Helmut Berger

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Helmut Berger (born May 29, 1944 in Bad Ischl , Austria , actually Helmut Steinberger) is an Austrian film actor . He was one of the most popular stars of European cinema in the 1960s and 1970s. His collaboration with the Italian director Luchino Visconti , with whom he also lived in a relationship, is considered artistically outstanding . He personified the breach of sexual taboos in European cinema. He was best known for his portrayal of narcissistic and bisexual figures.

Life

Beginnings

Helmut Berger was born into a hotelier family and attended boarding school in Feldkirch. Although he had no interest in the gastronomy and hotel industry, he initially learned and worked in this area. He moved to London at the age of 18 and got by doing odd jobs while taking acting classes. He worked as a model for the first time in London. So he advertised the sherry "Fino la ina". After language studies in Perugia , Berger moved to Rome , where he initially worked as a photo model and film statistic . In addition to his native German, Berger is fluent in English, French and Italian.

1964–1975: breakthrough and international fame

In 1964, Berger first met Luchino Visconti , whose partner he later became. Visconti gave Berger his first role in the episode he was responsible for, La Strega Bruciata Viva, in the episode film Witches of Today (1967). This was followed by his first leading role in the film I giovani tigri by the director Antonio Leonviola . He experienced his international breakthrough as Martin von Essenbeck in Visconti's Die Verdammten (1969), for which he received a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Young Actor . In what is probably his most famous scene, Berger satirizes in this role Lola, as she is played by Marlene Dietrich in The Blue Angel . Berger's films were popular and won several international awards. The Finzi Contini garden won an Oscar and Billy Wilder stated that it was a shame that Italy's best actor was actually an Austrian. The star praised Berger for being "more intellectual than Alain Delon and flawless than Robert Redford". In The Rival (1973) he played alongside Elizabeth Taylor and Henry Fonda . In the scandalous film adaptation of the Salon Kitty by Tinto Brass , Berger played the manager of a brothel during the Nazi era. In the film Entebbe he played the terrorist Wilfried Böse on the side of Anthony Hopkins , Burt Lancaster , Kirk Douglas and Elizabeth Taylor. Berger had found his place in large international productions.

Visconti's Ludwig II. , In which he portrayed the Bavarian King Ludwig II from the blooming youth to the bitter end, tracing the nervous-paranoid decline of the ruler, marked by his own weaknesses and psychological shallows, is considered to be the highpoint of Berger's acting work . In violence and passion Visconti filmed his relationship with Berger. Burt Lancaster played an older arts professor who was drawn to the youthful Berger.

Helmut Berger 1974

Berger became a world star through his roles. He modeled for fashion newspapers and was the first man ever to grace the cover of Vogue magazine . Well-known photographers such as Helmut Newton , Mary Ellen Mark and David Bailey published a series of pictures with him. Andy Warhol made Polaroids from Berger and reproduced them as screen prints .

1976–1999: waning success, further projects

Visconti's death in 1976 plunged Berger into a deep personal crisis. Visconti's will, in which Berger is said to have been used as heir, was surprisingly no longer traceable. Berger's massive personal difficulties manifested itself in a suicide attempt on the first anniversary of Visconti's death, as well as in his ongoing problems with alcohol and other drugs. With the weakening of European film, Berger could no longer build on the great film successes. In the course of the production of the film Der Tollwütige , Berger was photographed naked at the side of Marisa Mell for the Italian Playboy . The director Quentin Tarantino showed in the film Jackie Brown excerpts from the film and thanked Helmut Berger in the credits for his convincing performance. The film itself was not a financial success when it came out.

Claude Chabrol cast Berger in 1980 in the role of Fantômas . In the following time Berger had difficulties participating in larger productions. The Italian film industry had massively lost market share. In addition, his youthful and good looks began to fade, so from the late 1970s, in addition to appearances in B-movies and smaller, ambitious productions, he also worked for television ( The Denver Clan ).

He could hardly build on his old successes, exceptions were his role as a fanatical Standartenführer Ritter in the war film Codename: Emerald (1985), his appearance in the Italian multi-part Die Verlobten (1989) and his role in the last part of Francis Ford Coppola's trilogy The Godfather - Part III (1990). In 1993, Berger played again the role of King Ludwig II in the critically acclaimed drama Ludwig 1881 .

In 1992 Berger starred in the video of the singer Madonna for the title Erotica . Berger contributed pictures and texts for her book project SEX . Berger called Madonna an idol. Berger appeared several times on the Harald Schmidt Show . Vice magazine praised his appearances at Schmidt as "iconic". In 1999 Berger took part in the music video to a thousand tears deep with the German-language Hamburg band Blumfeld . Here he played the older man in a homoerotic relationship.

From 1998 to 2002 he lived with Laura Halding-Hoppenheit . She got to know him at a Harald Glööckler fashion show in the New Palace . She brought the addict Berger several times to the clinic, from where he kept running away and returning. She came with his arrogant behavior is not clear, given him in their Stuttgart Kings Club local ban and sent him last home to his mother to Salzburg.

2000–2008: Withdrawal from the public

In the 2000s, Berger was rarely involved in film productions. In 2004 he moved from Rome to Salzburg to his mother's home, receiving a lot of attention from the Austrian media , but denied financial difficulties and emphasized that he was only looking for a new Roman home. His mother, who he looked after, died at the end of 2009. On the Austrian late night show Willkommen Österreich , Helmut Berger said in 2011, among other things, that he had finished the chapter on Rome.

2009–2019: Late career

In 2009 he played the lead role in Peter Kern's drama Blood Friendship . The film ran at the Berlinale in February 2010 and was released in German cinemas in autumn 2010. In it, Berger plays a homosexual laundry owner who starts a relationship with a young neo-Nazi .

After Berger was again the focus of attention in October 2012 with an appearance on the talk show Markus Lanz , he was in the seventh season of the TV show Ich bin ein Star - Get me out of here from January 11, 2013 . to be seen as residents of the jungle camp. The news magazine Der Spiegel ruled in the run-up to the broadcast that little was left of the man who once "radiated more sex than Robert Pattinson and Leonardo DiCaprio together". The broadcaster RTL has been criticized for presenting Berger in poor health on television in order to achieve good ratings. The display of an "obviously sick man" is a borderline case. After the first episode was broadcast, Der Spiegel revised its opinion and welcomed Berger's commitment. This is "even more interesting when lying down [...] than jumping jumping jacks". Due to Berger's presence "it would be worthwhile to continue watching this program".

Berger left the jungle camp on January 12, the third day of his stay, due to health problems. The media criticized Berger for only staying in the camp for a short time. The Tagesspiegel wrote that the appearance of the "most interesting, profound, most mysterious candidate on the RTL show ... was not a triumph, but a tragedy." In retrospect, Berger commented positively on the experience and announced that he would participate in the RTL again to negotiate next season, and also the English edition of the jungle camp is interested in a commitment from him.

In 2012, Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf Verlag published a large-format illustrated book on Berger's life, which was positively received by the press.

At the beginning of 2013, Berger appeared in the music video of the singer Nena for the song Besser gehts nicht from the album You are good with. In June of the same year, Berger's apartment in Salzburg was broken into. Originals by Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol , memorabilia, valuable jewelry and his film roll and poster collection were stolen. According to Berger, the damage was around one million euros .

Berger returned to the cinema in 2013 with a supporting role alongside violinist David Garrett in the film Der Teufelsgeiger . The following year he presented the biography Saint Laurent at the Cannes International Film Festival , in which he can be seen as the aging Yves Saint Laurent, directed by Bertrand Bonello .

In September 2015, the full-length documentary film Helmut Berger, actor by Austrian filmmaker Andreas Horvath, premiered at the Venice Film Festival . The performances of the film, in which Berger masturbates in front of the camera in one scene, resulted in Berger separating from Florian Wess as well as an advertisement brought in by his wife Francesca Guidato for bigamy. Berger speaks the Göttingen chanson on the album Barbara by the French pianist Alexandre Tharaud , which was released in autumn 2017 .

In February 2018, Berger made his stage debut at the Volksbühne Berlin at the age of 73. In Albert Serra's play Liberté , he plays a languid baron from the Baroque period alongside Ingrid Caven . He also embodied this character in the film adaptation of the same name from 2019.

On the occasion of his 75th birthday, a bust made by Alexander Hanel was unveiled at the entrance to the Bad Ischler Lehartheater in May 2019 . In November 2019, he announced that he would end his acting career after several pneumonia in recent months. Like his role model Marlene Dietrich, he wanted to spend his old age away from the public.

The documentary film Helmut Berger, my mother and I by filmmaker Valesca Peters was also released in 2019 . He shows the actor in friendly contacts beyond the film world. Berger's involvement in Liberté (Volksbühne Berlin) was initiated in this group and organizationally supported.

personality

Dubbed in the media as an eccentric and enfant terrible , Helmut Berger is not only known for his cinematic work, but also for his dissolute life and his openly known bisexuality , and he is always a welcome guest on talk shows. Among other things, he told of his relationship with the actress Marisa Berenson , who allegedly wanted to marry him, as well as of erotic adventures with Rudolf Nurejew , Britt Ekland , Ursula Andress , Nathalie Delon , Florinda Bolkan , Elizabeth Taylor , Marisa Mell , Anita Pallenberg , Marilù Tolo , Tab Hunter , Jerry Hall , Bianca and Mick Jagger and other rock stars from the 1970s and 1980s. In his 1998 autobiography Ich , he describes himself as Visconti's widow. He divides his life and his autobiography into the phases before, with and after Visconti.

Vogue called him the "most beautiful man in the world". Berger was not a beau, not a handsome man, but “a man of breathtaking beauty”. His high cheekbones would have given him something aristocratic. Berger was considered a man of the jet set and led an extravagant life. The media reported about his excessive alcohol and other drugs and his numerous affairs.

In 1994 he married the actress Francesca Guidato , from whom he separated three years later (and expressed derogatory comments about the relationship), but was never divorced. Nena , who engaged Berger for a music video in 2013, described him in an interview as a man who “says what he thinks and lives what he feels. He is a free spirit who cannot be bent. ”He is one of the last real rock stars.

In July 2015, Berger married the designer Florian Wess, who was 36 years his junior, with effective media coverage (not legally binding) . Wess split from Berger in September 2015 after he committed sexual acts on himself in a documentary.

Awards and nominations

Quotes about Berger

“I think it's wonderful. The man says what he thinks. "

- Nena , working together on the video It couldn't be better 2013.

"Except for Helmut Berger, there are no more interesting women these days."

- Billy Wilder , about Berger in Die Verdammten 1969.

"I think that androgyny , be it with David Bowie or Helmut Berger, influenced me more in my work than anything else."

- Madonna , in an interview with Vince Aletti in 1999.

"He's one of those who don't leave anyone indifferent."

- Spiegel TV , documentary about Berger 1997.

Trivia

The Austrian band The Helmut Bergers named themselves after him. Berger occasionally appears as a star guest at the group's concerts.

Because of his Austrian accent, Helmut Berger was dubbed in many films by Jürgen Clausen , for example in Das Bildnis des Dorian Gray and Ludwig II .

Filmography

Appearances in music videos

literature

  • Paola-Ludovika Coriando : La poesia del volto: ritratto di Helmut Berger attore viscontiano in: Cineforum , n.452 (March 2006).
  • Helmut Berger, with Holde Heuer: Ich, Die Autobiographie . Ullstein, Berlin 1998, ISBN 3-550-06969-3 .
  • Helmut Berger: Helmut Berger - A life in pictures . Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, Berlin 2012.

Web links

Commons : Helmut Berger  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Darling of the Gods Die Zeit, November 7, 2011
  2. ↑ a b jungle camp 2013: candidate Helmut Berger on RTL.de from January 7, 2013
  3. ^ "Sex symbol and eccentric, the portrait of Helmut Berger" Der Stern from January 13, 2013 ( Memento from January 14, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
  4. ↑ The Handsome Man and the Shit The Time of January 10, 2013
  5. ↑ Personal details : Helmut Berger in Der Spiegel , issue 36/1977
  6. ↑ Helmut Berger: Fall of a fairy tale king on time online from November 7, 2012
  7. ↑ Careers: No King Today in Der Spiegel , issue 51/2012
  8. ↑ allaboutmadonna.com ( Memento from January 17, 2013 in the web archive archive.today ) Madonna in an interview with Aperture Magazine in summer 1999
  9. ↑ Vice Magazine: "If I were gay, I would fuck Helmut Berger" by Felix Nicklas
  10. ↑ Jochen Distelmeyer (Blumfeld) on the collaboration with Berger during the filming of a thousand tears deep ( memento from December 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
  11. ↑ Portrait of the week: The operator of the Kings Club is not only committed to gays - Laura Halding-Hoppenheit: Mother Teresa of Stuttgart. Stuttgarter Wochenblatt , January 8, 2013.
  12. ↑ Uwe Bogen: The beautiful things in life? They lead to ruin. December 14, 2012.
  13. ↑ Uwe Bogen: The beautiful things in life? They lead to ruin. December 14, 2012.
  14. ↑ Laura Halding-Hoppenheit, restaurateur. SWR1 , May 30, 2014 ( podcast recording ).
  15. ↑ Helmut Berger freaks out completely on the Lanz show . Welt.de , November 1, 2012
  16. ↑ Der Spiegel: No King Today by Alexander Kühn appeared in issue 51 of December 17, 2012, p. 160
  17. ↑ Spiegel Online: Jungle Camp, Day 1: In the undergrowth of the dark soul by Stefan Kuzmany published on January 12, 2013
  18. ↑ Jungle Camp, Day 2: Berger, das Wärmeopfer , Spiegel Online from January 13, 2013
  19. ↑ Helmut Berger is out - and the shit is there Der Tagesspiegel from January 13, 2013
  20. ↑ I ask myself: "Am I really" . Kurier (daily newspaper) , February 8, 2013
  21. ↑ Berger wants to go back to the jungle camp - do it again, Helmut . Stern.de , February 8, 2013
  22. ↑ The darling of the gods . Zeit.de , June 9, 2013
  23. ↑ Nena shoots a video clip with Helmut Berger . Focus.de , March 19, 2013
  24. ↑ Burglars rob Helmut Berger . Welt.de , June 9, 2013
  25. ^ Berger: Cinema comeback . Österreich.at, June 12, 2013
  26. ↑ Helmut Berger is back . the daily newspaper , May 19, 2014
  27. ↑ Helmut Berger's marriage is over - after nine weeks . Die Welt , September 14, 2015
  28. ↑ Wife reports Helmut Berger for bigamy . Picture , October 6, 2015
  29. ^ Berliner Morgenpost - Berlin: Helmut Berger makes his debut in "Liberté" at the Volksbühne . ( Morgenpost.de [accessed on February 27, 2018]).
  30. ↑ This is how actor Helmut Berger celebrated his 75th birthday . Article dated May 30, 2019, accessed May 31, 2019.
  31. ↑ Helmut Berger was immortalized in his hometown Bad Ischl . Article dated May 30, 2019, accessed May 31, 2019.
  32. ↑ After hospitalization: Helmut Berger ends his career. Retrieved November 27, 2019 .
  33. ↑ Helmut Berger, my mother and I (2019 Salzgeber & Co.)
  34. ↑ Sex symbol and eccentric: The portrait of Helmut Berger ( Memento from January 14, 2013 in the Internet Archive ). Stern.de , January 13, 2013.
  35. ↑ Helmut Berger - an enfant terrible turns 65 ( memento from April 13, 2013 in the web archive archive.today ). Südtirol News, June 17, 2009
  36. ↑ http://www.gala.de/lifestyle/kultur/200591/Helmur-Berger-Ich-habe-alles-erlebt.html Helmut Berger: “I have experienced everything” appeared in the gala on November 6, 2012
  37. ↑ Helmut Schödel: A drama - a journey with the world star Helmut Berger, in Süddeutsche Zeitung from 7/8. May 2011
  38. ↑ Park Avenue Edition 10/2006
  39. ↑ dapd / tjs / car / oje: ZDF-Talk: Helmut Berger completely freaks out on the Lanz show. In: welt.de . November 1, 2012, accessed October 7, 2018 .
  40. ↑ Nena and Berger - what a crazy couple! . Bild.de , March 19, 2013
  41. ↑ Nena: Music video with Helmut Berger . Magistrix, March 20, 2013
  42. ↑ Bunte.de: Article about the wedding , July 10, 2015
  43. ↑ Helmut Berger & his botox boy: The wedding was that crazy . PromiFlash , July 11, 2015.
  44. ↑ Helmut Berger's marriage is over - after nine weeks. In: welt.de . September 14, 2015, accessed September 11, 2016 .
  45. ^ Kristián Prize for the Austrian actor Helmut Berger ( memento from April 5, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) on Radio Praha from March 31, 2011, accessed on April 2, 2011
  46. ^ Grandezza and decadence: Honorary award for Helmut Berger in Kitzbühel. In: Tyrolean daily newspaper . August 20, 2019. Retrieved August 20, 2019 .
  47. ↑ Abendzeitung München - Article on Berger with the quote . Retrieved August 17, 2015. 
  48. ↑ The World - The Strange Phenomenon Helmut Berger . Accessed August 21, 2015. 
  49. ^ The Guardian: Interview on the official website .  Original quote (English): And I think androgyny, whether it's David Bowie or Helmut Berger, that has really really influenced my work more than anything. "
  50. ^ Spiegel TV: Official website with the episode. . Retrieved August 17, 2015. 
  51. ↑ The Helmut Bergers against the jungle . Der Standard , January 8, 2013.
personal data
SURNAME Berger, Helmut
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Steinberger, Helmut
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian film actor
DATE OF BIRTH May 29, 1944
PLACE OF BIRTH Bad Ischl