John Karlsen (20 October 1919 – 5 July 2017), sometimes credited as Charles John Karlsen or John Karlson, was a New Zealand actor who was active in cinema between 1958 and 2003. He is best known for '' Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure'' (1989), '' The Black Stallion'' (1979) and '' The Sin Eater'' (2003). In Europe he appeared in mostly Italian films. Karlsen was born in

Wellington, New Zealand Wellington is Capital of New Zealand, the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the List of cities in New Zealand, third-largest city ...

, and launched his career in Europe in the late 1950s. His filmography includes 80 titles, including several works for television. Karlsen died on 5 July 2017 in

Auckland, New Zealand Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

, at the age of 97.

Selected filmography

* ''

The Beautiful Legs of Sabrina ''The Beautiful Legs of Sabrina'' () is a low-budget 1958 Italian-West German crime-drama-comedy film starring Mamie Van Doren, Antonio Cifariello, and Rossana Martini. The drama was directed by Camillo Mastrocinque and written by Edoardo Anto ...

'' (1958) as The Security Guard at Jeweller's Shop (uncredited) * '' The Naked Maja'' (1958) as Inquisitor * ''

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone ( 1181 – 3 October 1226), known as Francis of Assisi, was an Italians, Italian Mysticism, mystic, poet and Friar, Catholic friar who founded the religious order of the Franciscans. Inspired to lead a Chris ...

'' (1961) as Friar (uncredited) * '' Battle of the Worlds'' (1961) as United Commission Leader (uncredited) * '' Werewolf in a Girls' Dormitory'' (1961) as Old Man * '' A Difficult Life'' (1961) as Smoking University Professor (uncredited) * ''

Pontius Pilate Pontius Pilate (; ) was the Roman administration of Judaea (AD 6–135), fifth governor of the Judaea (Roman province), Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official wh ...

'' (1962) as Roman Senator * '' The Witch's Curse'' (1962) as Burgomeister * '' It Happened in Athens'' (1962) as King of Greece (uncredited) * '' Toto and Peppino Divided in Berlin'' (1962) as Nazist (uncredited) * '' The Seventh Sword'' (1962) as The Old Actor (uncredited) * ''

8½ ''8½'' ( ) is a 1963 Italian avant-garde arthouse comedy-drama film co-written and directed by Federico Fellini. The metafictional narrative centers on famous Italian film director Guido Anselmi ( Marcello Mastroianni) who suffers from writer ...

'' (1963) as Un uomo in auto (uncredited) * ''

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

'' (1963) as High Priest (uncredited) * '' Il Boom'' (1963) as Occulist * '' Crypt of the Vampire'' (1964) as Franz Karnstein * ''Un commerce tranquille'' (1964) as Priest * '' Le bambole'' (1965) as Husband (segment "La minestra") * '' Crack in the World'' (1965) as Dr. Reynolds * '' Two Mafiosi Against Goldfinger'' (1965) as Stevenson * '' Me, Me, Me... and the Others'' (1966) as Producer * '' The She Beast'' (1966) as Count Von Helsing * ''

Modesty Blaise ''Modesty Blaise'' is a British comic strip featuring a fictional character of the same name, created by author Peter O'Donnell and illustrator Jim Holdaway in 1963. The strip follows Modesty Blaise, an exceptional young woman with many talen ...

'' (1966) as Oleg * '' Agent 3S3: Massacre in the Sun'' (1966) as Tereczkov's Boss * '' Our Men in Bagdad'' (1966) as Botschafter * ''

El Greco Doménikos Theotokópoulos (, ; 1 October 1541 7 April 1614), most widely known as El Greco (; "The Greek"), was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance, regarded as one of the greatest artists of all time. ...

'' (1966) as Prosecutor * '' Requiem for a Secret Agent'' (1966) as Franco * '' The Christmas That Almost Wasn't'' (1966) as Blossom * '' Mission Stardust'' (1967) as Crest * '' Face to Face'' (1967) as University Dean (uncredited) * '' I barbieri di Sicilia'' (1967) as German Chemist (uncredited) * '' Your Turn to Die'' (1967) as Photographer in Nightclub (uncredited) * ''L'oro di Londra'' (1968) as Ed * ''Fenomenal e il tesoro di Tutankamen'' (1968) as Prof. Micklewitz * '' Spirits of the Dead'' (1968) as Schoolmaster in Yard (segment "William Wilson") (uncredited) * ''

Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642), commonly referred to as Galileo Galilei ( , , ) or mononymously as Galileo, was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a poly ...

'' (1968) * '' I See Naked'' (1969) as Psychiatrist (uncredited) * '' Carnal Circuit'' (1969) as Fletcher (uncredited) * '' Fellini Satyricon'' (1969) as Man in Litter (uncredited) * ''Juliette de Sade'' (1969) as The Marchese * ''Tre nel mille'' (1971) * ''

Stanza 17-17 palazzo delle tasse, ufficio imposte ''Stanza 17-17 palazzo delle tasse, ufficio imposte'' (translation: "Room 17-17, income taxes palace, tax office") is a 1971 Italian heist comedy film directed by Michele Lupo. Plot Paduan architect Giambattista Manteghin, actor Romolo More ...

'' (1971) as Strongbox Seller (uncredited) * '' Slaughter Hotel'' (1971) as Professor Osterman * '' What?'' (1972) as Man-Servant Edward (uncredited) * '' Polvere di stelle'' (1973) as German Commander (uncredited) * '' The Kiss'' (1974) as Friedrich (uncredited) * '' Footprints on the Moon'' (1975) as Alfred Lowenthal * ''Prete, fai un miracolo'' (1975) as vescovo Ritter * '' The Messiah'' (1975) as Caiaphas * '' Fellini's Casanova'' (1976) as Lord Talou * ''I contrabbandieri di Santa Lucia'' (1979) * '' The Black Stallion'' (1979) as Archaeologist * '' The Warning'' (1980) as Ferdinando Violante * ''Pronto... Lucia'' (1982) * '' Good King Dagobert'' (1984) as Corbus * '' Detective School Dropouts'' (1986) as Museum Guide * '' I Love N.Y.'' (1987) as the Butler * ''La monaca di Monza'' (1987) as Don Carlo * '' Stradivari'' (1988) as Grand Chamberlain * '' The Little Devil'' (1988) as Anziano monsignore * '' The Gamble'' (1988) * '' Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure'' (1989) as Evil Duke * '' The Church'' (1989) as Heinrich * '' Frankenstein Unbound'' (1990) as Parson * '' Stasera a casa di Alice'' (1990) as Il suocero * '' Count Max'' (1991) as Il maggiordomo * '' Killer Rules'' (1993, TV Movie) as Lord Elston * ''E.T.A. Hoffmanns Der Sandmann'' (1993) as Spalanzini * '' Caro dolce amore'' (a.k.a. ''Honey Sweet Love...'') (1994) as Sir John Atherton * '' Screw Loose'' (1999) as Dr. Caputo * '' The Sin Eater'' (2003) (a.k.a. ''The Order'') as Eden's Manservant * ''Il nascondiglio'' (2007) (final film role)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Karlsen, John 1919 births 2017 deaths 20th-century New Zealand male actors 21st-century New Zealand male actors New Zealand male film actors Male actors from Wellington City Members of the English Language Dubbers Association of Rome