Known For
Acting
Born
Apr 22, 1897
Died
May 04, 1974
Place of Birth
Vienna, Austria-Hungary, now Austria
Credits
67 titles
John Wengraf
Biography
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.
Known For
Filmography
Jericho
The Time Tunnel
Dr. Hans Kleinemann
Ship of Fools
Graf
The Rogues
Drozhin
The Prize
Hans Eckhart
Hitler
Dr. Morell
Judgment at Nuremberg
Karl Wieck
Portrait in Black
Dr. Kessler
12 to the Moon
Dr. Erich Heinrich
The Detectives
Varchek
Hawaiian Eye
Bourbon Street Beat
The Third Man
One Step Beyond
Ernest
77 Sunset Strip
Bat Masterson
Colonel Anders Dorn
Behind Closed Doors
Von Elm
The Return of Dracula
John Merriman
The Walter Winchell File
The Disembodied
Dr. Carl Metz
Valerie
Mr. Louis Horvat
The Pride and the Passion
Sermaine
Panic!
Oh, Men! Oh, Women!
Dr. Krauss
Telephone Time
Never Say Goodbye
Prof. Zimmelman
Matinee Theater
The Racers
Dr. Tabor
The Millionaire
Count Victor Turec
The Gambler from Natchez
Nicholas Cadiz
Gog
Dr. Zeitman
Paris Playboys
Vidal
The French Line
Commodore Renard
Hell and High Water
Col. Schuman (uncredited)
The Danny Thomas Show
Victor Waingraft
The Desert Rats
German Doctor (uncredited)
You Are There
Dr. Zimmerman
General Electric Theater
Tropic Zone
Lukats
Cavalcade of America
German Colonel
Four Star Playhouse
Denoir
5 Fingers
Count Franz Von Papen
Dangerous Assignment
Lux Video Theatre
Landau
The Lovable Cheat
Pierquin
Wake of the Red Witch
Prosecuting Attorney
Sealed Verdict
German Doctor
Sofia
Peter Goltzen
T-Men
'Shiv' Triano
The Razor's Edge
Joseph - Gray & Isabel's Butler