Alfred Struwe (April 22, 1927 – February 13, 1998)Peter Hahn
"Struwe, Alfred (Südwestkirchhof Stahnsdorf): Die Serie "Zahn um Zahn" war ein Knüller im DDR-Fernsehen"
'' Märkische Allgemeine Zeitung'', 20 April 2007 was a German actor, best known for his television role as Dr. Alexander Wittkugel in '' Zahn um Zahn''. Struwe was born in Marienburg,

West Prussia The Province of West Prussia (; ; ) was a province of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and from 1878 to 1919. West Prussia was established as a province of the Kingdom of Prussia in 1773, formed from Royal Prussia of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonweal ...

(today

Malbork Malbork (German: ''Marienburg'') is a town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. It is the seat of Malbork County and has a population of 36,709 people as of 2024. The town is located on the Nogat river, in the historical region of Pomerelia. Fo ...

in Poland), the son of a postman, and grew up there with five siblings. His first acting experience was in

Hitler Youth The Hitler Youth ( , often abbreviated as HJ, ) was the youth wing of the German Nazi Party. Its origins date back to 1922 and it received the name ("Hitler Youth, League of German Worker Youth") in July 1926. From 1936 until 1945, it was th ...

summer camps. In 1944 he was called up first into the

Reich Labour Service The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major paramilitary organization established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate ...

, then into the military. After attending officer training school in

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

, he was sent along with other young contemporaries into battle in the final days of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1945 he rejoined his family in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

. Since his father, Gustav, was opposed to his making acting his career, he instead had to attend a police academy, until in 1948 it closed and he was also discharged. From then on, he was able to dedicate himself entirely to acting. He had already performed part-time in amateur productions and taken private acting lessons during his police training. In 1949 he joined the theater company in

Greiz Greiz ( ; ) is a town in the state of Thuringia, Germany, and is the capital of the Greiz (district), district of Greiz. Greiz is situated in eastern Thuringia, east of the state capital Erfurt, on the White Elster river. Greiz has a large park ...

Sabine Wagner
"Heute fällt der letzte Vorhang - Erinnerung an über 100 Jahre Theatertradition in Greiz"
OTZ.de, 31 December 2010 and subsequently was engaged in

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

Zittau Zittau (; ; ; ; ; Lusatian dialects, Upper Lusatian dialect: ''Sitte''; ) is the southeasternmost city in the Germany, German state of Saxony, and belongs to the Görlitz (district), district of Görlitz, Germany's easternmost Districts of Germ ...

Cottbus Cottbus () or (;) is a university city and the second-largest city in the German state of Brandenburg after the state capital, Potsdam. With around 100,000 inhabitants, Cottbus is the most populous city in Lusatia. Cottbus lies in the Sorbian ...

Karl-Marx-Stadt Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt (); ; ) is the third-largest city in the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden, and the fourth-largest city in the area of former East Germany after (East Be ...

and

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

. Struwe made his first appearance before the cameras in 1954, in the

DEFA DEFA (''Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft'') was the state-owned film studio of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) throughout the country's existence. Since 2019, DEFA's film heritage has been made accessible and licensable on the PR ...

co-production '' Leuchtfeuer''. Then beginning in the 1960s, his face was often seen on both movie and television screens. Several times he played the part of the would-be assassin of Hitler,

Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg Claus Philipp Maria Justinian Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (; 15 November 1907 – 21 July 1944) was a German German Army (1935–1945), army officer who is best known for his 20 July plot, failed attempt on 20 July 1944 to assassinate Adolf ...

. In 1985 he played what would become his signature role, the eccentric dentist Dr. Alexander Wittkugel in the television series ''Zahn um Zahn'' ("A Tooth for a Tooth"). This was so successful that in response to viewer demand the 7 projected episodes were extended and in the end 21 stories of "Dr. Wittkugel's Practices" were produced. Struwe's daughter Catharina Struwe is likewise an actress, with, for example, a longstanding engagement at the Neue Bühne in Senftenberg. With the dissolution of the Iron Curtain, the popular actor's life became quieter. Struwe made occasional further appearances on stage and on television, but otherwise enjoyed his retirement. He died in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and largest city of the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the Havel, River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

in 1998 after a lengthy illness caused by

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

and was buried in the Southwest Cemetery in

Stahnsdorf Stahnsdorf is a municipality in the Potsdam-Mittelmark district, in Brandenburg, Germany. Geography It is situated on the Teltow plateau, about southwest of the Berlin city centre, and east of Potsdam. Neighbouring municipalities are the town of ...

Selected filmography

*1954: '' Leuchtfeuer'' - Junger Fischer *1963: '' Geheimarchiv an der Elbe'' - Adjutant von Upitz *1963: ''

Vanina Vanini ''Vanina Vanini'' is a short story published in 1829 by Stendhal (1783–1842), the pen name of Marie-Henri Beyle. Set in the 1820s during the early Risorgimento, when Italy was under Austrian control, it concerns the love affair of a young Roman ...

'' (TV Movie) - Fürst Savelli *1966: ''Ohne Kampf kein Sieg'' (TV Mini-Series) - Claus von Stauffenberg *1968: ''Die Toten bleiben jung'' - von Klemm *1969: ''Krupp und Krause'' (TV Series) - Alfried Krupp *1969: ''Verdacht auf einen Toten'' - Scheitler *1971: '' KLK Calling PTZ - The Red Orchestra'' - Bellini *1971: '' Liberation III: Direction of the Main Blow'' - Stauffenberg *1971: ''Istanbul-Masche'' (TV Movie) - Alfred Gärtner *1972: ''Die Bilder des Zeugen Schattmann'' (TV Mini-Series) - Fritz Marcus *1973: ''Die Hosen des Ritters Bredow'' - Hauptmann Otterstädt *1973-1979: '' Das unsichtbare Visier'' (TV Series) - General Gert von Wieseneck *1974: ''Wolz - Leben und Verklärung eines deutschen Anarchisten'' - Zweiter Polizist *1974: ''

Ulzana Ulzana ( – 1909, also known as Josanni, Jolsanie or Ozaní’ – ″Tanned buckskin″ or Bį-sópàn – ″Big Buckskin″), was a Tsokanende Apache war chief, brother of Chihuahua. Biography Both the brothers were loyal and warlike suppor ...

'' - Aldrigton, Bürgermeister von Tucson *1975: ''Fischzüge'' (TV Movie) - Nienhusen *1976: ''

Im Staub der Sterne ''In the Dust of the Stars'' (German: ''Im Staub der Sterne'', Romanian: ''Revoltă în cosmos'') is a 1976 East German science fiction film, co-produced with Romania and directed by Gottfried Kolditz. Some of the film's props were part of a 2009 ...

'' - Suko *1976-1989: ''

Polizeiruf 110 ''Polizeiruf 110'' ("Police call 110") is a long-running German-language detective television series. The name refers to the emergency telephone number of the ''Volkspolizei''. The first episode was broadcast 27 June 1971 in the German Democratic ...

'' (TV Series) - Uwe Kellerbauer / Dr. Frowein / Friedrich Bader *1977: ''Osvobození Prahy'' - von Matzmer *1978: ''

Anton the Magician ''Anton the Magician'' () is a 1978 East German comedy film directed by Günter Reisch. It was entered into the 11th Moscow International Film Festival where Ulrich Thein won the award for Best Actor. Cast * Ulrich Thein as Anton * Anna Dymna ...

'' - Bankmensch *1978: ''Zwei Betten in der Hohen Tatra'' - Wolfgang Witt *1979: ''Bis daß der Tod euch scheidet'' - Jens' Schwager *1980: '' Archiv des Todes'' (TV Series) - Standartenführer Hauk *1980: ''Oben geblieben ist noch keiner'' (TV Movie) - Flugplatzleiter Behrens *1980: ''Wizja lokalna 1901'' *1980: ''Jesli serce masz bijace'' *1981: ''Asta, mein Engelchen'' *1981: ''Der ungebetene Gast'' (TV Movie) - Felix Hollerbusch *1981: ''Berühmte Ärzte der Charité: Der kleine Doktor'' (TV Movie) - Geheimrat Dr. Lehnert *1982: ''Dein unbekannter Bruder'' - Staatsrat Diestelkamp *1982: ''Der lange Ritt zur Schule'' - Erster Guter *1983: ''Frühstück im Bett'' (TV Movie) - Georg Hartmann *1983: ''Die lieben Luder'' (TV Movie, Sequel to ''Polizeiruf 110'') - Herr Zander *1983: ''Verzeihung, sehen Sie Fußball?'' - Dr. Kobermann *1983: ''Automärchen'' - Sauerboom *1984: ''Mensch, Oma!'' (TV Mini-Series) - Redner *1984: ''

Front ohne Gnade ''Front ohne Gnade'' is an East German television series. See also *List of German television series The following is a list of television series produced in Germany: Current Drama * ''4 Blocks (TV series), 4 Blocks'' (TNT Serie, 2017– ...

'' (TV Series) - Obersturmbannführer Maas *1984-1990: ''Schauspielereien: Gesucht und gefunden'' (TV Series) *1985-1988: ''Zahn um Zahn'' (TV Series) - Dr. Alexander Wittkugel *1987: '' Magnat'' - Wilhelm II, German Emperor *1987: ''Sachsens Glanz und Preußens Gloria: Gräfin Cosel'' (TV Movie) - Graf Jacob Heinrich von Flemming *1989: ' *1991: ''Aerolina'' (TV Series) - Zirkusdirektor Bernhard *1992: ''Karl May'' (TV Mini-Series) - Lawyer Bernstein *1997: ''Verdammtes Glück'' (TV Movie) - Herr Leipold (final film role)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Struwe, Alfred 1927 births 1998 deaths Burials at Stahnsdorf South-Western Cemetery People from Malbork Male actors from Pomeranian Voivodeship People from West Prussia German male film actors German male stage actors German male television actors Deaths from pneumonia in Germany 20th-century German male actors Hitler Youth members Reich Labour Service members German Army officers of World War II