Walter Gotell
| Walter Gotell | |
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 Walter Gotell, circa 1978 |
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| Born | Walter Jack Gotell 15 March 1924 Bonn, Rhenish Prussia, Germany |
| Died | 5 May 1997 (aged 73) London, England, UK |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1943–1997 |
Walter Gotell (15 March 1924 – 5 May 1997) was a German-British actor, known for his role as General Gogol, head of the KGB in the James Bond film series.[1]
Gotell was born in Bonn, Germany; his family emigrated to the United Kingdom after the Nazis came to power. A fluent English speaker, he started in films as early as 1943, usually playing German henchmen, such as in We Dive at Dawn (1943).
He began to have more established roles by the early 1950s, starring in The African Queen (1951), The Red Beret (1953) for Albert R. Broccoli, Ice Cold in Alex (1958), The Guns of Navarone (1961), Road to Hong Kong (1962), 55 Days At Peking (1963), Lancelot and Guinevere (1963), The Spy Who Came In From The Cold (1965), Lord Jim (1965), Black Sunday (1977), The Boys From Brazil (1978) and Cuba (1979).
His first role in the James Bond film series was in 1963, when he played the henchman Morzeny in From Russia with Love. From the late 1970s, he played the recurring role of General Gogol in the series, beginning with The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). Gotell gained the role of KGB General Anatol Gogol because of his resemblance to the former head of Soviet secret police Lavrentiy Beria. The character returned in Moonraker (1979), For Your Eyes Only (1981), Octopussy (1983), A View to a Kill (1985) and The Living Daylights (1987). As the Cold War neared its end, the role of leader of the KGB was seen to change attitudes to the West - from direct competitor to collaborator. Gotell is one of a few actors to have played a villain and a Bond ally in the film series (others being Joe Don Baker, Charles Gray and Richard Kiel).
Throughout his career, Gotell also made numerous guest appearances in television series including Danger Man, Knight Rider, The A-Team, Airline, Airwolf, The X-Files, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, MacGyver, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Miami Vice, Cagney and Lacey, and The Saint among others. He played Chief Constable Cullen in Softly, Softly: Taskforce (1969-75).
Gotell was a businessman as well as an actor, and used his acting salaries to fund his business interests. He died in 1997 from cancer. He had one daughter, Carol, born in 1960.
[edit] Selected filmography
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[edit] References
- ^ Tom Vallance Obituary: Walter Gotell, The Independent, 20 June 1997
[edit] External links
- Walter Gotell at the Internet Movie Database
- Walter Gotell at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
