Ralf Wolter

Life and career

began his long career at the Berlin stage and cabaret during the late 1940s. He made his first film appearance in Die Frauen des Herrn S. and quickly achieved prominence as an actor for comedic supporting roles. In 1961, he appeared as the baldheaded Sowjet agent Borodenko in Billy Wilder's comedy One, Two, Three with James Cagney and Horst Buchholz. Another Hollywood film with Wolter in a supporting role was Cabaret (1972), where he played Liza Minnelli's neighbour Herr Ludwig, an erotic book publisher who later turns out to be a Nazi. However, in Germany he achieved his greatest fame as the eccentric but friendly trapper Sam Hawkens in a number of highly successful Karl May film adaptions during the 1960s. He reprised his role as Sam Hawkens in a television series from 1980. He also appeared with Heinz Erhardt in the 1970 comedy What Is the Matter with Willi? and in a few musical films with singing child star Heintje Simons.

As his film roles got more obscure during his later years, he turned more and more towards television since the 1970s. He appeared in some of the most successful German television series. As of 2014, Wolter still appears as a stage actor, his latest film is Bis zum Horizont, dann links! (2012), co-starring Otto Sander.