Gertraud Jesserer(1943-2021)

The acclaimed Austrian stage and screen actress Gertraud Jesserer was born in Vienna on December 13 1943. After briefly attending the Max Reinhardt Seminar, she became an ensemble member of the Theater in der Josefstadt and made her debut in Ferenc Molnár's play Liliom in 1960. For the next thirteen years, she plied her trade in Austria and neighbouring Germany on both the classical and the contemporary stage. In 1973, Jesserer joined the famous Viennese Burgtheater where she distinguished herself in a variety of lead and character roles, excelling in both comedy and drama, playing anything from countesses and dowagers to maids and prostitutes. Her many vivid stage portrayals have included Polly in Brecht's Threepenny Opera, Rosalinde in Shakespeare's pastoral comedy As You Like It and Marie in Schnitzlers Ruf des Lebens. Jesserer achieved even greater success on the screen. She made her debut in Rolf Thiele's comedy Die Halbzarte (1959), co-starring as Romy Schneider's younger sister. Until her retirement in 2012, she acted in numerous TV movies and achieved enduring popularity for a recurring role as Gerda in the Austrian soap opera Familie Leitner (1958). She also made guest appearances in diverse series, ranging from Kommissar Rex (1994) and Das Traumschiff (1981) to The Old Fox (1977). In addition to Austrian honours, such as the Nestroy Ring, Jesserer was also a recipient of an annual Goldene Kamera Award in 1981 (as Best German Actress) for her starring role in the TV movie Glaube, Liebe, Hoffnung (1980).

Jesserer's oldest son Nikolas, a war correspondent and photographer, was killed during a 1991 bombing at Ljubljana airport. Gertaud herself also died tragically in a house fire, just days before her 78th birthday, on December 4 2021.