John Wengraf
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.
Acted in
Jericho
1966
The Time Tunnel
1966
as Dr. Hans Kleinemann
Ship of Fools
1965
as Graf
The Rogues
1964
as Drozhin
The Prize
1963
as Hans Eckhart
Hitler
1962
as Dr. Morell
Judgment at Nuremberg
1961
as Karl Wieck
Portrait in Black
1960
as Dr. Kessler
12 to the Moon
1960
as Dr. Erich Heinrich
The Detectives
1959
Hawaiian Eye
1959
Bourbon Street Beat
1959
The Third Man
1959
One Step Beyond
1959
as Ernest
One Step Beyond
1959
as Felix Borgner
77 Sunset Strip
1958
Bat Masterson
1958
as Colonel Anders Dorn
Behind Closed Doors
1958
as Von Elm
The Return of Dracula
1958
as John Merriman
The Walter Winchell File
1957
The Disembodied
1957
as Dr. Carl Metz
Valerie
1957
as Mr. Louis Horvat
The Pride and the Passion
1957
as Sermaine
Panic!
1957
Oh, Men! Oh, Women!
1957
as Dr. Krauss
Telephone Time
1956
Never Say Goodbye
1956
as Prof. Zimmelman
Matinee Theater
1955
The Racers
1955
as Dr. Tabor
The Millionaire
1955
as Count Victor Turec
The Gambler from Natchez
1954
as Nicholas Cadiz
Gog
1954
as Dr. Zeitman
Paris Playboys
1954
as Vidal
The French Line
1954
as Commodore Renard
Hell and High Water
1954
as Col. Schuman (uncredited)
The Desert Rats
1953
as German Doctor (uncredited)
General Electric Theater
1953
Tropic Zone
1953
as Lukats
Cavalcade of America
1952
as German Colonel
Cavalcade of America
1952
as Von Schwarz
Cavalcade of America
1952
Four Star Playhouse
1952
as Denoir
5 Fingers
1952
as Count Franz Von Papen
Dangerous Assignment
1952
Lux Video Theatre
1950
as Landau
Lux Video Theatre
1950
as Max von Mayerling
The Lovable Cheat
1949
as Pierquin
Wake of the Red Witch
1948
as Prosecuting Attorney
Sealed Verdict
1948
as German Doctor
Sofia
1948
as Peter Goltzen
T-Men
1947
as 'Shiv' Triano
The Razor's Edge
1946
as Joseph - Gray & Isabel's Butler
Tomorrow Is Forever
1946
as Dr. Ludwig
Week-End at the Waldorf
1945
as Alex
Strange Affair
1944
as Rudolph Kruger
U-Boat Prisoner
1944
as Gunther Rudehoff, Gestapo Agent
The Seventh Cross
1944
as Overkamp
Sahara
1943
as Maj. von Falken
The Boy from Stalingrad
1943
as German Major
Mission to Moscow
1943
as Polish Ambassador Grzybowski (uncredited)
Lucky Jordan
1942
as Herr Kesselman
Sailors Three
1940
as German Captain
Convoy
1940
as Commander Deutschland
Night Train to Munich
1940
as KL Physician (uncredited)
All Hands
1940
as German
Dangerous Comment
1940
as German Radio Operator
The Moon in the Yellow River
1938
as Tausch