Occupation Actor Name Sig Ruman | Years active 1928–66 Role Actor | |
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Full Name Siegfried Albon Rumann Born October 11, 1884 ( 1884-10-11 ) Hamburg, Germany Died February 14, 1967, Julian, California, United States Movies Ninotchka, To Be or Not to Be, A Night at the Opera, Stalag 17, A Day at the Races Similar People Ernst Lubitsch, Sam Wood, Gil Stratton, Otto Preminger, Anthony Mann | ||
Character actors sig ruman
Sig Ruman (October 11, 1884 – February 14, 1967) was a German-American actor known for his comic portrayals of pompous and often stereotypically Teutonic officials or villains.
Contents
Life and career
Born as Siegfried Albon Rumann in Hamburg, German Empire, he studied Electrical Engineering before serving with the Imperial German Army during World War I. After his emigration to the United States in 1924, his acting career blossomed. Befriending playwright George S. Kaufman and theater critic Alexander Woollcott, he enjoyed success in many Broadway productions.
Ruman became a favorite of the Marx Brothers, appearing in A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races, and A Night in Casablanca. His German accent and large stature kept him busy during World War II, playing sinister Nazi characters in a series of wartime thrillers. During this period, he also appeared in several films by Ernst Lubitsch, a fellow German emigre, including Ninotchka (1939) and To Be or Not to Be (1942). He played the role of Professor Herman Von Reiter in Shining Victory (1941), an adaptation of an A. J. Cronin play. Ruman continued his trend of playing over-the-top German characters later in his career for Lubitsch's protege Billy Wilder, appearing in Wilder's films The Emperor Waltz (1948), Stalag 17 (1953) and The Fortune Cookie (1966).
According to Leonard Maltin in the DVD commentary for A Night at the Opera, Ruman had modified his screen name from Siegfried Rumann to Sig Ruman in an attempt to make it a little less German-sounding, to lessen potential anti-German prejudice against him.
Despite declining health during the 1950s and 1960s, Ruman continued to find work, making many guest appearances on television. He died of a heart attack on February 14, 1967, in Julian, California.
Filmography
Actor
1966
Way... Way Out as
Russian Delegate
1966
The Fortune Cookie as
Professor Winterhalter
1966
The Last of the Secret Agents? as
Professor Werner von Koenig
1965
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (TV Series) as
Conductor Schultz
- The Adriatic Express Affair (1965) - Conductor Schultz
1965
Hank (TV Series) as
Prof. Max Wagner
- They're Playing Our Song (1965) - Prof. Max Wagner
1965
The Addams Family (TV Series) as
Eric Von Bissell
- My Fair Cousin Itt (1965) - Eric Von Bissell
1965
The Story of Dr. Lister (Short) as
Lecture Attendee
1965
Petticoat Junction (TV Series) as
Professor Lieberschmit
- Why Girls Leave Home (1965) - Professor Lieberschmit
1964
Daniel Boone (TV Series) as
Van Coot
- The Sisters O'Hannrahan (1964) - Van Coot
1964
36 Hours as
German Guard
1964
Robin and the 7 Hoods as
Hammacher (uncredited)
1963
Munroe (TV Movie) as
Professor Hendrick Von Schmidt
1962
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis (TV Series) as
Himelmayer
- The Ugliest American (1962) - Himelmayer
1958
Maverick (TV Series) as
Klaus Jonckbloet / August Bockenheimer / Professor Kronkhite / ...
- The Money Machine (1962) - Klaus Jonckbloet
- Diamond Flush (1961) - August Bockenheimer
- Maverick Springs (1959) - Professor Kronkhite
- The Strange Journey of Jenny Hill (1959) - Professor Vegelius
- Diamond in the Rough (1958) - Capt. Steeger
1962
Pete and Gladys (TV Series) as
Otto Bergner / Otto
- The Chocolate Cake Caper (1962) - Otto Bergner
- Follow That Skeleton (1962) - Otto
1961
One, Two, Three as
Count von Droste Schattenburg (voice, uncredited)
1961
The Errand Boy as
Baron Elston Carteblanche
1961
The Tab Hunter Show (TV Series) as
Hodac
- Dream Boy (1961) - Hodac
1960
Johnny Staccato (TV Series) as
Otto Humboldt
- An Angry Young Man (1960) - Otto Humboldt
1960
One Step Beyond (TV Series) as
Franz Schuldorf
- The Lovers (1960) - Franz Schuldorf
1960
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (TV Series) as
Tug Captain
- Around the World with Nellie Bly (1960) - Tug Captain
1959
General Electric Theater (TV Series) as
Dr. Haegendorff
- Miracle at the Opera (1959) - Dr. Haegendorff
1959
Lawman (TV Series) as
Hans Steinmayer
- The Young Toughs (1959) - Hans Steinmayer
- The Chef (1959) - Hans Steinmayer
1959
The Untouchables (TV Series) as
Steve Slovic
- Pilot (1959) - Steve Slovic (uncredited)
1957
The Gale Storm Show: Oh! Susanna (TV Series)
- Susanna Goes Native (1957)
1957
The Wings of Eagles as
Manager
1957
Private Secretary (TV Series) as
Gregor Tiomkin
- That's No Lady, That's an Agent (1957) - Gregor Tiomkin
1955
Spy Chasers as
King Rako of Truania
1955
The Halls of Ivy (TV Series) as
Dr. Spatzen
- Dr. Spatzen (1955) - Dr. Spatzen
1955
Where's Raymond? (TV Series) as
Otto Kleinschmidt
- The Efficiency Expert (1955) - Otto Kleinschmidt
- Herman, the Wonder Dog (1955)
1955
Many Rivers to Cross as
Spectacle Man
1954
Willy (TV Series) as
Muller the Butcher
- Puppy Love (1955)
- Willy and Muller vs. Muller (1954) - Muller the Butcher
1955
Carolina Cannonball as
Stefan
1954
3 Ring Circus as
Colonel Fritz Schlitz
1954
I Married Joan (TV Series) as
Professpr Frederich Gottschalk
- Manhole Cover (1954) - Professpr Frederich Gottschalk
1954
White Christmas as
Landlord (uncredited)
1954
Living It Up as
Dr. Emile Egelhofer
1954
The Glenn Miller Story as
Kranz
1953
Houdini as
Schultz
1953
Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach as
Michael O'Neill (unconfirmed)
1953
Stalag 17 as
Sgt. Johann Sebastian Schulz
1952
Life with Luigi (TV Series) as
Schultz
- The Phone Booth (1952) - Schultz
- Citizenship (1952) - Schultz
1952
Ma and Pa Kettle on Vacation as
Cyrus Kraft
1952
O. Henry's Full House as
Menkie (segment "The Gift of the Magi") (uncredited)
1952
The World in His Arms as
General Ivan Vorashilov
1951
On the Riviera as
Gapeaux
1950
Father Is a Bachelor as
Jericho Schlosser
1949
Border Incident as
Hugo Wolfgang Ulrich
1948
Give My Regards to Broadway as
Arthur Dinkel
1948
The Emperor Waltz as
Dr. Zwieback
1948
If You Knew Susie as
Count Alexis
1947
Mother Wore Tights as
Papa
1946
Faithful in My Fashion as
Professor Boris Riminoffsky
1946
Night and Day as
Wilowski
1946
A Night in Casablanca as
Heinrich Stubel / Max Pfferman
1945
She Went to the Races as
Dr. Gurke
1945
The Dolly Sisters as
Ignatz Tsimmis
1945
Men in Her Diary as
Mme. Irene
1945
A Royal Scandal as
Gen. Ronsky
1944
House of Frankenstein as
Hussman
1944
Summer Storm as
Kuzma (as Sig Rumann)
1944
The Hitler Gang as
General von Hindenburg
1944
It Happened Tomorrow as
Mr. Beckstein
1943
The Song of Bernadette as
Louis Bouriette
1943
Government Girl as
Ambassador
1943
Sweet Rosie O'Grady as
Joe Flugelman
1943
They Came to Blow Up America as
Dr. Herman Holger
1943
Tarzan Triumphs as
German Sergeant (as Sig Rumann)
1942
China Girl as
Jarubi
1942
Desperate Journey as
Preuss
1942
Berlin Correspondent as
Dr. Dietrich
1942
Enemy Agents Meet Ellery Queen as
Heinrich - Spy Leader
1942
Crossroads as
Dr. Alex Dubroc
1942
Remember Pearl Harbor as
Dirk Van Hoorten
1942
To Be or Not to Be as
Colonel Ehrhardt
1941
This Woman Is Mine as
John Jacob Astor
1941
World Premiere as
Franz von Bushmaster (as Sig Rumann)
1941
Shining Victory as
Professor Herman Von Reiter
1941
Love Crazy as
Dr. Wuthering (as Sig Rumann)
1941
The Wagons Roll at Night as
Hoffman the Great (as Sig Rumann)
1941
That Uncertain Feeling as
Kafka (as Sig Rumann)
1941
The Man Who Lost Himself as
Dr. Simms (as Sig Rumann)
1941
So Ends Our Night as
Ammers (as Sig Rumann)
1940
Victory as
Mr. Schomberg
1940
Comrade X as
Emil Von Hofer (as Sig Rumann)
1940
Bitter Sweet as
Herr Schlick (as Sig Rumann)
1940
Four Sons as
Newmann (as Sig Rumann)
1940
I Was an Adventuress as
Herr Protz (as Sig Rumann)
1940
Outside the Three-Mile Limit as
Van Cleve
1940
Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet as
Dr. Hans Wolfert (as Sig Rumann)
1939
Remember? as
Dr. Schmidt (as Sig Rumann)
1939
Ninotchka as
Iranoff (as Sig Rumann)
1939
Only Angels Have Wings as
Dutchy (as Sig Rumann)
1939
Confessions of a Nazi Spy as
Dr. Julius Gustav Krogman (as Sig Rumann)
1939
Never Say Die as
Poppa Ingleborg (as Sig Rumann)
1939
Honolulu as
Psychiatrist (as Sig Rumann)
1938
The Great Waltz as
Wertheimer (as Sig Rumann)
1938
Girls on Probation as
Roger Heath (as Sig Rumann)
1938
Suez as
Sergeant Pellerin (as Sig Rumann)
1938
I'll Give a Million as
Anatole Primerose
1938
The Saint in New York as
Hutch Rellin (as Sig Rumann)
1938
Paradise for Three as
Mr. Bold (as Sig Rumann)
1937
Thank You, Mr. Moto as
Colonel Tchernov (as Sig Rumann)
1937
Nothing Sacred as
Dr. Emil Eggelhoffer (as Sig Rumann)
1937
Heidi as
Police Captain (as Sig Rumann)
1937
Lancer Spy as
Lt. Col. Gottfried Hollen
1937
Thin Ice as
Prime Minister Ulricht (as Sig Rumann)
1937
Love Under Fire as
General Montero
1937
Think Fast, Mr. Moto as
Nicolas Marloff (as Sig Rumann)
1937
A Day at the Races as
Dr. Steinberg (as Sig Rumann)
1937
This Is My Affair as
Gus (as Sig Rumann)
1937
The Great Hospital Mystery as
Dr. Taggert (as Sig Rumann)
1937
Midnight Taxi as
John B. Rudd
1937
Maytime as
Fanchon (as Sig Rumann)
1937
Seventh Heaven as
Durand (as Sig Rumann)
1937
On the Avenue as
Herr Hanfstangel (as Sig Rumann)
1936
The Bold Caballero as
Commandante Sebastian Golle (as Sig Rumann)
1936
The Princess Comes Across as
Steindorf (as Sig Rumann)
1935
East of Java as
Hans Muller (as Siegfried Rumann)
1935
A Night at the Opera as
Herman Gottlieb (as Siegfried Rumann)
1935
The Farmer Takes a Wife as
Blacksmith (as Siegfried Rumann)
1935
Spring Tonic as
Matt Conklin
1935
The Wedding Night as
Mr. Jan Novak (as Siegfried Rumann)
1935
Under Pressure as
Doctor (as Siegfried Rumann)
1934
Marie Galante as
Brogard (as Sigfried Rumann)
1934
Servants' Entrance as
Hans Hansen (as Siegfried Rumann)
1934
The World Moves On as
Baron von Gerhardt (as Siegfried Rumann)
1930
All Quiet on the Western Front as
Mr. Meyer (uncredited)
1929
Die Königsloge as
Bailiff (as Siegfried Rumann)
1929
Lucky Boy as
Bridge Player (uncredited)
Self
1963
The Danny Kaye Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode #1.10 (1963) - Self (as Sig Rumann)
1955
The Martha Raye Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Thomas Mitchell, Sig Ruman (1955) - Self
1954
The Milton Berle Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Ann Sheridan, George Raft (1954) - Self (as the Movie Director)
Archive Footage
2011
Cinemassacre's Monster Madness (TV Series documentary) as
Burgomaster Hussman
- House of Frankenstein (2011) - Burgomaster Hussman
2005
Garbo (Documentary) as
Iranoff (uncredited)
2004
On Your Marx, Get Set, Go! (Video documentary short) as
Dr. Leopold X. Steinberg
2004
Remarks on Marx (Video short) as
Herbert Gottlieb
1992
Funny Business (TV Series documentary) as
Self
- Visual Comedy (1992) - Self
1972
Hollywood: The Dream Factory (TV Movie documentary) as
Self - film clips (uncredited)
1966
Doom of Dracula (Short) as
The Burgomaster
1959
The Scarface Mob (TV Movie) as
Beer Brewer (uncredited)
1941
Breakdowns of 1941 (Short) as
Self (uncredited)
References
Sig Ruman Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA