Johan Marius Nicolaas "Johannes" Heesters was a Dutch actor, singer, and entertainer
with a career dating back to 1921 died from a stroke he was 108.. Active almost exclusively in the
German-speaking world from the mid-1930s, he was a controversial figure
for his actions during the Second World War and his success in Nazi Germany.[1] Heesters was considered one of the oldest stage performers in history.(5 December 1903 – 24 December 2011)
Early life
Heesters was born in Amersfoort, Netherlands, the youngest of four sons. His father Jacobus Heesters (1865–1946) was a salesman and his mother Geertruida Jacoba van den Heuvel (1866–1951), a homemaker.
Nazi Germany
Heesters is known to have funded the German war machine by donating money to the weapons industry.[5] While he became a very controversial figure in the late 1970s, Heesters always denied these accusations despite reliable evidence.[6]
Heesters befriended several high-ranking Nazi-officials and SS-officers.[7] Mr. "Jopie" also performed regularly for people such as Hitler and Goering,[8] with the former being known to have been an avid admirer of his acting skills.[9][10] He met Hitler several times and was reportedly Hitler's favorite actor[11] in the role of Danilo.[12] Throughout the war Heesters continued to perform for German soldiers in camps and barracks. He always denied having visited concentration camps, although he did have knowledge of their existence.[13]
According to German author Volker Kühn, Heesters did in fact perform for the SS in Dachau concentration camp. For this claim he uses as evidence the testimony of Dachau inmate Viktor Matejka who worked for the SS and told Kühn he pulled the curtain when Heesters performed in 1941.[14][15] According to German writer Jürgen Trimborn however, the interview with Matejka may not be reliable as it occurred some fifty years after the performance was said to have taken place.[16] In December 2009, Heesters lost his libel suit against Kühn.[17] While acknowledging having visited the camp, Heesters denied having performed as entertainment for the SS troops. In its ruling, the German court did not find that Kühn's allegations were true, but rather that too much time had passed for an accurate determination of fact to be made.[18]
Heesters' signature tune was Count Danilo Danilovitch's entrance song "Da geh' ich ins Maxim" from Franz Lehár's Die Lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow).
After the war
In later years Heesters spoke fondly of Hitler as a person, but condemned his political stance.[19] In the 1990s, he and his wife toured Germany and Austria with Curth Flatow's play Ein gesegnetes Alter (A Blessed Age), which was also televised in 1996. On 5 December 2003, he celebrated his 100th birthday with a television special Eine Legende wird 100 (A legend turns 100) on the ARD television channel.
On 5 December 2006 Heesters celebrated his 103rd birthday with a concert at the Wiener Konzerthaus. On 5 December 2007 he celebrated his 104th birthday with a concert at the Admiralspalast, Berlin, and in February 2008 he performed in his home country for the first time in four decades amidst protests against his Nazi associations.
Heesters apologised for calling Adolf Hitler a "good chap" on the popular German TV show Wetten, dass..? on Saturday, 13 December 2008, aged 105. He said that he had said something stupid and horrible and asked for forgiveness.[20] In addition, German media suggested that he had failed to understand the show's satirical nature.[21]
Heesters became less active in his last years and played smaller roles, as he began to lose his eyesight due to macular degeneration and could not perform on stage for long periods of times. Unable to read a teleprompter, he had to memorize his lines before a show.
Personal life
My secret to a long, healthy life is love and passion; age differences do not matter.—Johannes Heesters, December 2010[22]
In December 2010, the 107-year-old Heesters announced that he had quit smoking for his then 61-year-old wife: "She should have me as long as possible."[23]
On 1 January 2008, he fell down some stairs in his holiday house in Tyrol and broke two ribs.[24]
On 29 November 2011, he suddenly fell ill, developing a fever, and was rushed into hospital.[25] He was operated on to fit a heart pacemaker and following a good recovery, was allowed home less than a week later, on 4 December, in time to spend his 108th birthday the next day with family. He did not feel strong enough to make the planned stage appearance to sing in celebration of his birthday and also had missed the premiere of his last film, Ten. Due to a relapse in his condition, on 17 December he was readmitted to hospital, where he subsequently suffered a stroke,[26] dying on Christmas Eve 2011.[27] He is survived by two daughters, five grandchildren, eleven great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.[28][29]
Discography
- Albums
- 1965: Jetzt geh' ich ins Maxim
- 2003: Ich werde 100 Jahre alt
- Singles
- 1937: "Ich werde jede Nacht von ihnen träumen"
- 1939: "Musik, Musik, Musik" (featuring Marika Rökk)
- 1941: "Liebling, was wird nun aus uns beiden"
- 1941: "Man müßte Klavier spielen können"
- 1949: "Das kommt mir spanisch vor"
- 1949: "Tausendmal möchte' ich dich küssen"
- 1998: "Ich werde 100 Jahre alt" (song)
- 2007: "Generationen" (featuring Claus Eisenmann)
Honours, decorations, awards
- 1984: Bavarian Order of Merit
- 1993: Berlinian Order of Merit
- 2000: Ring of Honour of the City of Vienna
- Bambi in 1967, 1987, 1990, 1997, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
- 2001: Platinum Romy (TV award)
- 2003: Goldene Kamera
- 2004: Kammersänger
Filmography
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