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Heinz Erhardt (; 20 February 1909 – 5 June 1979) was a German comedian, musician, entertainer, actor and poet.


Life

Heinz Erhardt was born in
Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...
, the son of Baltic German
Kapellmeister ( , , ), from German (chapel) and (master), literally "master of the chapel choir", designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term has evolved considerably in i ...
Gustav Erhardt. He lived most of his childhood at his grandparents in Riga, where his grandfather, Paul Nelder, owned a music supply store at the current location of the Freedom Square. His grandfather also taught him how to play the
piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...
. After
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, his father emigrated to
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Erhardt lived with his stepmother in Wennigsen near
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 ...
, where he attended school, until in 1924 he returned to Riga. From 1926 he studied at the
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 ...
conservatory; however, Erhardt's wish to become a professional pianist was not supported by his grandparents who wanted him to work as a merchant. In 1935, Erhardt married Gilda Zanetti, daughter of the
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
consul in
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...
. They had four children: Grit, Verena, Gero and Marita. became a
film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...
and
cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...
, and his grandson, Marek Erhardt, became an actor. Working at his grandfather's business, Erhardt entered the stage as a
cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...
artist in several Riga coffeehouses and in 1937 even appeared on the German RRG radio. The next year, Erhardt moved to
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
, where he performed on a ''
Kabarett Kabarett (; from French ''cabaret'' = tavern) is satirical revue, a form of cabaret which was developed in France by Rodolphe Salis in 1881 as the ''cabaret artistique''. It was named Le Chat Noir and was centered on political events and satire. ...
'' stage on Kurfürstendamm. In 1939, he made his first TV appearance with his swing song ''Mein Mädchen'' in the film ''Bunte Fernseh-Fibel''. The spectacle wearer and non-swimmer Erhardt was drafted into the German ''
Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official military branch, branche ...
'' navy during
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 ...
, but only on the third call-up; he served as a pianist in the Marine orchestra and only handled weapons during his
basic training Military recruit training, commonly known as basic training or boot camp, refers to the initial instruction of new military personnel. It is a physically and psychologically intensive process, which resocializes its subjects for the unique dema ...
. In 1948, he started work as a
radio presenter A radio personality is a person who has an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality who hosts a radio show is also known as a radio host (North American English), radio presenter (British English) or radio jockey. Radio personali ...
at the public NWDR radio station. By then he had moved to
Wellingsbüttel Wellingsbüttel (), a quarter in the Wandsbek borough in the city of Hamburg in northern Germany, is a former independent settlement. In 2020 the population was 10,935. History The first records on Wellingsbüttel are from 1296. Wellingsbüttel ...
, a quarter of
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
. He quickly became extremely popular and famous for his irresistible
pun A pun, also known as a paronomasia in the context of linguistics, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from t ...
s and countless nonsense
poem Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...
s. He also acted in films and on stage. In his films he usually played characters similar to his stage persona as an entertainer and comedian – impersonating polite, uptight characters with a tendency to slips of the tongue and uncontrolled outbursts, exposing the bigotry and insincerity of West Germany's post-war society. By the 1960s, he had become a household name. Still today, many family gatherings which include the older generation tend to end in spontaneous recitations of Erhardt's most famous pieces such as '' Die Made''. Erhardt suffered a
stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...
in December 1971, which left him unable to speak or write. He was limited to reading and understanding the speech of others; these limitations ended his long career as an actor. As a belated 70th birthday gift, he was awarded the Commander's Cross of the
Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...
four days before his death in 1979.


Selected filmography

* ''
Search for Majora ''Search for Majora'' () is a 1949 West German crime film directed by Hermann Pfeiffer and starring Lotte Koch, Hermann Speelmans and Camilla Horn.Davidson & Hake p. 60 The film's sets were designed by the art director Alfred Bütow. Cast * ...
'' (1949) * '' Love on Ice'' (1950) * '' Three Days Confined to Barracks'' (1955) * '' The Stolen Trousers'' (1956) * '' Tired Theodore'' (1957) * '' Widower with Five Daughters'' (1957) * '' Immer die Radfahrer'' (1958) * '' So ein Millionär hat's schwer'' (1958) * '' Father, Mother and Nine Children'' (1958) * '' The Domestic Tyrant'' (1959) * '' Of Course, the Motorists'' (1959) *'' Triplets on Board'' (1959) * '' The Last Pedestrian'' (1960) * '' My Husband, the Economic Miracle'' (1961) * '' Kauf dir einen bunten Luftballon'' (1961) * ''
Three Men in a Boat ''Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog)'',The Penguin edition punctuates the title differently: ''Three Men in a Boat: To Say Nothing of the Dog!'' published in 1889, is a humorous novel by English writer Jerome K. Jerome describing ...
'' (1961) * '' Freddy and the Millionaire'' (1961) * '' Axel Munthe, The Doctor of San Michele'' (1962) * '' Apartmentzauber'' (1963) * '' If You Go Swimming in Tenerife'' (1964) * '' Legacy of the Incas'' (1965) * '' The Oil Prince'' (1965) * '' Charley's Uncle'' (1969) * '' Why Did I Ever Say Yes Twice?'' (1969) * '' Gentlemen in White Vests'' (1970) * '' What Is the Matter with Willi?'' (1970) * '' That Can't Shake Our Willi!'' (1970) * '' Our Willi Is the Best'' (1971) * '' Willi Manages The Whole Thing'' (1972) * ' (1979, TV film)


References


Sources

*


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Erhardt, Heinz 1909 births 1979 deaths Male actors from Riga Musicians from Riga People from Riga county Latvian people of Baltic German descent German male stage actors German male comedians German male film actors Naturalized citizens of Germany 20th-century German male actors German-language poets 20th-century German comedians Kriegsmarine personnel of World War II Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Burials at the Ohlsdorf Cemetery