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Stevo Žigon

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Stevo Žigon
Стево Жигон
Stevo Žigon on a 2009 Serbian stamp
Born(1926-12-08)8 December 1926
Died28 December 2005(2005-12-28) (aged 79)
NationalitySlovenian, Serbian
EducationFaculty of Dramatic Arts
Alma materUniversity of Arts in Belgrade
Occupation(s)Actor, theatre director, writer

Štefan "Stevo" Žigon (Serbian Cyrillic: Стево Жигон; 8 December 1926 – 28 December 2005) was a Yugoslav actor, theatre director, and writer.

Biography

Grave of Stevo Žigon in Belgrade

His origins were primarily Italian. He was born in Ljubljana, Slovenia, then part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. His family were Slovene immigrants from the Slovenian Littoral, which was under Italian administration. His father was from the village of Volčji Grad near Komen in the Karst region, while his mother came from the Slovene community in Trieste (now in Italy). The family lived in Trieste until the Fascist takeover in 1922, when they fled to the neighboring Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.[1]

He studied acting in Ljubljana and Leningrad. He graduated in 1952, from the Academy for Theatre Arts in Belgrade. On faculty for acting in Belgrade he was one of the first assistants. Because of his knowledge of the German language and manners, he often played cynical and cold German officers. He was best known for playing "Krieger", chief of Belgrade Gestapo, in the popular 1970s TV series Otpisani and Povratak otpisanih.

During his youth, Žigon was an assiduous reader; he was fascinated by poetry, with his favorite poets being Alojz Gradnik, Igo Gruden, and Oton Župančič.[1]

In 1941, aged 15, as a member of Communist Youth League, he participated in many sabotage actions organized by the Liberation Front of the Slovenian People. In 1942, Žigon was captured by the Italian Army. As a minor, he was spared from execution and spent a year in an Italian military prison in the Province of Ljubljana.[1] After the Italian armistice in September 1943, he was captured by the Wehrmacht and sent to the Dachau (his prisoner number was 61185), where he learned German.

In 1968, at the time of the student demonstrations in Belgrade, Žigon emerged and performed Danton's Death; he played Robespierre for the students. The speech he made while his character was on trial caused the assembled students to explode into enthusiastic applause.[2]

He was married to Serbian actress Jelena Jovanović - Žigon. The couple's daughter Ivana is also an actress.

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1950 Čudotvorni mač
1950 Crveni cvet
1957 Vratiću se Branko Medan ... pukovnik
1958 Kala Filozof
1959 Pet minuta raja Stevan
1960 X-25 javlja Hans Binder
1961 L'enclos Dragulavic
1964 Službeni položaj Urednik novina
1966 Amandus Joannes
1966 Rondo Mladen
1966 Tople godine
1967 Memento Vili Miler
1968 Opatica i komesar Doktor Simić
1968–1969 Rinaldo Rinaldini [de] Cavalcanti TV series
1970 Oxygen Marko
1971 Putovanje na mjesto nesreće Nino, muz
1972 Devojka sa Kosmaja Major Beker
1972 Walter Defends Sarajevo Dr. Mišković
1974 Otpisani Kriger
1974 Parlog
1974 Strah Blagot Balasica
1976 Idealist Priest from Zapolje
1976 Povratak otpisanih Kriger
1978 Ward Six Komandant grada
1978 Occupation in 26 Pictures Hubička
1979 Journalist Tomac
1980 Došlo doba da se ljubav proba Direktor skole
1981 Šesta brzina Načelnik
1982 Nastojanje Profesor Herak
1982 Deseti brat Mr. Piskav
1983 Kako sam sistematski uništen od idiota Stevo Žigon
1984 The Secret Diary of Sigmund Freud Professor Eberhardt
1985 The Red and the Black Upravitelj iz Trsta
1986 Miss Jork Morlok
1987 The Harms Case Profesor
1988 P.S. - Post Scriptum
1988 Haloa - praznik kurvi Profesor Manfred / Husband
1991 Bračna putovanja Grof Johan
1993 Bolje od bekstva Pozorišni reditelj
1993 Kaži zašto me ostavi Starac

References