Helmut Berger (May 29, 1944 – May 18, 2023) was an Austrian actor best known for portraying egotistical and sexually ambiguous characters. He was a celebrity in European cinema in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and he is considered as a sex symbol and pop icon of the time.
He is best known for his collaborations with Luchino Visconti, particularly his portrayal of King Ludwig II of Bavaria in Ludwig, for which he earned a special David di Donatello award, and his performance in The Damned, for which he received a Golden Globe nomination.
Where did Helmut Berger go to college and high school?
Berger was born into a hotelier family in Bad Ischl, Austria. Berger first trained and worked in this profession after earning his Matura, although having little interest in cuisine or the hospitality industry.
He moved to London, England, when he was eighteen, and worked various jobs while taking acting school. Berger traveled to Rome after studying languages at the Università per Stranieri di Perugia in Italy.
Did Helmut Berger go to film school?
He came to London at the age of 18 and began attending acting classes before moving to Rome to work as a model and film assistant. During the filming of “Vaghe stelle dell’Orsa” in 1964, he met director Luchino Visconti. The two developed a romance, which terminated with the director’s death.
Berger received his debut acting part in the episode The Witch Burned Alive from the film The Witches (1967), directed by Visconti, and his first starring role the following year in the film The Young Tigers (1968), directed by Antonio Leonviola.
