Anton Diffring Movies and Career Information

Anton Diffring (born Alfred Pollack; October 20, 1918 – May 20, 1989) was a German actor. Diffring (b. Anton de Vient or Alfred Pollack) was born in Koblenz. Very little is known about his life and his reasons for leaving Germany just before the war (Although it was mentioned in the Audio Commentary for Silver Nemesis that he left Germany in 1936 as he was a Liberal and also Homosexual). He was best known in the English-speaking world for his portrayal of German officers, and mainly similarly sinister roles, in films such as Where Eagles Dare (1968) and The Heroes of Telemark (1965). Diffring played the role of the match commentator, in Escape to Victory (1981). He also starred in the film Operation Daybreak (1975) as the SS officer Reinhard Heydrich. In 1969, for a change, he 'switched sides' playing the role of a British officer in Uccidete Rommel! an Italian-produced war drama. He starred in the horror films The Man Who Could Cheat Death (1959) and Circus of Horrors (1960). He also worked in quite a number of international films, such as Fahrenheit 451 (1966) directed by François Truffaut. His final performance was again as a Nazi character, for the BBC in the 1988 Doctor Who