David Kossoff (24 November 1919 – 23 March 2005) was a British actor. In 1954 he won the

BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles The British Academy Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles is a discontinued award that was presented by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts until 1984. The category had several name changes: * 1952–1959: Most Promi ...

for his appearance as Geza Szobek in '' The Young Lovers''. He played Alf Larkin in TV sitcom '' The Larkins'' and Professor Kokintz in '' The Mouse that Roared'' (1959) and its sequel '' The Mouse on the Moon'' (1963). Because of the drug use of his son Paul, a

blues rock Blues rock is a fusion music genre that combines elements of blues and rock music. It is mostly an electric ensemble-style music with instrumentation similar to electric blues and rock (electric guitar, electric bass guitar, and drums, sometimes w ...

musician, who subsequently died, he became an anti-drug campaigner. In 1971 he was also actively involved in the

Nationwide Festival of Light The Nationwide Festival of Light was a short-lived grassroots movement formed by British Christians concerned about the rise of the permissive society and social changes in English society by the late 1960s. The movement was opposed to what t ...

, an organisation protesting against the commercial exploitation of sex and violence, and advocating the teachings of

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

as the key to re-establishing moral stability in Britain.

Life and career

Kossoff was born in Hackney,

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 ...

, the youngest of three children, to poor

Russian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest pop ...

parents, Annie (née Shaklovich) and Lewis (Louis) Kossoff (1882–1943). His father was a tailor. His older brother Alec changed his name to

Alan Keith Alan Keith, OBE (born Alexander Kossoff; 19 October 1908 – 17 March 2003) was a British actor, disc jockey and radio presenter, noted for being the longest-serving and eldest presenter on British radio by the time of his death aged 94. Backgr ...

. The middle sister was named Sarah Rebecca (Sadie). He attended the Northern Polytechnic, leaving in 1937 to work as a draughtsman and then a furniture designer for a year before becoming an actor. Kossoff started working in light entertainment on

British television Regular television broadcasts in the United Kingdom started in 1936 as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the first demonstration of a transmitted moving image in 1926. Currently, the United Kingdom has a collection ...

in the years following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, during which he briefly served in the military. His first stage appearance was at the Unity Theatre in 1942 at the age of 23. He took part in numerous plays and films. He was a Member of the Society of Artists and Designers. In addition to this, he was a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of the

Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

. His best-known television roles were the hen-pecked husband Alf Larkin in '' The Larkins'', first broadcast in 1958, and a Jewish furniture maker in ''

A Little Big Business ''A Little Big Business'' is a British comedy television series which originally aired on ITV After a pilot episode in 1963,Perry p.124 it was followed by two full series in 1964 and 1965. Several of the leading roles were recast after the pilo ...

''. Film credits included his role as Soviet diplomat Geza Szobek '' The Young Lovers'' (1954 – for which he won a

British Academy Film Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cere ...

as '' Most Promising Newcomer to Film''), '' A Kid for Two Farthings'' (1955), his role as Morry in the Oscar-winning '' The Bespoke Overcoat'' (1956), Professor Kokintz in '' The Mouse that Roared'' (1959), starring Peter Sellers, and its sequel '' The Mouse on the Moon'' (1963) with

Bernard Cribbins Bernard Joseph Cribbins (29 December 1928 – 27 July 2022) was an English actor and singer whose career spanned over seven decades. During the 1960s, Cribbins became known in the UK for his successful novelty records " The Hole in the Groun ...

. He played

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating pathologies explained as originating in conflicts i ...

father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. An adoptive fathe ...

in '' Freud: The Secret Passion'' (1962) with

Montgomery Clift Edward Montgomery Clift (; October 17, 1920 – July 23, 1966) was an American actor. A four-time Academy Award nominee, he was known for his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men", according to ''The New York Times''. He is best remembered ...

in the lead. He was also well known for his story-telling skills, particularly with regard to reinterpreting the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

. His best-known book, also a television series, is ''The Book of Witnesses'' (1971), in which he turned the

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

s into a series of

monologue In theatre, a monologue (from el, μονόλογος, from μόνος ''mónos'', "alone, solitary" and λόγος ''lógos'', "speech") is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes a ...

s. He also retold dozens of

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

and

Apocrypha Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...

stories in ''Bible Stories'' (1968). In 1953, he played the character Lemuel "Lemmy" Barnet in the British sci-fi radio series '' Journey into Space''. He married Margaret (Jennie) Jenkins and had two sons, Paul and Simon. Following the death in 1976 of his son Paul, guitarist with the band Free, Kossoff established the Paul Kossoff Foundation which aimed to present the realities of

drug addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use oft ...

to children. Kossoff spent the remainder of his life campaigning against drugs. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, he toured with a one-man stage performance about the death of his son and its effect on the family. He died in 2005 of

liver cancer Liver cancer (also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy) is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary (starts in liver) or secondary (meaning cancer which has spread from elsewhere to th ...

at age 85. He was cremated and interred at the

Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £135,987 in 2021), ...

. In its obituary, ''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its pare ...

'' wrote that David Kossoff was "a man of deep convictions and proud of his Jewish origins".Alasdair, Steven
"David Kossoff: Actor"
''

'', 5 April 2005. Accessed 1 September 2011. "As an actor David Kossoff brought a refined and quick-witted quality to his roles. But he was also a man of deep convictions and proud of his Jewish origins, though he had a delightfully self-deprecating way of telling rambling Jewish jokes."

Filmography

* '' Rookery Nook'' ('live' TV, 1953) – Harold Twine * '' The Good Beginning'' (1953) – Dealer * '' The Young Lovers'' (1954) – Geza Szobek * ''

The Angel Who Pawned Her Harp ''The Angel Who Pawned Her Harp'' is a 1954 British fantasy comedy film directed by Alan Bromly and starring Felix Aylmer, Diane Cilento and Jerry Desmonde. The film was based on a novel by Charles Terrot and is a remake of his television ...

'' (1954) – Schwartz * '' Svengali'' (1954) – Gecko * '' A Kid for Two Farthings'' (1955) – Avrom Kandinsky * ''

I Am a Camera ''I Am a Camera'' is a 1951 Broadway play by John Van Druten adapted from Christopher Isherwood's 1939 novel '' Goodbye to Berlin'', which is part of ''The Berlin Stories''. The title is a quotation taken from the novel's first page: "I am a ca ...

'' (1955) – Minor role * ''

The Woman for Joe ''The Woman for Joe'' is a 1955 British drama film directed by George More O'Ferrall and starring Diane Cilento, George Baker, Jimmy Karoubi and David Kossoff. The screenplay concerns the owner of a circus sideshow and his prize attraction (a ...

'' (1955) – Max * '' The Bespoke Overcoat'' (1955, Short) – Morry * '' Now and Forever'' (1956) – Pawnbroker * ''

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

'' (1956) – Charrington * '' Who Done It?'' (1956) – Zacco * ''

Wicked as They Come ''Wicked as They Come'' (''Portrait in Smoke'' in the United States) is a 1956 British film noir directed by Ken Hughes and starring Arlene Dahl, Philip Carey and Herbert Marshall. Plot Poor girl from the slums Katherine Allenbourg trades on h ...

'' (1956) – Sam Lewis * '' The Iron Petticoat'' (1956) – Anton Antonovich Dubratz * '' House of Secrets'' (1956) – Henryk van de Heide * ''

Count Five and Die ''Count Five and Die'' is a 1957 British war thriller film directed by Victor Vicas and starring Jeffrey Hunter, Nigel Patrick and Annemarie Düringer.Clinton p.22-23 It was made by Zonic Productions and released in Britain and the US by Twentie ...

'' (1957) – Dr. Mulder * ''The Dock Brief'' (1957 BBC-TV film) - Herbert Fowle * ''

Innocent Sinners ''Innocent Sinners'' is a 1958 British black and white film directed by Philip Leacock and starring Flora Robson. It was based on the 1955 novel '' An Episode of Sparrows'' by Rumer Godden. Plot Olivia Chesney is too sick to leave home, som ...

'' (1958) – Vincent * '' Indiscreet'' (1958) – Carl Banks * '' The Journey'' (1959) – Simon Avron * '' The Mouse That Roared'' (1959) – Alfred Kokintz * ''

Jet Storm ''Jet Storm'' (also known as ''Jet Stream'' or ''Killing Urge'') is a 1959 British thriller film directed and co-written by Cy Endfield. Richard Attenborough stars with Stanley Baker, Hermione Baddeley and Diane Cilento. The film is a precurso ...

'' (1959) – Dr Bergstein * ''

The House of the Seven Hawks ''The House of the Seven Hawks'' is a 1959 British mystery film directed by Richard Thorpe and starring Robert Taylor, Nicole Maurey and Linda Christian. It was the final film by Robert Taylor under his twenty five-year contract with MGM. The fi ...

'' (1959) – Wilhelm Dekker * ''

Conspiracy of Hearts ''Conspiracy of Hearts'' is a 1960 British Second World War film, directed by Ralph Thomas, about nuns in Italy smuggling Jewish children out of an internment camp near their convent to save them from The Holocaust. It stars Lilli Palmer, Sylvia ...

'' (1960) – The Rabbi * '' Inn for Trouble'' (1960) – Alf Larkins * ''

The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll ''The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll'' is a 1960 British horror film produced by Hammer Film Productions. It was directed by Terence Fisher, and stars Paul Massie as Dr. Jekyll, and co-stars Dawn Addams, Christopher Lee and David Kossoff. The screenp ...

'' (1960) – Ernst Litauer * '' Freud: The Secret Passion'' (1962) –

Jacob Freud Jacob Koloman Freud (1815–1896) was the father of Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis. Born in town of Tysmenytsia in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria (now in Ukraine), and from a Hasidic background though himself an enlightened J ...

* '' Summer Holiday'' (1963) – Magistrate * '' The Mouse on the Moon'' (1963) – Professor Kokintz * ''

Ring of Spies ''Ring of Spies'' (also known as ''Ring of Treason'') is a 1964 British spy film directed by Robert Tronson and starring Bernard Lee, William Sylvester and Margaret Tyzack. It is based on the real-life case of the Portland Spy Ring, whose activit ...

'' (1964) – Peter Kroger * '' One Million Years B.C.'' (1966) – Narrator (uncredited) * '' Three for All'' (1975) – Airport Passenger * '' The London Connection'' (1979) – Professor Buchinski * '' Staggered'' (1994) – Elderly Man (final film role)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kossoff, David 1919 births 2005 deaths 20th-century English male actors English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors English people of Russian-Jewish descent Jewish English male actors Male actors from London Male actors from Hertfordshire People from Hatfield, Hertfordshire People from Hackney Central Alumni of the University of North London British Army personnel of World War II Deaths from liver cancer Deaths from cancer in England Golders Green Crematorium Free (band) BAFTA Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles winners Kossoff family