Herbert Köfer
Köfer in 2008
Born(1921-02-17)17 February 1921
Berlin, Prussia, Weimar Republic
Died24 July 2021(2021-07-24) (aged 100)
Berlin, Germany
Occupations
Organizations
Awards
From left: director Frank Beyer, actor Herbert Köfer and author Bruno Apitz on the set of Nackt unter Wölfen (1962)

Herbert Köfer (17 February 1921 – 24 July 2021) was a German actor, voice artist, and television presenter. He was the first German TV news presenter for the East German Deutscher Fernsehfunk, and also presented the station's last news before the reunification of Germany. His first theatre engagement was in 1940, and he kept acting until the age of 100. Köfer played an SS-Hauptsturmführer in the 1963 film Nackt unter Wölfen (Naked Among Wolves). He was known for detective series such as Polizeiruf 110 and for comic roles. He founded his own troupe, Köfers Komödiantenbühne, in 2003, and published memoirs.

Life

Herbert Köfer was born in Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin.[1][2] He went to acting school and started his career in 1940 with first engagements at the theatre in Brieg, Lower Silesia. From 1941 to 1945 Köfer served in the Wehrmacht.[3] He was a prisoner of war; when he returned, he worked in different theatres in Berlin, including the Volksbühne, Deutsches Theater and Kabarett Kleine Bühne.[4]

From 1952, he worked for the East German TV channel Deutscher Fernsehfunk and was on 21 December 1952 the first German TV presenter, moderating Aktuelle Kamera.[1][5] Köfer was both the presenter of the first moments of East German television and the host of the final show nearly 40 years later on 31 December 1991.[6] Beginning in the late 1950s, he had roles as an actor in films and TV series. He also became part of the cabaret Kabarett-Theater Distel.[1]

In Nackt unter Wölfen (Naked Among Wolves), he played the role of SS-Hauptsturmführer Kluttig. He was known for detective series such as Polizeiruf 110 and for comic roles.[1] He was popular as Opa Paul Schmidt in the TV series Rentner haben niemals Zeit (Senior citizens never have time).[7]

After the reunification of Germany, he continued his career. In 2003 he founded his stage show Köfers Komödiantenbühne. In March 2008 he published his biography Nie war es so verrückt wie immer … (It is never as crazy as always).[1]

Köfer lived in the Potsdam-Mittelmark district near the Seddiner See. From 2000 until his death, he was in his third marriage with actress Heike Köfer.[8] His daughters Mirjam Köfer and Geertje Boeden from his second marriage to actress Ute Boeden are also actresses.[9] His son Andreas Köfer from his first marriage is a cinematographer. He also had a foster daughter.[9] Köfer turned 100 in February 2021,[4] and died in Berlin five months later.[7][10]

Films

Films with Köfer include:[11][12]

Theatre

Publications

  • Das war's noch lange nicht. Erinnerungen. Ullstein, Berlin 1995, ISBN 978-3-548-35507-8.
  • Nie war es so verrückt wie immer… Das Neue Berlin, Berlin 2008, ISBN 978-3-360-01934-9.
  • 99 und kein bisschen leise, Eulenspiegel-Verlag 2019, ISBN 978-3-359-01192-7.[1]

Awards

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Köfer, Herbert (2020). 99 und kein bisschen leise (in German). Eulenspiegel Verlag. p. 28. ISBN 978-3-359-50092-6. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  2. ↑ Herbert Köfer: Nie war es so verrückt wie immer… Das Neue Berlin, Berlin 2008
  3. ↑ Rundschau, Lausitzer (29 November 2008). "Herbert Köfer spricht über den Schrecken des Krieges". lr-online.de (in German). Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Zum 100. Geburtstag Herbert Köfer – der älteste aktive Schauspieler der Welt". MDR. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  5. ↑ Zum Geburtstag auf die Klubhausbühne: Herbert Köfer feiert 94. in Ludwigsfelde In: Märkische Allgemeine 14 February 2015.
  6. ↑ "Herbert Köfer: "Namen vergesse auch ich. Bei Texten ist es anders ..."…". archive.ph. 12 February 2013. Archived from the original on 12 February 2013. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
  7. 1 2 "Herbert Köfer tot: Schauspieler und erster deutscher Nachrichtensprecher". Berliner Morgenpost. 25 July 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  8. ↑ Herbert Köfer (79) und sein "Ja" zu Heike (40), berliner-kurier.de, access date 6 August 2014
  9. 1 2 "Schauspieler-Kinder: Sie nutzen ihr Talent – und ihre Chancen: Das haben wir von Papa gelernt". MOPO.de (in German). 22 September 1999. Archived from the original on 21 July 2019. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
  10. ↑ Schauspieler Herbert Köfer mit 100 Jahren gestorben (in German) Die Zeit, 25 July 2021
  11. ↑ Herbert Köfer at filmportal.de 2021
  12. 1 2 3 Walk, Ines. "Herbert Köfer". Stiftung Defa Filme (in German). Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  13. ↑ "BC 2/2021: Heimat- und Kulturverein Kleinmachnow gratuliert Herbert Köfer". BÄKE Courier (in German). 2 March 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  14. ↑ "William Shakespeare WAS IHR WOLLT Deutsches Theater DDR 1951". Programmhefte24.de (in German). 20 November 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  15. ↑ "Herbert Köfer: Ein Leben für die Schauspielerei". NDR.de (in German). 26 July 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  16. ↑ "Von der Laientruppe zum Profi-Theater". PNN (in German). Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  17. ↑ "Herbert Köfer". Comödie Dresden (in German). 6 February 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  18. ↑ Herbert Köfer: Mit 99 zweite "Goldene Henne" fürs Lebenswerk (in German) Die Welt 27 October 2020

Further reading

  • F.-B. Habel: Lexikon. Schauspieler in der DDR. Verlag Neues Leben, Berlin 2009, S. 220/222, ISBN 978-3-355-01760-2.
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