Oskar Sima

This corpulent, balding character actor was a ubiquitous presence in German-speaking films for almost half a century. So much so, that a contemporary critic referred to him as 'the king of the supporting roles'. A baker's son, Sima had at first aspired to become a writer. When this somehow failed to materialise, he went on to study drama at Vienna Conservatory. His first theatrical engagement in 1919 took him to the Deutsche Theater in Prague. Afterwards, he was to divide his time on stage between Vienna and Berlin. From 1927, Sima came under the auspices of Max Reinhardt, who was astute enough to recognise his singular comic talent and had him cast in satirical or comedic roles. Sima's screen career commenced in 1921. He made limited headway until the arrival of sound. All of a sudden, he started to average several films per year, often acting in commercially successful pictures like Die Fledermaus (1931), Such a Boor (1934), Liebe, Tod und Teufel (1934), Glückskinder (1936), Gasparo