German actor Arthur Brauss, 89, died on Aug. 30. Born in Germany but educated in the US, Brauss worked for Radio Free Europe before becoming an actor. He played mostly villainous roles, and in addition to his work in German films and TV, appeared in films for John Frankenheimer (The Train), Mark Robson (Von Ryan’s Express, Avalanche Express), Richard Brooks ($), Wim Wenders (The Goalkeeper’s Fear of the Penalty), Sam Peckinpah (Cross of Iron), John Huston (Escape to Victory), Elaine May (Ishtar), and Herbert Ross (My Blue Heaven). Though mostly evil onscreen Brauss was best known on German TV as Chief of Police Richard Block in the series Großstadtrevier. His IMDb profile says that after retiring, Brauss spent his spare time “racing cars, making furniture, playing classical guitar, cooking and playing golf” (goodness, and I was proud of myself for taking out the recycling today!).
