Urs Althaus’s acting career belongs to a slightly different vintage to most of the performers featured in this thread: he really only started appearing on screen in the 80s, at the same time as the Italian film industry started to collapse, and as a result, his film appearences were probably limited. Still, he’s an extremely familiar face, not least because of his important part in The Name of the Rose (a film that perhaps warrants rediscovy). He also turned up in a handful of Italian B-Movies, such as Ferdinando Baldi’s Warbus. Probably his best known role within Italy, though, was the footballing comedy Allenatore nel pallone (and it’s similarly succesful sequel, which was released a couple of months ago).
Here’s a biog from the IMDB:
Born in Herrliberg by Zürich, Switzerland. Urs was raised by his mother Irma in Altdorf Canton Uri (Willhelm Tell/Schiller). He studied in Basel chemistry and business and completed it in Zürich with a degree in Business. During this period he played professional soccer with FC. Zürich for two years. In 1977 he was the first black men ever on the cover of GQ – USA. As a model he worked for Calvin Klein, Bill Blass, Valentino, Lanvin, Givenchy, Ungaro, Pierre Cardin, Gucci, Armani, Kenzo, Yves Saint Laurent and appeared in most of the top international fashion magazines. During this period he was (1978 ) co-founder of Xtazy, the worlds first international modeling ensemble, based in New York. Lina Wertmüller offered Urs in New York a role in her upcoming film, shooting in Rome. After his first acting experiences in Rome, he started to study acting intensively with Domique de Fazio from the Actor Studio and Mira Rostova (New York). During this period Urs had a few roles on screen, and gained recognition in his first leading part in Allenatore nel Pallone (1984), where he played Aristotoles, a Brazilian soccer player. This movie captured the heart of the Italian nation. Back in Rome he played the title role in Arrapaho (Italian comedy movie). 1985 followed a leading part in Warbus, where he played the role of Ben. Off screen Urs was co-founder of Gary Gaytes Ltd, New York, a trendy up coming fashion designer. In 1986 he played the role of Venantius in The Name of The Rose. Further off-screen experiences include the privilege of meeting with Gurumayi and Dalailama. 1992-2000 co-owner Option Agency in Zürich. During this periods Urs spent a lot of time in the mountains. The love for acting was stronger and he left all business behind him in 2000 returning to Rome to play a mayor role in Il commissario (2001).
Film Credits
- Squartatore di New York, Lo (1982) aka New York Ripper (uncredited) …. Sex show performer
- Oltre la porta (1982) aka Beyond the Door (uncredited) …. Tunesian
- Warrior of the Lost World (1983) …. Mercenary
- Quartetto Basileus, Il (1983) aka Basileus Quartet …. Call Boy
- Arrapaho (1984) …. Arrapaho
- Allenatore nel pallone, L’ (1984) …. Aristoteles
- Warbus (1985) …. Ben
- Name der Rose, Der (1986) aka The Name of the Rose …. Venantius
- Allenatore nel pallone 2, L’ (2008 ) …. Aristoteles
TV Credits
- Progetto di vita (1981) (TV) …. Ragazzo
- Martyre de Saint Sébastien, Le (1984) (TV) …. Leading Archer
- Progetto Atlantide (1984) (TV) …. Terrorist
- “Another World” …. Ravi Embassador (2 episodes, 1986)
- Sweetiecakes (2001) …. Rupert
- “Valeria medico legale” …. Re Luc (1 episode, 2001)
- “Commissario, Il” …. Fernando Maputo Gomez (1 episode, 2001)
- Chiaroscuro (2003) (TV) …. Edwin Ross
- “Bello delle donne, Il” …. Mekho (8 episodes, 2001-2003)
- “Medico in famiglia, Un” (1998 ) TV series …. George (unknown episodes, 2003)
I suspect there may also be further credits not listed here (what was the name of the Wertmuller film, for instance?)