Hellmut Lange

Popular German television star from the 1960's to the 1980's, with long-standing experience in radio and on the stage. Lange trained at an acting school in Hannover between 1946 and 1948, subsequently making his stage debut at the Junges Theater in Munich, followed by an open-air Karl May revival in Stuttgart. He was active on Radio Bremen in the 1950's, as both director and narrator. Tall and muscular, with a distinct speaking voice, Lange achieved lasting fame for his title role in the 4-part miniseries 'The Deerslayer' (1969), based on James Fenimore Cooper, which stood out at the time for excellent production values. He appeared in films and on television in adaptations of Edgar Wallace, and starred in Francis Durbridge's detective thriller 'The Scarf' (Das Halstuch (1962)) as Edward Collins. From 1971 to 1981, he compered the popular quiz show 'Kennen Sie Kino?' ('Do you know the cinema?'). He was also a noted voice-over artist, dubbing for such English-speaking stars as Charlton Heston, Donald Sutherland and Paul Newman. Hellmuth Lange died after a lengthy illness in Berlin on January 13 2011.