Bruno S.

Date of Birth: 2 June 1932 Birth Name Bruno Schleinstein Height 5′ 7" (1.70 m) Mini Biography The unwanted son of a prostitute

Birth Name: Bruno Schleinstein

Height: 5′ 7″ (1.70 m)

Mini Biography:

The unwanted son of a prostitute, Bruno S. was beaten so severely by his mother at age 3 that he became temporarily deaf. This led to his placement in a mental institution; he spent the next 23 years in various institutions, often running afoul of the law. Despite this past, he a self-taught painter and musician; while these were his favorite occupations, he was also forced to take jobs in factories such as driving a fork lift. Director Werner Herzog saw him in the documentary Bruno der Schwarze – Es blies ein Jäger wohl in sein Horn (1970) and vowed to work with him, which led to his major roles in Jeder für sich und Gott gegen alle (1974) and Stroszek (1977). He was very difficult to work with, though, sometimes needing several hours of screaming before he could do a scene.

Trivia:

Purchased a piano with his income from Jeder für sich und Gott gegen alle (1974) — see Stroszek (1977) for details.
Has become involved in outsider art and an exhibition of some of his works was put on display in New York in 2004.
Director Werner Herzog once named him the “unknown soldier of German cinema”.