Suzzanna Martha Frederika van Osch (13 October 1942 – 15 October 2008) was an Indonesian actress. Known as the "Queen of

Indonesian horror Indonesian horror are fictions and films of the horror genre produced by the Indonesian film industry. Often inspired by local folklore and religious elements, Indonesian horror films have been produced in the country since the 1960s. After a hia ...

", she is well-known in particular in Indonesia for portraying spirits, witches, and other supernatural beings. She was crowned the best female antagonist in Indonesian film industry along with Ruth Pelupessy and Mieke Wijaya.

Biography

Suzzanna, who was an Indo of mixed Javanese- Minahasan- Sundanese-

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

- Dutch heritage, was born Suzzanna Martha Frederica Van Osch on 13 October 1942 in

Buitenzorg Bogor City (), or Bogor (, ), is a landlocked city in the West Java, Indonesia. Located around south of the national capital of Jakarta, Bogor is the 6th largest city in the Jakarta metropolitan area and the 14th overall nationwide.

(now Bogor),

West Java West Java (, ) is an Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten and the country's capital region of Jakarta to t ...

, as the youngest child and daughter of the six children of Johanna Bojoh (1915–1996), a singer, and Willem Van Osch (1910–1942), a stage actor from

the Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. Her brothers were William Charles Van Osch (born 1931), Janemann Van Osch (1935–1937), and Buce Boyoh (1940–2016), and her sisters were Gerdina Johanna Maria Van Osch (1933–1977) and Irene Beatrix Van Osch (1937–1938). Suzzanna entered acting in the 1958, following the success of

Usmar Ismail Usmar Ismail (20 March 1921 – 2 January 1971) was an Indonesian film director, author, journalist and revolutionary of Minangkabau descent. He is widely regarded as the native Indonesian pioneer of the cinema of Indonesia. Biography Ismail ...

's '' Tiga Dara'' (1956). Cashing in on the popularity of the film, numerous organizations had begun holding "Tiga Dara" competitions; Suzzana, who had been raised in

Magelang Magelang () is one of six cities in Central Java, the Central Java Province of Indonesia that are administratively independent of the regencies in which they lie geographically. Each of these cities is governed by a mayor rather than a Subdivi ...

, won a such competition in

Yogyakarta Yogyakarta is the capital city of the Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by Hamengkubuwono, a monarchy, Yogyakarta is regarded as an importan ...

. She was soon cast in Ismail's film ''Asrama Dara'' (1958), in which she portrayed Ina, the daughter of a politician who must stay at a boarding house for girls along with her sister who was portrayed by Nurbani Yusuf. Advertising for this film emphasized Suzzanna and her role, drawing on the previous success of ''Tiga Dara'' by touting her as the next Indriati Iskak. Suzzanna's performance was well received by audiences, and in 1960, she was named Best Child Actress Award at the Asian Film Festival; she was also given recognition at the 1960

Indonesian Film Festival The Indonesian Film Festival ( Indonesian: Festival Film Indonesia, 'FFI') is an annual awards ceremony organised by the Indonesian Film Board and the Ministry of Culture to celebrate cinematic achievements in the Indonesian film industry. Dur ...

. By the mid-1960s, she had married fellow actor . Together, in 1965, they established the film production company Tri Murni Film, which produced only one film—''Segenggam Tanah Perbatasan'' (1965), starring both Suzzanna and Suprapto—before closing. They collaborated on another film, ''Suzie'', the following year. Their final effort, Tidar Jaya Film, was most successful; it produced four films between 1970 and 1973. The first of these was ''Tuan Tanah Kedawung'' (1970), an adaptation of the comic by . In this film, Suzzanna took the role of Ratna, a woman who must protect her husband's land deeds while he is working in

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

. Tidar Jaya subsequently produced ''Beranak dalam Kubur'' (1971), ''Bumi Makin Panas'' (1973), and ''Napsu Gila'' (1973); all of these featured Suzzanna. Suzzanna's greatest popular success of the 1970s, however, came from another company. In 1970, she was cast in ', a production by Sarinande Films directed by . In this film, Suzzanna portrays a woman who travels to

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

in search of her husband, only to fall victim of a

human trafficking Human trafficking is the act of recruiting, transporting, transferring, harboring, or receiving individuals through force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of exploitation. This exploitation may include forced labor, sexual slavery, or oth ...

ring. Controversial for its frank depictions of sexuality and coarse language, the film was banned in

Bandung Bandung is the capital city of the West Java province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, the city is the List of Indonesian cities by population, fourth-most populous city and fourth largest city in Indonesia after Jakarta, Surabay ...

but nonetheless the most popular domestic production of the year. For this film, Suzzanna was crowned as Asia's most popular actress at the 1972

Asia-Pacific Film Festival The Asia-Pacific Film Festival (abbreviated APFF) is an annual film festival hosted by the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia-Pacific (FPA). The festival was first held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1954. History The festival was first he ...

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

. She later decided that the film's depiction of sexuality was too frank, vowing to not take such roles in the future. Suzzanna separated from Suprapto in 1974, shortly following ''Napsu Gila''; Tidar Jaya ceased operations soon afterwards. Indonesians knew her as The Indonesian Horror Queen,Horror Artist Suzanna Dies
, ''The Jakarta Post'', 2008-10-17 not only because of her acting but also because of her mystic lifestyle. Some people said that she looked young in her old age because she ate

jasmine Jasmine (botanical name: ''Jasminum'', pronounced ) is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family of Oleaceae. It contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of Eurasia, Africa, and Oceania. Jasmines are wid ...

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

s. Suzzanna died at her residence in Potrobangsan, North Magelang,

, on 15 October 2008 at the age of 66, after 30 years of battling diabetes.Horror Film Queen Dies Aged 66
''

The Jakarta Post ''The Jakarta Post'' is a daily English-language newspaper in Indonesia. The paper is owned by PT Bina Media Tenggara and based in the nation's capital, Jakarta. ''The Jakarta Post'' started as a collaboration between four Indonesian media ...

'', 16 October 2008

Filmography

*''Asrama Dara'' (1958) *''Bertamasja'' (1959) *''Mira'' (1961) *''Aku Hanja Bajangan'' (1963) *''Antara Timur dan Barat'' (1963) *''Segenggam Tanah Perbatasan'' (1965) *''Suzie'' (1966) *''Bernafas dalam Lumpur'' (1970) *''Tuan Tanah Kedawung'' (1970) *''Air Mata Kekasih'' (1971) *''Beranak dalam Kubur'' (1971) *''Napsu Gila'' (1973) *''Bumi Makin Panas'' (1973) *''Ratapan dan Rintihan'' (1974) *''Pulau Cinta'' (1978) *''Permainan Bulan Desember'' (1980) *'' Ratu Ilmu Hitam'' (1981) *''

Sundel Bolong In Indonesian mythology, a sundel bolong, is a mythical ghost from the archipelago which is a woman with beautiful long black hair and a long white dress (her form is similar to Pontianak). The myth is closely linked to prostitutes, meaning a " ...

'' (1981) *''Lembah Duka'' (1981) *''Sangkuriang'' (1982) *''Nyi Blorong'' (1982) *''Nyi Ageng Ratu Pemikat'' (1983) *''Perkawinan Nyi Blorong'' (1983) *''Telaga Angker'' (1984) *''Dia Sang Penakluk'' (1984) *''Usia dalam Gejolak'' (1984) *''Ratu Sakti Calon Arang'' (1985) *''Bangunnya Nyi Roro Kidul'' (1985) *''Petualangan Cinta Nyi Blorong'' (1986) *''Malam Jumat Kliwon'' (1986) *''Samson dan Delilah'' (1987) *''Ratu Buaya Putih'' (1988) *''Santet'' (1988) *''Malam Satu Suro'' (1988) *''Wanita Harimau (Santet II)'' (1989) *''Pusaka Penyebar Maut'' (1990) *''Titisan Dewi Ular'' (1990) *''Perjanjian di Malam Keramat'' (1991) *''Ajian Ratu Laut Kidul'' (1991) *''Misteri Sebuah Guci'' (2003) (TV Series) *''Selma & Ular Siluman'' (2003) (TV Series) *''Hantu Ambulance'' (2008)

Awards and nominations

References

Works cited

* * * *

External links