sarajevo ''Walter Defends Sarajevo'' (; ) is a 1972 Yugoslav partisan film, directed by Hajrudin Krvavac and starring Bata Živojinović, Ljubiša Samardžić and Rade Marković. The film centres around a mysterious figure named 'Walter', who is active ...

'' (1972) - Otpravnik vozova * ''

Traces of a Black Haired Girl ''Traces of a Black Haired Girl'' ( sh, Tragovi crne devojke) is a 1972 Yugoslav film directed by Zdravko Randić. It was entered into the 22nd Berlin International Film Festival. Cast * Pavle Vujisic - Paja * Boris Dvornik Boris Dvornik (; ...

'' (1972) - Paja * ''

The Master and Margaret ''The Master and Margarita'' (russian: Мастер и Маргарита) is a novel by Soviet writer Mikhail Bulgakov, written in the Soviet Union between 1928 and 1940 during Stalin's regime. A censored version, with several chapters cut by ...

'' (1972) - Azazelo * '' Razmeđa'' (1973) - Pajo * '' Death and the Dervish'' (1974) - Muftija * ''

Hell River ''Hell River'', also known as ''Partisans'' ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Partizani, separator=" / ", Партизани) and ''The Last Guerilla'', is a 1974 Yugoslav partisan film starring Rod Taylor as a Yugoslav raised in America who returns home to fig ...

'' (1974) - (uncredited) * ''

Doktor Mladen Doktor Mladen is a 1975 Yugoslav biographical film directed by Midhat Mutapdžić, on the life of Mladen Stojanović during the Second World War. Cast * Ljuba Tadić - Dr. Mladen Stojanovic * Pavle Vuisić Radovan Tadic * Ljubiša Samardži� ...

'' (1975) - Radovan Tadić * ''

Anno Domini 1573 ''Anno Domini 1573'' ( sh, Seljačka buna 1573, en, 1573 Peasants' Revolt) is a 1975 Yugoslav/ Croatian feature film directed by Vatroslav Mimica. The film was selected for Directors' Fortnight section at Cannes Film Festival in 1976. It is a ...

'' (1975) - Franjo Tahy * ''

Beach Guard in Winter ''Beach Guard in Winter'' ( sh, Čuvar plaže u zimskom periodu) is a 1976 Yugoslav film directed by Goran Paskaljević. It was entered into the 26th Berlin International Film Festival. Cast * Irfan Mensur as Dragan Pasanović * Gordana Kosa ...

'' (1976) - Buda * ''

The Dog Who Loved Trains ''The Dog Who Loved Trains'' ( sh, Pas koji je voleo vozove), is a 1977 Yugoslav film directed by Goran Paskaljević. The film was nominated for the Golden Bear award at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival in 1978. The plot revolves aro ...

'' (1977) - Stric * '' Ward Six'' (1978) - Čuvar Nikita * '' Moment'' (1978) - Ljuba Kvrga * '' The Tiger'' (1978) - Sorgin tener * '' Across the Blue Sea'' (1979) - Šjor Frane * '' Special Treatment'' (1980) - Direktorov otac * ''

Petria's Wreath ''Petria's Wreath'' ( sh, italic=yes, Petrijin venac), is a 1980 Yugoslav film directed by Srđan Karanović. It won the Big Golden Arena for Best Film, with Mirjana Karanović picking up the Golden Arena for Best Actress at the 1980 Pula Film ...

'' (1980) - Ljubiša * '' Who's Singin' Over There?'' (1980) - kondukter Krstić * '' Majstori, majstori'' (1980) - Stole * '' Do You Remember Dolly Bell?'' (1981) - Tetak * ''

The Marathon Family ''The Marathon Family'' ( sr, Маратонци трче почасни круг / Maratonci trče počasni krug, lit. ''Marathon Runners Do a Lap of Honour'', or often simply ''Maratonci'', lit. ''The Marathon Runners'') is a 1982 Yugoslav blac ...

'' (1982) - Milutin Topalović * ''

The Smell of Quinces ''The Smell of Quinces'' ( sr, Miris dunja) is a 1982 Yugoslav drama film directed by Mirza Idrizović. It was entered into the 13th Moscow International Film Festival. The film was also selected as the Yugoslav entry for the Best Foreign Langua ...

'' (1982) - Jozo * '' Twilight Time'' (1982) - Paško * ''

Medeni mjesec ''Medeni mjesec'' is a 1983 Croatian film directed by Nikola Babić. It is based on a novel by . References External links * 1983 films Croatian crime drama films 1980s Croatian-language films Yugoslav crime drama films Films based on ...

'' (1983) - Drug Laza * ''

Early Snow in Munich ''Early Snow in Munich'' ( sh, Rani snijeg u Münchenu) is a 1984 Yugoslav film directed by Bogdan Žižić Bogdan Žižić (8 November 1934 – 29 April 2021)When Father Was Away on Business ''When Father Was Away on Business'' ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Otac na službenom putu, Отац на службеном путу) is a 1985 Yugoslav film by Serbian director Emir Kusturica. The screenplay was written by the Bosnian dramatist Abdulah Sid ...

'' (1985) - Dedo Muzamer * ''

Life Is Beautiful ''Life Is Beautiful'' ( it, La vita è bella, ) is a 1997 Italian comedy drama film directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, who co-wrote the film with Vincenzo Cerami. Benigni plays Guido Orefice, a Jewish Italian bookshop owner, who emplo ...

'' (1985) - Kruščić, gazda kafane

References

External links

* 1926 births 1988 deaths Serbian male film actors Male actors from Belgrade Golden Arena winners 20th-century Serbian male actors Burials at Belgrade New Cemetery {{Serbia-actor-stub