At 78 years old
Actor legend and jungle camper: Helmut Berger is dead
Helmut Berger 1985
© Farabola / Leemage / Picture Alliance
The Austrian actor Helmut Berger (“The Damned”) is dead. He died in Salzburg on Thursday at the age of 78, according to his agency.
“Helmut Berger passed away today, May 18, 2023 at 4:00 a.m. peacefully, but unexpectedly, in his hometown of Salzburg, shortly before his 79th birthday! We thank you for all the many years of friendship and cooperation,” it said the agency’s website.
“The Damned” was Helmut Berger’s breakthrough
In 1964 Berger worked as a film extra in Rome before the famous director Visconti, who was 38 years his senior and later became his partner, discovered him. In 1966 he gave Berger a small part for the first time, and soon afterward the Austrian played his most haunting roles under Visconti’s direction.
Actor, singer, activist
Harry Belafonte is dead: A life between stages and street protests
In “The Damned” Berger shines, in “Ludwig II.” he gives the insane king of Bavaria. In “Violence and Passion” he plays a provocative, beautiful youth alongside Hollywood legend Burt Lancaster.
In the years that followed, Berger increasingly drew on his past, he made a name for himself more with appearances on talk shows than with his acting performances. In 2013 he took part in the RTL program “I’m a star – get me out of here!” (“Jungle Camp”).
His agency’s website now says: “Many years ago, Helmut Berger said to me: ‘I’ve lived three lives. And in 4 languages! Je ne regrette rien!””