Biography for
Horst Buchholz More at IMDbPro »

Date of Birth

4 December 1933, Berlin, Germany

Date of Death

3 March 2003, Berlin, Germany (pneumonia)

Birth Name

Horst Werner Buchholz

Nickname

Hotte
The James Dean of German Cinema

Height

5' 9½" (1.77 m)

Mini Biography

On the cast list of The Magnificent Seven (1960), you will find several names that doubtless you know well: Charles Bronson, Steve McQueen, and Yul Brynner. But there is one name that you will have difficulty pronouncing, let alone identifying as an actor you have seen before. That man is Horst Buchholz, and he was one of the few German actors to have a considerable success in both Hollywood and in Europe. One would hardly guess that he was sought out to act in one of the most famous films of all time, only to have to turn it down.

Horst Buchholz was born in Berlin, Germany, in the year 1933. His father was a German shoemaker, while his mother was born to Danish parents. Buccholz was put in a foster home in Czecheslovakia when World War II broke out in Europe, but he returned to Berlin the moment he had the chance. Realizing his talent in acting, Buchholz dropped out of school to perfect his acting skills. After moving from East Berlin to West Berlin, he became well-known for his work in theatre and on the radio. In 1952 he turned to film, and after a series of small roles, he found a larger one in the Julien Duvivier film Marianne de ma jeunesse (1955). He won a Best Actor award at Cannes for his role in the romantic/drama film Himmel ohne Sterne (1955) by Helmut Käutner. However, it was the lead role in the comedic Bekenntnisse des Hochstaplers Felix Krull (1957) that made him an established German actor.

He followed this breakthrough role with the romantic film Endstation Liebe (1958) and the thriller Nasser Asphalt (1958), where the handsome young actor plays a former criminal who associates himself with a journalist. Now a familiar face in his country, Buchholz pursued making foreign films. His first non-German film was the British film Tiger Bay (1959). The film is about a girl who witnesses a seaman named Korchinsky (Buchholz) murder his girlfriend. The film won praise in both Germany and Britain, but it was Buchholz' next foreign film that secured his name in the history of classic films. This film was the epic western The Magnificent Seven (1960) directed by John Sturges. Buchholz played Chico, the inexperienced Mexican youth that wants to be a gunman and abandon his past. Buchholz starred alongside such legends as Charles Bronson and Yul Brynner. both of whom had strong European roots. The film was a hit, first in Europe, then was re-distributed in the States to a much higher profit. The film gained massive popularity, and even now is treasured as a classic.

Buchholz could now find good and steady work nationally and internationally, which is something few actors could do at the time. He worked on the romantic film Fanny (1961) where he must choose between the girl he loves, and the life at sea he has always wanted. It was at this point in his film career where he was sought as the first choice to play the role of Sherif Ali in David Lean's legendary film Lawrence of Arabia (1962). However, Buchholz had to turn it down, as he had already signed up for another film, which turned out to be the Oscar-nominated comedy One, Two, Three (1961) (directed by Billy Wilder). The film was a fine success, but ultimately gained nowhere near as much of a status as David Lean's film. Buchholz also made the Italian film La noia (1963) in which he plays an untalented artist who begins a love affair with a young model.

Buchholz continued with film, including the James Bond spoof Estambul 65 (1965) and the crime film Johnny Banco (1967). He starred in the B-movie failure that was Cervantes (1967). Buchholz rebounded with the fiery film Le sauveur (1971) in which he plays a man who claims to be organizing resistance against the Nazis. He also played Johann Strauss in the Golden Globe-nominated musical The Great Waltz (1972). which was sadly another failure.

The rest of the 1970's and the early 1980's were spent mostly on television and movies released for televison, whether it be foreign (Dead of Night (1977), Return to Fantasy Island (1978)) or German (Derrick). Buchholz returned to the big screen with the WW II espionage film Code Name: Emerald (1985) in which he plays alongside such stars as Ed Harris and Max von Sydow. After this film, Buchholz returned to European movies, such as I skrzypce przestaly grac (1988) in which a group of gypsies flee Nazi persecutors. He also played a supporting role in the fantasy film In weiter Ferne, so nah! (1993) and also in the Oscar-winning success La vita è bella (1997) which won best foreign film that year, and was also nominated for Best Picture. Thanks to his gift for languages, Buchholz was able to dub himself in the foreign releases of the film.

Buchholz continued making films and television appearances until 2002, by which time he was sixty-eight years old. He died the next year, in Berlin, of pneumonia. Berlin had been the city of his heart, and was buried there in honour of that fact. Horst Buchholz had been a renowned German actor, and had gained credibility in the United States and other countries. He was a varied performer, but was always a proud German to the last.

IMDb Mini Biography By: Bob Stage

Spouse

Myriam Bru

(7 December 1958 - 3 March 2003) (his death) 2 children

Trivia

Father of actor Christopher Buchholz

Lived in Paris and Switzerland with his wife Myriam Bru. They also had a daughter, Beatrice.

Landed his first stage role at 15 in a Berlin theater version of the German children's classic "Emil and the Detectives."

In 1981, Buchholz failed as host of the dubious "Astro-Show" on German TV, which was canceled after only five shows. In the show, the popular astrologer Elizabeth Teissier had been at his side.

Called "the German James Dean" because he was type casted as rebellious teenager in the late 1950s.

Died in intensive care of pneumonia while recovering from a broken thighbone.

Made his Broadway debut with "Cherie" in 1959.

Son of a shoemaker, he dropped out of school so he could take acting lessons.

Christopher Buchholz directed the movie Horst Buchholz... mein Papa (2005) , which deals with his father's life and their relationship.

Is buried in the Heerstraße Cemetery, Berlin.

Spoke fluent German, English, French, Spanish, Italian and Russian.

During the filming of One, Two, Three (1961), he was seriously hurt in a car accident that prevented him from shooting for over two months.

His first foreign film was the British drama Tiger Bay (1959).

Despite being of German/Danish background, he has portrayed a variety of roles that include a Mexican gunman(The Magnificent Seven (1960)), a Russian soldier (Himmel ohne Sterne (1955)), a Polish sailor (Tiger Bay (1959)), and and Italian painter (La noia (1963)).

Is one of only two German actors to play Johann Strauss Jr. He did so in The Great Waltz (1972). The other German was Alfred Abel in the silent film Heut' spielt der Strauss (1928).

His participation in Billy Wilder's One, Two, Three (1961) was the reason that he was unable to be in Lawrence of Arabia (1962). Omar Sharif later received his first- and thus far, only- Oscar nomination for playing the role originally intended for Buchholz.

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