Michael Andreas Mellinger (30 May 1929 – 17 March 2004) was a German actor in film, television, theatre and radio. He was best known for his appearances on the West End and supporting role in the film '' Goldfinger'' (1964).

Biography

Born in

Kochel Kochel am See (, ) is a municipality and a town in the district of Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen in Bavaria, on the shores of Kochelsee. The municipality consists of the Altjoch, Brunnenbach, Ort, Pessenbach, Pfisterberg, Walchensee and Ried district ...

, Bavaria, Mellinger came from a theatrical background; both his parents were actors.Michael Mellinger obituary by Anthony Burton, ''The Stage''.
/ref> He was sent to boarding school in England, and then qualified at

North London Polytechnic The University of North London (UNL) was a university in London, England, formed from the Polytechnic of North London (PNL) in 1992 when that institution was granted university status. PNL, in turn, had been formed by the amalgamation of the No ...

as a radio engineer. As recorded in his obituary in ''The Stage'': "He made his skills available to his adopted country by joining the

Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is the maintenance arm of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's professional engineers". History Prior t ...

. During the war he served in

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

and

Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

with Radio SEAC, doubling as a disc jockey. However, before joining REME, Winston Churchill issued his order: 'Collar the lot'. Ironically, Mellinger, together with many German Jewish refugees who had fled Hitler, was classified as an enemy alien. He was taken to a detention camp at Kempton Park before being put on The Dunera for internment in Australia.... During his internment Mellinger practised, as best he could, his passion for the theatre and developed his talent as a musician. Upon his release he joined the British Army." He subsequently trained at the

Central School of Speech and Drama The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, commonly shortened to Central, is a drama school founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as the Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for ...

and in the 1950s was a member of the singing group The Harmonics. For more than 50 years he worked successfully in theatre, film, television and radio. He was a member of the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

and

Berliner Ensemble The Berliner Ensemble () is a German theatre company established by actress Helene Weigel and her husband, playwright Bertolt Brecht, in January 1949 in East Berlin. In the time after Brecht's exile, the company first worked at Wolfgang Langh ...

. His notable film credits include '' Goldfinger'' (1964)"Michael Mellinger (Kisch)", James Bond multimedia.
/ref> and ''

Carry On Up the Khyber ''Carry On Up the Khyber'' is a 1968 British comedy film, the 16th in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It stars ''Carry On'' regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, Bernard Bresslaw and Peter But ...

'' (1968).

Selected filmography

* '' Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N.'' (1951) - Spanish Officer (uncredited) * '' South of Algiers'' (1953) - Spahi N.C.O * ''

They Who Dare ''They Who Dare'' is a 1954 British Second World War war film directed by Lewis Milestone and starring Dirk Bogarde, Denholm Elliott and Akim Tamiroff. It was released by British Lion Films and in the United States by Allied Artists. The st ...

'' (1954) - Toplis * '' The Beachcomber'' (1954) - Medical Orderly * ''

Radio Cab Murder Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connected to ...

'' (1954) - Tim * ''

Stars in Your Eyes ''Stars in Your Eyes'' is a 1956 British musical film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Nat Jackley, Pat Kirkwood and Bonar Colleano. Plot As the world of vaudeville gradually loses its attraction, more and more entertainers are losing th ...

'' (1956) - Night Club Proprietor * ''

Three Crooked Men ''Three Crooked Men'' is a 1958 British 'B' crime film directed by Ernest Morris and starring Gordon Jackson and Warren Mitchell. It was written by Brian Clemens and Eldon Howard. Plot Three crooks break into a shop, planning to gain acce ...

'' (1958) - Vince * ''

The Secret Man ''The Secret Man'' is a 1917 American silent Western film, directed by John Ford and featuring Harry Carey. Two of the five reels of the film survive at the Library of Congress film archive. Plot As described in a film magazine, Cheyenne Har ...

'' (1959) - Tony Norwood * ''

Man on a String ''Man on a String'' (also known as ''Confessions of a Counterspy'') is a 1960 American spy thriller directed by Andre de Toth and starring Ernest Borgnine and Kerwin Mathews. It was the last film that DeToth directed in the United States. Plot ...

'' (1960) - Detective * ''

The Password Is Courage ''The Password Is Courage'' is a 1962 British comedy-drama war film written, produced, and directed by Andrew L. Stone and starring Dirk Bogarde, Maria Perschy, and Alfred Lynch. It was based on the 1954 World War II biography of the same ...

'' (1962) - Feldwebel * '' Siege of the Saxons'' (1963) - Thief (uncredited) * '' Goldfinger'' (1964) - Kisch * '' It Happened Here'' (1964) - Announcer (uncredited) * ''

'' (1968) - Chindi * ''

The Assassination Bureau ''The Assassination Bureau Limited'' (also known ''The Assassination Bureau'' in the United States) is a 1969 British Technicolor black comedy adventure film, produced by Michael Relph, directed by Basil Dearden, and starring Oliver Reed, Dian ...

'' (1969) - Venice Police Sergeant (uncredited) * '' Puppet on a Chain'' (1971) - Hotel Manager * '' Licking Hitler'' (1978) - Karl * ''

The Awakening The Awakening may refer to: Religion * Awakening (Finnish religious movement), a Lutheran movement in Finland * Great Awakening, several periods of Anglo-American Christian revival Film and television Film * ''The Awakening'', a 1913 film starring ...

'' (1980) - Hamid * '' Eye of the Needle'' (1981) - Portuguese Man * '' Ascendancy'' (1983) - Schulz * ''

Until September ''Until September'' is a 1984 romantic drama film directed by Richard Marquand and starring Karen Allen and Thierry Lhermitte. The plot concerns an American tourist and a French banker who fall in love in Paris. Plot Moe Alexander (Karen Allen ...

'' (1984) - Colonel Viola * ''

The March ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' (1990) - Gert Kellner * ''

Gladiator A gladiator ( , ) was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gladiators were volunteers who risked their ...

'' (2000) - Trainer 2 (extended edition) * '' Charlotte Gray'' (2001) - Old Man Roudil * '' Dirty Pretty Things'' (2002) - German Man * ''Das Apfelbaumhaus'' (2004) - Albert (final film role)

References

External links

* 1929 births 2004 deaths German male film actors German male television actors German expatriates in England Male actors from Bavaria Jewish German male actors People from Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen {{Germany-screen-actor-stub