Sig Arno

Sig Arno
Born
Siegfried Aron

(1895-12-27)27 December 1895
DiedAugust 17, 1975(1975-08-17) (aged 79)
Occupation(s)Stage and film actor
Years activeca. 1915–1961
Spouses
Caroline Dahms
(m. 1922; div. 1932)
Barbara Kiranoff
(m. 1934; div. 1953)
Kitty Mattern
(m. 1953)

Sig Arno (born Siegfried Aron; 27 December 1895 – 17 August 1975) was a German-Jewish film actor who appeared in such films as Pardon My Sarong and The Mummy's Hand. He may be best remembered from The Palm Beach Story (1942) as Toto, the nonsense-talking, mustachioed man who hopelessly pursues Mary Astor's Princess Centimillia.

Biography

Arno was born in Hamburg, Germany. Before beginning to make films in 1920, he was well-known in Germany as a stage comedian.[1] He acted in 90 films in Germany – including G.W. Pabst's Pandora's Box with Louise Brooks – playing primarily comic roles, then he left Germany in 1933 due to the rise of Adolf Hitler. He worked in Europe until 1939 when he moved to Hollywood.[1]

During the next 20 years. he appeared in over 50 films,[2] often playing waiters, maitre d's and "funny Europeans".[1] Arno appeared three times on Broadway,[3] notably in the musical Song of Norway and the play Time Remembered by Jean Anouilh,[4] for which he was nominated for a Tony Award as Best Featured Actor in a Play in 1958.[5] In 1966, Arno won an honorary award at the German Film Awards "for his continued outstanding individual contributions to the German film over the years."[6]

Personal life

Arno was also a successful portrait painter.[1] He was married three times:

  • Caroline Dahms (1922–1932, ended in divorce, one child)
  • Barbara Kiranoff (1934–1953, ended in divorce)
  • Kitty Mattern (1953–1975, ended with his death)[7]

Death

He died from Parkinson's disease in Woodland Hills, California on August 17, 1975, aged 79.[citation needed]

Partial filmography

References

External links