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John Wengraf

John Wengraf

Actor · 1897 – 1974 · Vienna, Austria-Hungary, now Austria

Emigrating to England in 1933 as the Nazis began their rise to power, Wengraf appeared unbilled in a couple of films there, as well as in some of the first BBC live-television shows ever presented but his career began to languish. In late 1941, however, he had the good fortune of appearing on Broadway with Helen Hayes in "Candle in the Wind" and decided to stay. The following year he headed west and settled permanently in the Los Angeles area. A dark, cold-eyed, thin-lipped player with a precise, meticulous air about him, he found himself invariably playing the very characters he detested. Some of his more nefarious nasties surfaced in such films as the Humphrey Bogart classic Sahara (1943/I), as well as The Boy from Stalingrad (1943), U-Boat Prisoner (1944) and Till We Meet Again (1944). In postwar years, he was often spotted portraying ethnic professionals (scientists, doctors, professors, foreign royalty). Some of the more quality pictures he enhanced were Tomorrow Is Forever (1946); Count Von Papen in 5 Fingers (1952); and Ronchin in the Ethel Merman musical Call Me Madam (1953). Although Wengraf never made it to the very top of the Hollywood character ranks, he remained a throughly strong and reliable player. In the 1950s and 1960s he transferred his talents to TV, appearing on a number of dramatic showcases and on such popular programs as "The Untouchables" (1959), "Hawaiian Eye" (1959), "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." (1964) and "The Time Tunnel" (1966). His last few films included minor roles in the war-themed Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), Hitler (1962) and Ship of Fools (1965). He retired in 1966, and died in Santa Barbara, California, at age 77, on May 4, 1974.

Movies24

  • Movie8.0

    Judgment at Nuremberg

    1961 · 988 votes

  • Movie6.6

    Ship of Fools

    1965 · 101 votes

  • Movie6.7

    The Prize

    1963 · 119 votes

  • Movie6.9

    The Razor's Edge

    1946 · 99 votes

  • Movie7.6

    Sailors Three

    1940 · 5 votes

  • Movie6.4

    Never Say Goodbye

    1956 · 20 votes

  • Movie6.3

    The Desert Rats

    1953 · 101 votes

  • Movie6.0

    Hell and High Water

    1954 · 67 votes

  • Movie5.8

    Wake of the Red Witch

    1948 · 52 votes

  • Movie6.8

    The Seventh Cross

    1944 · 43 votes

  • Movie6.8

    T-Men

    1947 · 98 votes

  • Movie5.7

    Portrait in Black

    1960 · 26 votes

  • Movie6.0
  • Movie7.2

    Night Train to Munich

    1940 · 96 votes

  • Movie7.2

    Sahara

    1943 · 162 votes

  • Movie7.5

    5 Fingers

    1952 · 105 votes

  • Movie4.6

    Valerie

    1957 · 17 votes

  • Movie4.5

    The French Line

    1954 · 12 votes

  • Movie6.3

    Tomorrow Is Forever

    1946 · 43 votes

  • Movie5.6

    The Return of Dracula

    1958 · 72 votes

  • Movie7.2
  • Movie6.5

    Week-End at the Waldorf

    1945 · 14 votes

  • Movie5.6

    Convoy

    1940 · 15 votes

  • Movie6.2

    Oh, Men! Oh, Women!

    1957 · 3 votes

Series23

  • TV5.3

    Matinee Theater

    1955 · 7 votes

  • TV5.7

    One Step Beyond

    1959 · 15 votes

  • TV6.8

    Four Star Playhouse

    1952 · 11 votes

  • TV5.6

    Hawaiian Eye

    1959 · 10 votes

  • TV6.4

    Bat Masterson

    1958 · 16 votes

  • TV5.8

    The Millionaire

    1955 · 4 votes

  • TV6.5

    Telephone Time

    1956 · 4 votes

  • TV7.2

    77 Sunset Strip

    1958 · 26 votes

  • TV6.7

    The Detectives

    1959 · 10 votes

  • TV7.7

    The Time Tunnel

    1966 · 200 votes

  • TV6.2

    The Danny Thomas Show

    1953 · 20 votes

  • TV6.0

    You Are There

    1953 · 4 votes

  • TV7.5
  • TV7.2

    The Third Man

    1959 · 11 votes

  • TV6.7

    Lux Video Theatre

    1950 · 7 votes

  • TV4.6

    Cavalcade of America

    1952 · 5 votes

  • TV8.0

    The Rogues

    1964 · 7 votes

  • TV7.3

    Jericho

    1966 · 3 votes

  • TV6.0

    Bourbon Street Beat

    1959 · 2 votes

  • TV8.0

    Panic!

    1957 · 1 votes

  • TV8.0

    Behind Closed Doors

    1958 · 1 votes

  • TV5.3

    Dangerous Assignment

    1952 · 3 votes

  • TV6.8