Peter Kraus (born 18 March 1939) is an Austrian-German singer and actor.
Born Peter Siegfried Krausenecker in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, Kraus was popular especially in the 1950s, notably in those
musical comedy
Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...
films where he played opposite
Cornelia Froboess
Cornelia Froboess (; born 28 October 1943) is a German actress and a teen idol of the 1950s and early 1960s. During that time, Froboess appeared in many West German and Austrian musical films, especially after the rock and roll wave had hit Germa ...
.
Early life and family
Kraus is the son of Austrian-born director and comedian Fred Krausnecker, and spent his youth alternating in Munich, Vienna and Salzburg where his father owned a small theatre. During his school years he took singing and acting lessons as well as step dancing classes. His first acting role was the part of Johnny in ''
The Flying Classroom'' (1954) after the
novel by
Erich Kästner.
In 1969 Kraus married the photo model Ingrid. Kraus adopted Ingrid's daughter Gaby. A few years later their son Mike was born. Gaby died in her late thirties from breast cancer.
Rock'n'Roll-Star
When the German music industry discovered that
rock 'n' roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...
was a big seller even with German lyrics, they marketed Kraus as an
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
copy. He soon became, like his colleague
Ted Herold, one of Germany's most popular singers and teen idols, the lanky figure and nonchalant attitude of the young man was a big hit with teens. In the first four years after his debut he recorded 36 hits and sold more than twelve million records.
Kraus's first disc in 1956 was a German version of
Little Richard's "
Tutti Frutti
Tutti frutti (from Italian ''tutti i frutti'', "all fruits"; also hyphenated tutti-frutti) is a colorful confectionery containing various chopped and usually candied fruits, or an artificial or natural flavouring simulating the combined flavou ...
". In mid-1957 his first hit "Susi Rock“ followed and made it to number 8 in the charts. From then until 1964 Kraus was regularly in the German charts. 1958 he recorded "Wenn Teenager träumen" (
A Teenager's Romance), "
Hula Baby" and "Sugar Baby", used in the 1985
Percy Adlon
Paul Rudolf Parsifal "Percy" Adlon (; born 1 June 1935) is a German director, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for his film '' Bagdad Cafe''. He is associated with the New German Cinema movement (ca. 1965–1985), and has been noted ...
film ''
Sugarbaby''. This was followed in 1959 by his version of
Fabian's "
Tiger
The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on ...
". At first Kraus was heavily influenced by Presley, but soon he managed to find his own style. As the "nice boy from next door" he sang with his female counterpart, teen idol
Conny Froboess
Cornelia Froboess (; born 28 October 1943) is a German actress and a teen idol of the 1950s and early 1960s. During that time, Froboess appeared in many West Germany, West German and Austrian musical films, especially after the rock and roll wave ...
and appeared with her in the 1958 movie "Wenn die Conny mit dem Peter" and
(1960) "Conny und Peter machen Musik". They became the most popular film stars of German teenagers in the late fifties. In 1959 Kraus appeared with his father Fred Kraus, playing the role of his father, in "Melodie und Rhythmus".
Kraus also published some songs with
Jörg Maria Berg; under the pseudonym
The James Brothers; the two played German cover versions "Wenn" (
When) in 1958, "Cowboy Billy" ("
Don't Take Your Guns to Town
"Don't Take Your Guns to Town" is a song written and recorded by American singer Johnny Cash. It was released in December 1958 as the first single from the album '' The Fabulous Johnny Cash''.
Content
The song tells the story of Billy Joe, a you ...
") in 1959, "Rote Rosen" (
Pretty Blue Eyes) in 1960, "Die jungen Jahre" (
Endless Sleep
"Endless Sleep" is a "teenage tragedy" pop song written and originally recorded by rockabilly singer Jody Reynolds in 1957.
Background
Reynolds wrote the song in 1956, after listening to Elvis Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel", and first performed it ...
) and "Hätt' ich einen Hammer" (
If I Had a Hammer
"If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song)" is a protest song written by Pete Seeger and Lee Hays. It was written in 1949 in support of the Progressive movement, and was first recorded by the Weavers, a folk music quartet composed of Seeger, Hays, ...
) in 1964, to name a few.
[Günter Ehnert (ed.): ''Hit Balance. Deutsche Chart-Singles 1956-1980'' Hamburg: Taurus Press, 1990, p. 106] He also sang duets with
Connie Francis
Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero (born December 12, 1937),
known professionally as Connie Francis, is an American pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Called the “First Lady of Rock & Roll” ...
,
Lill Babs, Danny Mann,
Alice and Ellen Kessler,
Gus Backus
Donald Edgar "Gus" Backus (September 12, 1937 – February 21, 2019) was an American singer. He started his career as a member of The Del-Vikings and later became a successful Schlager singer in Germany.
Life and career
Backus was born on Lo ...
and
Gina Dobra.
Selected filmography
* ''
The Flying Classroom'' (1954), as Johnny Trotz
* ''
Precocious Youth'' (1957), as Günther
* ''
Immer die Radfahrer'' (1958), as Robby Eilers
* ''
The Crammer'' (1958), as Achim Bork
* ' (1958), as Peter
* ''
Conny and Peter Make Music'' (1960), as Peter
* ''
What Is Father Doing in Italy?
''What Is Father Doing in Italy?'' (german: Was macht Papa denn in Italien?) is a 1961 West German musical comedy film directed by and starring Willy Fritsch, Gerhard Riedmann and Peter Kraus.Bock & Bergfelder p.442 It was shot in Agfacolor
An ...
'' (1961), as Klaus Stumpf
* ' (1961), as Gustl Zwanzger
* ''
Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color
The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The pr ...
: '' (1963, TV), as
Josef Strauss
Josef Strauss (20 August 1827 – 22 July 1870) was an Austrian composer.
He was born in Mariahilf (now Vienna), the son of Johann Strauss I and Maria Anna Streim, and brother of Johann Strauss II and Eduard Strauss. His father wanted him to ch ...
* ''
If You Go Swimming in Tenerife
''If You Go Swimming in Tenerife'' (german: Wenn man baden geht auf Teneriffa) is a 1964 West German comedy film directed by Helmuth M. Backhaus and starring Geneviève Cluny, Peter Kraus and Gunnar Möller.Reimer & Zachau p.160
The film's sets ...
'' (1964), as Tom
* ' (1973, TV film), as Pimpinelli
* ' (1984), as Schirmer
* ' (1986), as Schirmer
* ' (1987), as Schirmer
* ' (2013), as Uncle Herb
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kraus, Peter
1939 births
Living people
20th-century Austrian male singers
Austrian male stage actors
Rock and roll musicians