Ludwig Donath

Ludwig Donath (6 March 1900 – 29 September 1967) was an Austrian actor who appeared in many American films.

Life Born to a Jewish family, Donath graduated from Vienna's Academy of Dramatic Art and became a prominent actor on the stage in Berlin. When Hitler came to power in 1933, he returned to Vienna and was active there in theater and film until the Anschluss in 1938. He began his American film career with Lady from Chungking (1942) and went on to appear in dozens of films, including Gilda (1946), The Jolson Story (1946), Jolson Sings Again (1949), The Great Caruso (1951), My Pal Gus (1952), Sirocco (1951), and Torn Curtain (1966).

Donath played the father of entertainer Al Jolson (Larry Parks) in the two biopics The Jolson Story (1946) and Jolson Sings Again (1949), although he was less than 15 years older than Parks as Jolson.

He also appeared frequently on television and on Broadway.

He died of leukemia in 1967. His cremains are interred at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.

Partial filmography

Theodor Herzl (1921) – Prinz Eugen Girls to Marry (1932) Füsilier Wipf (1938) – Kriegsgefangener (uncredited) Enemy Agents Meet Ellery Queen (UK title: The Lido Mystery) (1942) – Reece The Secret Code (1942) – Nazi Prof. Metzger The Falcon's Brother (1942) – Stranger in Telephone Booth (uncredited) Lady from Chungking (1942) – Hans Gruber Reunion in France (1942) – Desk Clerk in Hotel (uncredited) Margin for Error (1943) – Hitler's Voice The Moon Is Down (1943) – Hitler's Voice Hangmen Also Die! (1943) – Schirmer (as Louis Donath) Tonight We Raid Calais (1943) – German Sentry Above Suspicion (1943) – Gestapo Officer in Schultz's Laboratory (uncredited) This Land Is Mine (1943) – German Captain (uncredited) Hostages (1943) – Karel Klima The Strange Death of Adolf Hitler (1943) – Adolf Hitler / Franz Huber Gangway for Tomorrow (1943) – Polish Worker (uncredited) Tampico (1944) – Commander (uncredited) The Hitler Gang (1944) – Gustav von Kahr The Story of Dr. Wassell (1944) – Dutch Doctor on Train (uncredited) The Seventh Cross (1944) – Wilhelm Reinhardt (uncredited) The Master Race (1944) – Schmidt Counter-Attack (1945) – Prof. Müller Prison Ship (1945) – Professor Gilda (1946) – German Cartel Member The Devil's Mask (1946) – Dr. Karger Renegades (1946) – Jackorski The Jolson Story (1946) – Cantor Yoelson Blondie Knows Best (1946) – Dr. Titus The Return of Monte Cristo (1946) – Judge Lafitte Cigarette Girl (1947) – Otto To the Ends of the Earth (1948) – Nicholas Sokim Sealed Verdict (1948) – Jakob Meyersohn The Fighting O'Flynn (1949) – Hendrigg The Lovable Cheat (1949) – Violette The Great Sinner (1949) – Doctor Jolson Sings Again (1949) – Cantor Yoelson There's a Girl in My Heart (1949) – Professor Joseph Kroner The Killer That Stalked New York (1950) – Dr. Cooper Mystery Submarine (1950) – Dr. Adolph Guernitz The Great Caruso (1951) – Alfredo Brazzi Sirocco (1951) – Flophouse Proprietor Journey Into Light (1951) – 'Doc' Thorssen My Pal Gus (1952) – Karl Sins of Jezebel (1953) – Naboth The Veils of Bagdad (1953) – Kaffar Torn Curtain (1966) – Professor Gustav Lindt The Spy in the Green Hat (1967) – Dr. Heinrich von Kronen Too Many Thieves (1967) – Bulanerti

Television appearances Decoy: "The Gentle Gun-Man" (1958) - "Knish" (Dave Levine) Ben Casey "Behold, They Walk An Ancient Road" (1962) Rabbi Meyer Levinson Bonanza: "The Way of Aaron" (1963) – Aaron Kaufman The Twilight Zone: "He's Alive" (1963) – Ernst Ganz Branded: "A Proud Town" (1965) - Julius Perrin The Fugitive: "Blessings of Liberty" (1966) – Dr. Josef Karac