Heinz Rühmann

German popular film actor, born March 7, 1902 in Essen, German Empire, died October 3, 1994 in Aufkirchen, Germany. Rühmann got first popularity with the movies "Charleys Tante" and "Die drei von der Tankstelle" in the late 1920's and early 1930's. Due to the jewish origin of his first wife Maria Bernheim, he was banned from acting in the early stage of Nationalsocialism. After their divorce, he was rehabilitated by the Nazis in 1939. In 1939, he also got married to Hertha Feiler and in 1943, he acted in one of his best known movies "Die Feuerzangenbowle". The movie was published only in 1944, as it was first rejected by the regime. After WWII, Rühmann could return to his early success starting from the early 1950's. In this stage, he acted in movies as "Der Hauptmann von Köpenick" and "Es geschah am hellichten Tag". In the last years of his life, he focussed mainly on being narrator of screenplays. In 1995, he was awarded the "Goldene Kamera" for being considered as the greatest actor of the 20th century in Germany.