Fred Bertelmann (7 October 1925 – 22 January 2014) was a German singer and actor.
Life
Bertelmann was born in
Duisburg in the
Ruhr
The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...
area, the son of a chemical industry employee. Aged nine, he became a chorister and later also studied cello, trumpet, guitar and singing at the
Nuremberg Conservatory.
[Biografie](_blank)
fred-bertelmann.de, 22 January 2014 He also attended acting lessons at the
UFA film studios.
In
World War II, he fought in the
Wehrmacht on one of the
Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to:
Military frontiers
*Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany
*Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany
*Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...
s and became a
US prisoner of war in 1944. He was sent to a camp in Alabama, where he first heard
swing music
Swing music is a style of jazz that developed in the United States during the late 1920s and early 1930s. It became nationally popular from the mid-1930s. The name derived from its emphasis on the off-beat, or nominally weaker beat. Swing bands ...
. After his release in May 1946, he returned to
Bavaria, where he founded his own band and performed in American GI clubs in
Füssen and in
Landsberg am Lech.
From 1947 onward, he played together with conductor and composer
Ernst Mosch, both even appeared in ''
Bayerischer Rundfunk'' radio broadcasts. In 1950 Bertelmann toured Sweden with
Arne Hülphers
Arne Gunnar Valter Hülphers (April 4, 1904, Trollhättan – July 24, 1978, Norrköping Municipality) was a Swedish jazz pianist and bandleader.
Hülphers played early in his career at the club Felix-Kronprinsen, from 1924 to 1927, and played in ...
's orchestra and
Zarah Leander. His career was further promoted by the successful record producer
Michael Jary
Michael Jary (born 'Maximilian Michael Andreas Jarczyk'; 24 September 1906 in Laurahütte, Siemianowitz (today Siemianowice Śląskie) – 12 July 1988 in Munich) was a German composer.
Early years
Jary's father worked at the Königshüt ...
and Bertelmann's performances in the first television broadcasts of ''
Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk'' (NWDR) in
Hamburg from 1952. Here he met with Bibi Jones, both later recorded several duets.
Bertelmann also worked as a solo singer of numerous
Schlager songs.
Was macht eigentlich Fred Bertelmann
stern.de, 11 November 2003 His most popular song up to today is ''Der lachende Vagabund'' ("The laughing tramp"), published by Electrola in 1957, a cover version of Jim Lowe's song ''Gambler’s Guitar''. The classic '' Wirtschaftswunder'' tune sold over two million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...
.
Bertelmann also played as an actor in the 1950s and 1960s, in movies as well as in classical stage plays, like '' Götz von Berlichingen'' or '' The Taming of the Shrew''. He enjoyed considerable success in the US, appearing in television shows of Ed Sullivan, Dean Martin
Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...
and Perry Como
Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...
, and performed in a 1961 musical theatre production of '' Show Boat'' in Chicago. In Europe he performed together with stars like Marika Rökk Vico Torriani, Hans-Joachim Kulenkampff, and Caterina Valente. In 1972 he founded a show business school in Munich together with Gitta Lind.
In 1966, he married television presenter and actress Ruth Kappelsberger. Bertelmann made his last appearances at the Munich Opera Festival in 2005 and 2006. In late 2013 he suffered from severe pneumonia.[Fred Bertelmann ist tot](_blank)
Merkur Online, 22 January 2014 He died on 22 January 2014 in Berg in Bavaria.
Songs
* "Tina Marie", 1955, Electrola, 5.
* "Meine kleine süße Susi", 1956, Electrola, 3.
* "Marie mit dem frechen Blick", 1957, Electrola, 15.
* "Bene bene tanto", 1957, Electrola, 13.
* "Der lachende Vagabund", 1958, Electrola, 1.
* "Ich bin ja nur ein Troubadur", 1958, Electrola, 6.
* "Aber du heißt Pia", 1958, Electrola, 7.
* "Ihr zartes Lächeln", 1959, Electrola, 6.
* "Der Dumme im Leben ist immer der Mann" (duet with Chris Howland), 1959, Electrola
* "Tiamo Marina", 1960, Electrola, 30.
* "Einmal High High High", 1960, Electrola, 34.
* "Mary-Rose", 1962, Polydor, 36.
* "Ein Caballero", 1963, Polydor, 39.
* "Es gibt immer einen Weg", 1967, Ariola
Filmography
* 1956: ''Pulverschnee nach Übersee''
* 1957: ''Wenn Frauen schwindeln''
* 1957: ''Europas neue Musikparade''
* 1958: '
* 1959: '' Guitars Sound Softly Through the Night''
* 1959: '' Arena of Fear''
* 1959: ''Wenn das mein großer Bruder wüßte''
* 1959: '' The Blue Sea and You''
* 1960: '' My Niece Doesn't Do That''
* 1960: '
* 1961: ''So liebt und küßt man in Tirol''
* 1962: ''Lieder klingen am Lago Maggiore''
* 1966: ''Laß die Finger von der Puppe''
* 1975: ''Ein Walzer zu zweien'' (TV)
* 1996: ''Zum Stanglwirt
''Zum Stanglwirt'' is a German television series that ran from 1993-1997 starring Peter Steiner, Erma Wassmer and Gerda Steiner.
See also
*List of German television series
The following is a list of television series produced in Germany:
...
'' – episode: "Jetzt scha mer mal – Dann seh’ mer scho" (TV series)
Awards
* Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
References
External links
Website by Fred Bertelmann
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bertelmann, Fred
1925 births
2014 deaths
German male singers
German male film actors
German male television actors
20th-century German male actors
German Army personnel of World War II
People from Duisburg
Schlager musicians
20th-century German musicians
Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
20th-century German male musicians
German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States