Juan Carlos Mundin-Schaffter, known as Carlos Thompson, (7 June 1923 – 10 October 1990) was an Argentine actor.

Career

Of German and Swiss descent, he played leading roles on stage and in films in Argentina. He went to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

in the 1950s and was typically cast as a European womanizer. His Hollywood films include '' Flame and the Flesh'' (1954) with

Lana Turner Lana Turner ( ; born Julia Jean Turner; February 8, 1921June 29, 1995) was an American actress. Over the course of her nearly 50-year career, she achieved fame as both a pin-up model and a film actress, as well as for her highly publicized pe ...

and

Pier Angeli Pier Angeli (19 June 193210 September 1971), also credited under her real name, Anna Maria Pierangeli, was an Italian-born television and film actress who starred in American, British and European films throughout her career. Her American motio ...

, ''

Valley of the Kings The Valley of the Kings ( ar, وادي الملوك ; Late Coptic: ), also known as the Valley of the Gates of the Kings ( ar, وادي أبوا الملوك ), is a valley in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from the 16th to 11th ...

'' (1954), with Robert Taylor and

Eleanor Parker Eleanor Jean Parker (June 26, 1922 – December 9, 2013) was an American actress. She was nominated for three Academy Awards for her roles in the films ''Caged'' (1950), ''Detective Story'' (1951), and ''Interrupted Melody'' (1955), the first ...

, ''

Magic Fire ''Magic Fire'' is a 1955 American biographical film about the life of composer Richard Wagner, released by Republic Pictures. Directed by William Dieterle, the film made extensive use of Wagner's music, which was arranged by Erich Wolfgang Korng ...

'' (1955) in which he played

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

, opposite

Yvonne De Carlo Margaret Yvonne Middleton (September 1, 1922January 8, 2007), known professionally as Yvonne De Carlo, was a Canadian-American actress, dancer and singer. She became a Hollywood film star in the 1940s and 1950s, made several recordings, and later ...

Rita Gam Rita Gam (born Rita Eleanore MacKay, April 2, 1927March 22, 2016) was an American film and television actress and documentary filmmaker. She won the Silver Bear for Best Actress. Background Gam was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the daughte ...

, and

Valentina Cortese Valentina Cortese (1 January 1923 – 10 July 2019) was an Italian actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in François Truffaut's ''Day for Night'' (1973). Personal life Cortese was born ...

. He moved to Europe and appeared in a large number of German films. He was chiefly known to English speakers for his appearance as Carlos Varela in the 1963

ITC Entertainment The Incorporated Television Company (ITC), or ITC Entertainment as it was referred to in the United States, was a British company involved in production and distribution of television programmes. History Incorporated Television Programme Compan ...

series '' The Sentimental Agent''. In the late 1960s, Thompson left acting to become a writer and TV producer. His first success on the European book market was ''The Assassination of Winston Churchill'' (1969), a refutation of allegations by

David Irving David John Cawdell Irving (born 24 March 1938) is an English author and Holocaust denier who has written on the military and political history of World War II, with a focus on Nazi Germany. His works include '' The Destruction of Dresden'' (1 ...

(''Accident. The Death of General Sikorski'', 1967) and the German playwright

Rolf Hochhuth Rolf Hochhuth (; 1 April 1931 – 13 May 2020) was a German author and playwright, best known for his 1963 drama '' The Deputy'', which insinuates Pope Pius XII's indifference to Hitler's extermination of the Jews, and he remained a controversial ...

(''Soldiers'', premiered in the UK in 1968,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

) that war time premier

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

had a part in the death of Polish General

Władysław Sikorski Władysław Eugeniusz Sikorski (; 20 May 18814 July 1943) was a Polish military and political leader. Prior to the First World War, Sikorski established and participated in several underground organizations that promoted the cause for Polish i ...

, who perished in an air plane crash at

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = "Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gibr ...

on July 4, 1943, allegedly due to sabotage.

Personal life

Thompson married German-born actress

Lilli Palmer Lilli Palmer (; born Lilli Marie Peiser; 24 May 1914 – 27 January 1986) was a German actress and writer. After beginning her career in British films in the 1930s, she would later transition to major Hollywood productions, earning a Golden Glob ...

shortly after her divorce from

Rex Harrison Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (5 March 1908 – 2 June 1990) was an English actor. Harrison began his career on the stage in 1924. He made his West End debut in 1936 appearing in the Terence Rattigan play '' French Without Tears'', in wh ...

in 1957. They remained married until her death in 1986. Before his marriage to Palmer, Thompson had a relationship with Mexican actress

María Félix María de los Ángeles Félix Güereña (; 8 April 1914 – 8 April 2002) was a Mexican actress and singer. Along with Pedro Armendáriz and Dolores del Río, she was one of the most successful figures of Latin American cinema in the 1940s and ...

. They met in Argentina in 1952 during the filming of

Luis César Amadori Luis César Amadori (28 May 1902 in Pescara, Abruzzi, Italy – 5 June 1977 in Buenos Aires) was an Italian - Argentine film director and screenwriter and one of the most influential directors in the Cinema of Argentina of the classic era. ...

's ''

La pasión desnuda ''La pasión desnuda'' (Naked Passion) is a 1953 Argentine film. It was written and directed by Luis César Amadori and starred María Félix, Carlos Thompson and Eduardo Cuitiño. The Argentine Academy of Cinematography Arts and Sciences gav ...

''. The relationship was reportedly serious to the point that they became engaged to be married, and Félix even called for her son Enrique Álvarez Félix to meet his potential stepfather. However, during filming, Félix received a call from director

Emilio Fernández Emilio "El Indio" Fernández Romo (; 26 March 1904 – 6 October 1986) was a Mexican film director, actor and screenwriter. He was one of the most prolific film directors of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema in the 1940s and 1950s. He is best kn ...

to offer her the leading role in ''

The Rapture The rapture is an eschatological position held by some Christians, particularly those of American evangelicalism, consisting of an end-time event when all Christian believers who are alive, along with resurrected believers, will rise "in the c ...

'', which Félix accepted, telling Thompson that after filming of ''La pasión desnuda'' ended she would return to Mexico to promote the film and announce their future marriage. However, once in Mexico, Felix canceled the wedding days before it would take place, stating that she concluded that the only thing that united her to Thompson was a mere physical attraction and not true love, before marrying ''The Raptures leading man

Jorge Negrete Jorge Alberto Negrete Moreno (; 30 November 1911 – 5 December 1953) was a Mexican singer and actor. Life and career Negrete was born in the city of Guanajuato and had two brothers and three sisters; his father was a Mexican Army Colonel who f ...

Death

Four years after his wife's death, Thompson committed suicide in Buenos Aires by a gunshot to his head.

Partial filmography

* ''...Y mañana serán hombres'' (1939) * ''Fragata Sarmiento'' (1941) * ''Viaje sin regreso'' (1946) * ''Los verdes paraísos'' (1947) * ''Los pulpos'' (1948) * '' La trampa'' (1949) * ''El crimen de Oribe'' (1950) - Oribe * ''Abuso de confianza'' (1950) * ''

Una viuda casi alegre ''An Almost Merry Widow'' ( es, Una viuda casi alegre) is a 1950 Argentine film directed by Román Viñoly Barreto. Cast * Elina Colomer * Roberto Escalada * Carlos Thompson * Andrés Mejuto * Judith Sulián * Adolfo Linvel * Osvald ...

'' (1950) * '' The Unwanted'' (1951) * ''Sala de guardia'' (1952) * ''

La de los ojos color del tiempo ''La De los ojos color del tiempo'' is a 1952 Argentine film starring Mirtha Legrand, Carlos Thompson Juan Carlos Mundin-Schaffter, known as Carlos Thompson, (7 June 1923 – 10 October 1990) was an Argentine actor. Career Of German and Swis ...

'' (1952) * ''El túnel'' (1952) - Juan Pablo Castel * ''La mujer de las camelias'' (1953) - Armand Duval * ''

'' (1953) - Pablo Valdes * '' Fort Algiers'' (1953) - Jeff * '' Flame and the Flesh'' (1954) - Nino * ''

'' (1954) - Philip Mercedes * ''

'' (1956) - Franz Liszt * ''

Thunderstorm A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorms are some ...

'' (1956) - Diego Martinez * ''

Between Time and Eternity ''Between Time and Eternity'' (german: Zwischen Zeit und Ewigkeit) is a 1956 West German-Spanish drama film directed by Arthur Maria Rabenalt and starring Lilli Palmer, Willy Birgel and Carlos Thompson. It was co-produced with Spain as part of a ...

'' (1956) - Manuel * '' Auf Wiedersehen, Franziska!'' (1957) - Stefan Roloff * '' Das Wirtshaus im Spessart'' (1958) - Räuberhauptmann * ''

I Was All His ''I Was All His'' (german: Ich war ihm hörig) is a 1958 West German drama film directed by Wolfgang Becker and starring Barbara Rütting, Carlos Thompson and Wolfgang Preiss.Film Directors Guide p.15 It was shot at the Carlton Studios in Munic ...

'' (1958) - Nikolei Stein * '' El último rebelde'' (1958) - Joaquin Murrieta * ''

Raw Wind in Eden ''Raw Wind in Eden'' is a 1958 American CinemaScope South Seas film noir directed by Richard Wilson and starring Esther Williams, Jeff Chandler. Plot Frustrated while having a fling with a married man, fashion model Laura is persuaded to fly in ...

'' (1958) - Wally Drucker * '' Stefanie'' (1958) - Architekt Pablo Guala * '' Die Halbzarte'' (1959) - Mr. Dott * ' (1959) - Pedro Bastiano, Hauptmann * ''

Adorable Arabella ''Adorable Arabella'' (German: ''Bezaubernde Arabella'') is a 1959 West German comedy film directed by Axel von Ambesser and starring Johanna von Koczian, Carlos Thompson and Hilde Hildebrand. It is an adaptation of the 1949 novel ''Arabella'' by ...

'' (1959) - Robert Beaumaris * ''

Mistress of the World ''Mistress of the World'' (german: Die Herrin der Welt, french: Les mystères d'Angkor, it, Il mistero dei tre continenti) is a 1960 science-fiction spy film remake of the 1919 eight-part silent film ''The Mistress of the World'' directed by Wil ...

'' (1960) - Peter Lundström * ''Der Held meiner Träume'' (1960) - Robert Moutier * ''

Stefanie in Rio ''Stefanie in Rio'' is a 1960 West German romantic comedy film directed by Curtis Bernhardt and starring Carlos Thompson, Sabine Sinjen and Andréa Parisy.Bock & Bergfelder p.41 It is a sequel to the 1958 film '' Stefanie''. It was shot at the Sp ...

'' (1960) - Pablo Guala * ''Das große Wunschkonzert'' (1960) - René von Geldern * '' The Last of Mrs. Cheyney'' (1961) - Artur Dilling * ' (1962) - Christinow Tomkin * ' (1962) - Bernard Somerset * ''

The Gypsy Baron ''The Gypsy Baron'' () is an operetta in three acts by Johann Strauss II which premiered at the Theater an der Wien on 24 October 1885. Its German libretto by Ignaz Schnitzer is based on the unpublished 1883 story ''Saffi'' by Mór Jókai. Jokai ...

'' (1962) - Sandor von Barinkay * ''Ferien wie noch nie'' (1963) * ''The Sentimental Agent (1963, TV Series UK.) - Carlos Varela * '' La Vie de château'' (1966) - Klopstock (final film role)

References

External links

*
Carlos Thompson
in Cine nacional {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Carlos Argentine male film actors Argentine people of Swiss-German descent Argentine people of Swiss descent Argentine people of German descent Suicides by firearm in Argentina Male actors from Buenos Aires 1923 births 1990 deaths 20th-century Argentine male actors Burials at La Chacarita Cemetery 1990 suicides