Horst Janson (actor)

Horst Janson is one of Germany's most popular actors. His career started very early with the film Buddenbrooks (de) in 1959. He also featured in Helmut Käutner’s A Glass of Water (Das Glas Wasser, 1960), where he played alongside Gustaf Gründgens, Hilde Krahl, Lieselotte Pulver and Sabine Sinjen. He also appeared in films such as Ruf der Wildgänse (de) (The Cry of the Wild Geese, 1961), Das Riesenrad (1961), and Robert Siodmak’s Escape from East Berlin (1962).

Among his English-language films are the cult classic Hammer Film production Captain Kronos - Vampire Hunter (1974) and Murphy's War (1971, with Peter O'Toole and Philippe Noiret). He has appeared in many other feature films, including spaghetti westerns with Franco Nero, Eli Wallach and other international productions with Roger Moore, Tony Curtis, Anthony Perkins, Charles Bronson and Robert Wagner.

Television discovered him early. He became popular to a wider audience on the hit show Der Bastian (1973), although he was 37 years old at that time. Janson has appeared in numerous other works for both film and television. Some of the TV series he worked on: Salto Mortale (1969–1971), Sesamstraße (the German version of Sesame Street, 1980–1983), Zwei Halbe sind noch lange kein Ganzes (1993), Zwei Schlitzohren in Antalya (1991–1994).

He also appeared in many German, French, Spanish, Italian and English-language TV movies including Höllenfahrten (Hell Ride, 1998), Der Bunker (1992), Rose et Marguerite (1997), Il segno della scimmia (The Sign of the Ape, 1997), Liebe, Tod und viele Kalorien (2001) and Freundinnen fűr Immer (2003).

He played the character of Captain Bernd Jensen in the ARD series Unter weißen Segeln (In White Sails). Two seasons were broadcast in 2004 & 2005; the third episode took place in December 2006 in Cuba.

He also does a lot of theater tours. In 1998, he played Old Shatterhand, the character from western novels by German writer Karl May, at the Karl May Festival in Bad Segeberg.

Awards

• Award of the "Sunday Mail": Best Actor in the British television play The Best of Enemies by Christopher Fry
• Bravo Golden Otto 1973
• Bambi Award in 1974 as the most popular actor.

Filmography

His film appearances include:

• Buddenbrooks (de) (1959)
• …und noch frech dazu! (de) (1960)
• A Glass of Water (1960)
• Der Teufel hat gut lachen (de) (1960)
• Das Riesenrad (1961)
• Ruf der Wildgänse (de) (1961)
• Das Mädchen und der Staatsanwalt (1962)
• Escape from East Berlin (1962)
• Teufelskreise (TV film, 1963)
• Le glaive et la balance (1963)
• Liebe auf den zweiten Blick (TV film, 1964)
• Auf halbem Weg zum Paradies (TV film, 1965)
• Niemandsland (TV film, 1965)
• Der Spielverderber – Das kurze, verstörte Leben des Kaspar Hauser (TV film, 1965)
• Anatomie eines Unfalls (TV film, 1965)
• End of Conflict (Fall erledigt, TV film, 1965)
• Großer Ring mit Außenschleife (TV film, 1966)
• Das Rätsel von Foresthouse (TV film, 1966)
• Die Liebenden von Florenz (TV film, 1966)
• Erinnerung an zwei Montage (TV film, 1966)
• Brille und Bombe – Bei uns liegen Sie richtig! (1967)
• Die Letzten (TV film, 1967)
• If You Play with Crazy Birds (Spielst Du mit schrägen Vögeln, 1969)
• Der Kerl liebt mich – und das soll ich glauben? (de) (1969)
• Eine Frau sucht Liebe (de) (1969)
• You Can't Win 'Em All (1970)
• The McKenzie Break (1970)
• Murphy's War (1971)
• Hilfe, die Verwandten kommen (de) (1971)
• The Captain (1971)
• Long Live Your Death (1971)
• Life Is Tough, Eh Providence? (1972)
• Crazy - Completely Mad (1973)
• Battle of the Godfathers (de) (Zinksärge für die Goldjungen, 1973)
• Die Zwillinge vom Immenhof (de) (1973)
• No Gold for a Dead Diver (1974)
• Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter (1974)
• Frühling auf Immenhof (de) (1974)
• Shout at the Devil (1976)
• Taxi 4012 (TV film, 1976)
• The Best of Enemies (TV film, 1977)
• Breakthrough (1979)
• Wie hätten Sie’s denn gern? (de) (1983)
• Das Nürnberger Bett (1983)
• Hijacked to Hell (Danger – Keine Zeit zum Sterben, 1984)
• To Catch a King (1984)
• The Last Days of Patton (TV film, 1986)
• Tierärztin Christine (TV film, 1993)
• Vukovar: The Way Home (1994)
• ...dann hau ich eben ab (TV film, 1995)
• Tierärztin Christine 2: Die Versuchung (TV film, 1995)
• Les mystères de Sadjurah (TV film, 1997)
• Il segno della scimmia (TV film, 1997)
• The Last Bomb (Der Bunker – Eine todsichere Falle, TV film, 1999)
• Liebe, Tod & viele Kalorien (TV film, 2001)
• Freundinnen für immer (TV film, 2003)
• Mein Mann, mein Leben und Du (TV film, 2003)
• Die Wittelsbacher (de) (2005)
• Comedy-Schiff (TV film, 2005)
• Da wo es noch Treue gibt (TV film, 2006)
• Momella – Eine Farm in Afrika (TV film, 2007)
• Winnetou und das Geheimnis der Geisterschlucht (direct-to-video, 2007) (Narrator)
• Totgesagte leben länger (direct-to-video, 2008)
• Familie ist was Wunderbares (TV film, 2008)
• Schlaflos (de) (TV film, 2009)
• Böseckendorf – Die Nacht, in der ein Dorf verschwand (de) (TV film, 2009)
• Eines Tages... (2010)
• Flaschendrehen (TV film, 2011)
• Fliegen lernen (de) (TV film, 2013)
• The Broken Crown (2010)

Television

His TV series, miniseries & shorts appearances include:

• Sie schreiben mit (TV series 1960)
• Gestern gelesen (TV series, 2 episodes, 1963)
• Das Kriminalmuseum (TV series, 1 episode, 1967)
• ITV Play of the Week (TV series, 1 episode, 1967) - "The Small Rebellion of Jess Calvert"
• Landarzt Dr. Brock (TV series, 3 episodes, 1967)
• The Root of All Evil? (TV series, 1 episode, 1968) - "West of Eden"
• Sein Traum vom Grand Prix (TV series, 6 episodes, 1967)
• Gestern gelesen (TV series 1969)
• Seasons of the Year (TV series, 1 episode, 1971) - "English Family Robinson Summer 1910"
• Upstairs, Downstairs (TV series, 1 episode, 1971) - "A Suitable Marriage"
• Salto mortale (TV series, 18 episodes, 1969–1971)
• Der Ehefeind (short 1972)
• George (TV series, 1 episode, 1972)
• Eine Frau bleibt eine Frau (TV series, 2 episodes, 1972–1973)
• Der Bastian (TV series, 13 episodes, 1973)
• Die Abwerbung (TV short 1974)
• Hamburg Transit (TV series, 1 episode, 1974)
• Les Grands Détectives (fr) (TV series, 1 episode, 1974)
• Graf Yoster gibt sich die Ehre (TV series, 1 episode, 1974)
• Härte 10 (TV miniseries, 5 episodes, 1974–1975)
• ITV Sunday Night Drama (TV series, 1 episode, 1976) - "Enemy"
• Diamantenpfade (ru) (aka Diamantensucher) (TV series, 1 episode, 1978)
• Die Protokolle des Herrn M (TV series, 13 episodes, 1979)
• Sesamstraße (TV series, more than 200 episodes, 1980–1983)
• Smuggler (TV series, 2 episodes, 1981)
• Sonderdezernat K1 (TV series, 5 episodes, 1981–1982)
• Kommissariat 9 (TV series, 1 episode, 1983)
• Kontakt bitte... (TV series, 1 episode, 1983)
• Unsere schönsten Jahre (TV series, 1 episode, 1983)
• Giovanni, da una madre all'altra (TV miniseries, 3 episodes, 1983)
• Ein Fall für TKKG (TV series, 1 episode, 1987)
• Dirty Dozen: The Series (TV series, 1 episode, 1988)
• Die Nordlichter (TV series, 12 episodes, 1988)
• Forstinspektor Buchholz (TV series, 1 episode, 1988)
• Forsthaus Falkenau (TV series, 3 episodes, 1989–1991)
• Der Landarzt (TV series, 5 episodes, 1989–1996)
• Blaues Blut (TV series, 2 episodes, 1990)
• Zwei Schlitzohren in Antalya (TV series, 20 episodes, 1991–1994)
• Geschichten aus dem Leben (TV series, 1 episode, 1993)
• Ein Schloß am Wörthersee (TV series, 2 episodes, 1993)
• Zwei Halbe sind noch lange kein Ganzes (TV series, 13 episodes, 1993)
• Rosamunde Pilcher (TV series, 1 episode, 1993) - "Stürmische Begegnung"
• Großstadtrevier (TV series, 2 episodes, 1993–2014)
• Ein unvergeßliches Wochenende (TV series, 1 episode, 1994)
• Wildbach (TV series, 1 episode, 1994)
• Ein Fall für zwei (TV series, 1 episode, 1995)
• Hallo, Onkel Doc! (TV series, 1 episode, 1996)
• Singles (TV series, 1 episode, 1997)
• Küstenwache (TV series, 2 episodes, 1997–2006)
• Sylvia - Eine Klasse für sich (TV series, 1 episode, 1998)
• CityExpress (TV series, 1 episode, 1999)
• Die Strandclique (TV series, 1 episode, 1999)
• Die Wache (TV series, 1 episode, 2001)
• Ein unmöglicher Mann (TV miniseries, 1 episode, 2001)
• Alle meine Töchter (TV series, 8 episodes, 2001)
• In aller Freundschaft (TV series, 2 episodes, 2003–2010)
• Unter weißen Segeln (TV series, 4 episodes, 2005–2006)
• Inga Lindström (TV series, 1 episode, 2005) - "Der Weg zu dir"
• Das Traumhotel (TV series, 1 episode, 2006)
• Die Rosenheim-Cops (TV series, 1 episode, 2006)
• Die Spezialisten: Kripo Rhein-Main (TV series, 1 episode, 2006)
• SOKO 5113 (TV series, 2 episodes, 2006–2009)
• SOKO Köln (TV series, 1 episode, 2007)
• Die ProSieben Märchenstunde (TV series, 1 episode, 2007) - "Dornröschen - Ab durch die Hecke!"
• Dunkelrot (short 2008)
• Julia - Wege zum Glück (TV series, 2 episodes, 2008)
• Unser Mann im Süden (TV series, 1 episode, 2008)
• Um Himmels Willen (TV series, 6 episodes, 2008–2009)
• Sturm der Liebe (TV series, 4 episodes, 2008–2009)
• Countdown - Die Jagd beginnt (TV series, 1 episode, 2012)
• Der letzte Bulle (TV series, 1 episode, 2012)
• Destruction of Silence (short 2012)
• Die Pfefferkörner (TV series, 1 episode, 2013)
• Tatort (TV series, 1 episode, 2013) - "Borowski und der Engel"
• Familie Dr. Kleist (TV series, 1 episode, 2013)