|
|
|
Biography
On 13th of November, 1922, Oskar Josef Bschliessmayer was born in the
Marchettigbasse 1A in Vienna Gumpendorf (a part of the 6th district of
the city, not far from the place where Johann Strauss was born.)
His parents were divorced when he was 6. His mother supported them by
working in a hat factory. In his childhood he spent much of his time
with his grandmother who told him stories of the Burgtheater, the
Austrian State Theater.
He attended grade school and the six-form high school ("Realschule"); his
first stage role was in a school play. Before he went onstage he
thought that, since he wanted to become an actor he should remember his
first line. He played a fireman and his only line was "Where's the
fire?". Other than this he had no acting instruction.
His Uncle Franz provided some small "walk-on" parts in such films as
"Geld faellt von Himmel", "Hotel Sacher" (in which he played a bellhop)
and "Leinen aus Irland."
For some speaking roles on the radio he received speech instruction
from Helmuth Krauss.
He appeared in the cabaret "Der Beisskorb" and in the theater "Die
Komoedie".
He left school without graduating.
At the age of 18 he was accepted by Lothar Muethel to the Burg Theater.
He was the youngest actor ever to have received such an honor. He made
his debut under the stage name "Oskar Werner" on the 11th of
October,1941.
On the 3rd of December, following his 19th birthday he was drafted into
the Wehrmacht. A dedicated pacifist and anti Nazi, he hated his
uniform and hated himself. In what may have been the greatest
performance of his life he convinced his superiors that he lacked the
capability to become an officer by pretending to fall from his horse
and making deliberate mistakes in operating cannons. So, instead of
sending him as an officer to the Russian front, the army put him to
work peeling potatoes and cleaning latrines.
So, despite military service, Werner was able to gain further
experience on the stage of the Burgtheater.
He marriage to a fellow performer, Elizabeth Kallina had to be kept
secret because she was half Jewish. The Gestapo was watching them
closely. In 1944 their daughter, Eleanore, was born.
During the Allied bombing of Vienna at this time he saw many friends
killed. Afterwards he would say he knew the exact number of bombs
dropped on his native city. He himself was buried for three days under
rubble. On December 8, 1944 he took his wife and baby and deserted from
the Wehrmacht. Until the end of the war they hid in a shack in the
Vienna Woods, as he always said afterwards, "Without Johann Strauss."
During the Russian advance into the city he and his wife, carrying
their baby between them in a basket, ran from the Russians right into
his old regiment. In the confusion they successfully escaped behind the
lines. This was followed by many months of terrible depravation. At one
point, he recalled his wife sold her valuable watch for "a can of
filthy dirty grease."
Back on the Burgtheater stage, nearly starving he would nearly fall over from
weakness. He recalled he" might have have weighed 110 pounds wearing my winter coat."
After this he made many appearances at the Burg- and Akademietheaters,
in the Ronacher, Redoutensaal of the Hofburg, and at the Salzburg
festivals. He also appeared in the people's and Rainmundtheater and The
Theater in the Josefstadt. In all, he appeared in 30 roles. Learning
his craft by often playing old men and other character parts. He always
said afterwards "that is the way to learn your craft."
He signed with Karl Hartl for the film "The Angel With The Trumpet", the
story of a Viennese family of piano makers. He played the dissolute
"black sheep" of the family.
He made his debut as a director and star with the theatre plays,
"Jugend" and "Der Feigling", to benefit the reconstruction of the Burg
Theater. Then he played the part of "Karl", Beethoven's
nephew in the film "Eroica." Early the following year he played the
part of the student in the film "Ruf aus dem Aether."
Following this he went to England to play his part for Alexander
Korda's English version of "The Angel With The Trumpet". Having left the
Burgtheater without permission he was dismissed from the Burgtheater
Federation without notice.
He and Elizabeth Kallina were divorced at about this time but remained
lifelong friends nonetheless.
|
