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Wolfgang Hess was a Swiss actor and voice actor who was mainly active in Germany.

Biography[]

Wolfgang Hess was the son of the Swiss film actor Emil Hess (1889-1945) and his German wife Elisabeth Ellinghaus. He lived with his parents, his two brothers Urs and Migg and his half-sister Ruth in Berlin until the end of the Second World War. The family was then evacuated to Leutasch in Tyrol. They arrived in Switzerland in the last days of the war. The father died of an infection shortly after arriving in Zürich.

The fatherless family took up residence in Zürich's university neighbourhood, surrounded by other emigrated German-speaking actors who had found a platform on Europe's only remaining free stage. His mother later took over the "Mon Repos" hotel on Universitätstrasse (University Street), where actors and students came and went. After gaining his federal school-leaving certificate, Hess first completed a banking internship at UBS (a multinational investment bank and financial services company) in Zurich before studying theatre and newspaper studies as well as German language and literature in Munich for five semesters. This was followed by engagements at theatres in Munich, Zürich and Stuttgart. However, Hess became better known for his grating voice, which he used as a narrator in countless feature films, television series, radio plays and documentaries.

Hess is probably best known for his work as the voice actor of Italian star Bud Spencer, to whom he lent his voice most often.

Hess died on 27 April 2016 at the age of 78. The funeral service took place at the Waldfriedhof cemetery in Munich.

Dubbing roles[]

Films[]

Character Dub
Gomez Addams (The Addams Family, 1991)
Gomez Addams
Rubio (Per un pugno di dollari)
Rubio
Sam (Casablanca)
Sam
Barbazul (Cendrillon au Far West)
Barbazul
Steve Kemp (Cujo)
Steve Kemp
Cujo
(first dub)
Navigator
Dune (1984)
(cine - adaption GmbH Film- und Fernsehsynchronisation dub)
Danker (It Happened One Night)
Danker
Unknown - head
Tulpe
Unknown - head
Schnapp
Pete (The Muppets Take Manhattan)
Pete
Bambino (Continuavano a chiamarlo Trinità)
Der Kleine
Trinity Is Still My Name
(Aventin-Filmstudio dub)
Additional voices

Series[]

Character Dub
Unknown - head
Der schreckliche Sven
Vicky the Viking
(episodes 22, 27–28, 55)
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