Axel Anderson

Axel Anderson (December 11, 1929 – December 16, 2012) was a German actor who was very popular in his adopted homeland of Puerto Rico.

Axel Anderson
Born
Axel Levy

(1929-12-11)December 11, 1929
DiedDecember 16, 2012(2012-12-16) (aged 83)
OccupationActor

Biography

Early life

Anderson was born Axel Levy to a Jewish family in Berlin, Germany. In 1936 Anderson's family escaped the Holocaust by emigrating to Paraguay. Due to political instability in Paraguay, Anderson's family soon moved to Argentina. Anderson started acting as a teenager, working at the Teatro Alemán Independiente, a small theater troupe mainly composed of German expatriates who performed in German.

During the 1950s, Anderson moved his young family to Bogotá, Colombia where he worked in theater. The family later moved to the Dominican Republic. During his time in the Dominican Republic, Anderson reportedly clashed with the politics of the Rafael Trujillo regime, being forced to emigrate one more time. He and his family settled in Puerto Rico where they have remained ever since.

Career

Anderson made his debut in Puerto Rican television with a sitcom named Qué Pareja, a local version of I Love Lucy. He also performed in theater and other short television productions. The actor quickly established himself as a leading man, landing several leading roles in local novelas or soap operas. Early in his career, he starred in a novela titled Cuando los hijos condenan in which Anderson and co-star Marta Romero shared the first on-screen kiss in the history of Puerto Rican television.

Anderson also starred in one of the first major motion pictures produced in Puerto Rico, Maruja. His film career continued with roles in Spanish and U.S. films, including Battle of the Bulge (1965) and Bananas (1971). He also participated in the Spanish dubs of several Hollywood films of the 1940s and 1950s as well as of many American TV shows.

In his last 20 years, Anderson remained one of the leading actors in Puerto Rico and continually acted in major local and international productions, including a small role as the bank director in the Sylvester Stallone thriller Assassins.

Anderson (lyrics) and Tony Croatto (music) co-wrote Agüeybaná, a song dedicated to the memory of the most important Taino "Cacique" of the pre-colonial Puerto Rico, recorded by Nelly y Tony and later by Haciendo Punto En Otro Son, which became a major hit in the 70s.

Anderson died on December 16, 2012, in San Juan, Puerto Rico.[1]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1944The Master RaceNazi OfficerUncredited
1944An American RomanceImmigrantUncredited
1959MarujaJean Pierre
1959El Otro Camino
1963Thunder IslandUncredited
1964Aquella joven de blanco
1965Finger On the TriggerMcNamara
1965Battle of the BulgeGerman Army messenger
1970The Delta Factor
1971BananasMan Tortured
1977Mi aventura en Puerto Rico
1993La guagua aéreaPadre Gautier
1994Desvío al paraísoClark
1995Manhattan Merengue!Super
1995AssassinsBank President
1996The Disappearance of Garcia LorcaOrtega
1998The Face at the WindowUncle Pablo
1998UndercurrentCarlos Rivera Sr
1999Paging EmmaCharlie
1999Paradise LostGeneral Díaz
2001Entre los dioses del desprecio
2003Celestino y el vampiroSiegfried Von Krank
2004DesamoresCasimiro Leyva
2005Judíos en el espacio o ¿Por qué es differente esta noche a las demás noches?Mauricio
2005TaínosMr. Cordero (Sara's Grandfather)
2006EntremedioCesar / Dr. Gutierrez
2007The Reapingthe Blind Man
2011El Detective CojinesViejo Rico
2012Los condenadosMichael Puttnam
2016Riding 79Cayin(final film role)

Recordings

OPUS 1

  • Martes 2 de la Tarde
    • Letra de Axel Anderson
  • Por Eso Que Llaman Amor
  • Emigrante
  • Ahora Sé
  • Inventario
  • El Pasado Ya Pasó
  • Para Elisa
  • Mis Cinco Sentidos
  • A Que No Sabes A Quien Ví
  • El Coro

See also

References

  1. "Recuerdan a Axel Anderson". El Nuevo Dia. 2012-12-18. Retrieved 2013-01-12.
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