Heinrich Gretler
Gretler Heinrich ( born October 1, 1897 in Zurich -Hottingen, † September 30, 1977 ) was a Swiss actor. Besides Emil Hegetschweiler, Max Haufler, Alfred Rasser and Ruedi Walter he was one of the five great Swiss folk actors of his time.
Life
Gretler was the third child of a chemical laboratory assistant Heinrich Gretler and his wife Verona. He attended from 1902 to 1912, the primary and secondary school in Zurich. 1912 to 1915 he was educated at the teacher training college Küsnacht. 1916 to 1918 he was first country school teacher, then a private tutor.
Gretler who had made first acting experience by appearing in amateur theater, took acting classes with Joseph Danegger and singing lessons. He began his career in 1918 as a tenor buffo at the Stadttheater Zurich, where he worked until 1926. In the fall of 1919 he was engaged at the Zurich Peacock stage.
After his first film appearance as Landsberg in The Origin of the Confederation, a film about William Tell, he went in 1926 to Berlin. He went there in the first episode in various small roles on and initially played among others at Lustspielhaus at Halle shore, then from 1928 to 1930 at the Volksbühne and finally at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm. In the spring of 1933 he undertook with the piece The little Mahagonny by Bertolt Brecht on a tour to Paris and London.
After the seizure of power by the National Socialists in Germany, he returned to Zurich and was still playing in 1933 at Cabaret Cornichon, where he served as a member of the ensemble from 1935 to 1940. From 1933 to 1935, and again from 1938 to 1945, he worked again at the Schauspielhaus in Zurich, and in between he has appeared as an actor in numerous Swiss stages.
Gretler acquired at this time the reputation of a " Swiss Jannings ," he starred in the title roles of William Tell, Nathan the Wise, Götz von Berlichingen with the iron hand, The Captain of Köpenick, he played Falstaff, Fuhrmann Henschel ( by Gerhart Hauptmann ) and the role of the village judge Adam in the Broken Jug.
Increasingly, he also acted in many major Swiss productions that emerged in the sense of mental defense at this time, for example in Fusilier Wipf, Wachtmeister Studer and Landammann Stauffacher.
He strengthened after the war his film activities and occurred only rarely on the stage. Especially in numerous German home movies of the 50s Gretler was seen regularly in but mostly insignificant roles. A wider audience, he was known for his portrayal of Alpöhi in Heidi ( 1952) and Heidi and Peter (1955 ) and as a father Kohlhiesel in the comedy Kohlhiesels daughters ( 1962). In 1963 he returned to Switzerland, where he worked primarily as a TV actor. His last role was in 1977 by Pope Albert IV in the day when the Pope was kidnapped.
Overall, Heinrich Gretler worked in over 120 films. He was married to actress Marion wishes since 1943 and died one day before his 80th birthday. The tomb is in the cemetery Zurich Enzenbühl (FG 84049 ).
Filmography (selection)
Movies
TV