Werner Krauss

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Werner Krauss
Krauss as Dr. Caligari in The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari (1920)
Born	June 23, 1884 Gestungshausen, Germany
Died	October 20, 1959 Vienna, Austria
Notable roles	Dr.Caligari in The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari

Werner Krauss (June 23, 1884 – October 20, 1959) was a German film actor.

Krauss was born in Gestungshausen, Germany, the son of a clergyman. He ran away from home and joined a travelling theatre company and met the noted theatre director Max Reinhardt. Reinhardt took Krauss to Berlin where he became a film actor in 1916.

Krauss became a worldwide sensation for his demonic portrayal of the titular medico in Robert Wiene's Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. He also played the title role of William Shakespeare's Othello in a 1920 adaption. He was also prominently featured in Paul Leni's Waxworks (1924), Ewald Andre Dupont's Variété (1925), FW Murnau's Herr Tartüff, and Der Student von Prag (1927).

When Adolf Hitler came to power, Krauss developed a Nazi ideology. He was made an Actor of the State by Joseph Goebbels, and took up anti-semitic roles such as the title role in the anti-Semitic epic Jud Süß (1940). After World War II, Krauss was "forgiven" to the extent of being invited to German film festivals.

Kruass passed away in Vienna, Austria in 1959.