In the decades that followed, Brauer became one of the busiest actors, taking on countless roles in film and television as well as in the theater throughout the German-speaking world. As TV inspector Peter Brockmöller, Brauer not only became one of the most popular “crime scene” investigators, but also unexpectedly caused a sensation as a singer. And Charles Brauer’s career is still going strong – the next theater appearances are already planned for next year, as the Swiss native reported in an interview with our media company.
Mr. Brauer, despite your advanced age, you are still very active with readings and theater performances.
Well, we had the premiere of “Tuesdays at Morrie” at the Ernst Deutsch Theater in Hamburg in January and played the piece 30 times. And it went so well that we’ve now played it four more times. And it went well again, which is why they now asked if we would play it four more times next year. And I said, well, it depends on how I feel, but I’ll say yes for now. Of course, I only do things like that as long as I enjoy it. I really enjoy doing the Christmas readings, it’s a series that I’ve had for a long time. As long as the organizers still think it makes sense, I’ll do it. In a comfortable way, of course, I’ll have myself chauffeured and stay in nice hotels.
If you look at your career as an actor, which has spanned over 70 years, has it fulfilled what you hoped for from this profession as a young man?
Yes. Of course, there have also been slumps and doubts over these 70 years. Even as a child I had a two-year contract with Defa and when I was 15 I thought that this could become a career. I once told myself that if by the time I’m 30 I’m not at the point where I have a foothold in this profession, then I’ll do something else. But thank God I didn’t have to do that because I got both feet in relatively quickly. I was lucky. I always had a strong desire to become a good actor. I wanted to be able to do the job and not just earn rent with it.
You succeeded – a few weeks ago you received the German Acting Prize for your life’s work…
That was really very nice. I was particularly pleased because this prize comes from colleagues. It was a beautiful event, very touching.
You have worked in film/television and theater in roughly equal proportions. Does your heart beat a little more for one of these areas?
A little more for the theater. I already played in Berlin as Springinsfeld, then I went to drama school and also played there during that time. One day an older colleague from Hamburg called me and said they were looking for an actor between the ages of 18 and 19 for a play about the Rothschilds and they couldn’t find one, “come here.” But how come, I had no money at all. Then I borrowed 40 marks and went from Berlin to Hamburg and when I got there they had canceled the piece. And then I stood there. Thank God I was able to stay overnight at a friend’s house. I had two roles under my belt, so I thought, well, now I’ll audition. And that turned into 20 years of Hamburg.
Despite everything, her best-known role may have been in “Tatort”.
Of course, this is the most prominent number.
How did your role as Commissioner Peter Brockmöller come about and what did it mean to you?
I had filmed a large six-part series for NDR and the TV director at the time called me and asked whether I could imagine working as Manfred Krug’s partner. I could imagine everything anyway… I already knew Krug and it turned out that we both got along very well very quickly. And then it was successful – 16 “Tatort” years and a very loving friendship emerged from it. After 16 years, Manfred was no longer in the mood for various reasons and we always said that if one of us stopped, the other would stop too. Of course the role had consequences, the level of recognition is enormous. Then a publisher calls and asks, would you like to read a Grisham as an audio book…? And you would never do a theater tour if people didn’t know you from television. You can be the greatest actor in Berlin, but nobody in Bottrop knows you. But in Bottrop people go to the theater because of you, because they want to see the person whose nose they saw in “Tatort”.
If Manfred Krug had wanted to continue with “Tatort,” would you have continued there too?
There were always problems with the scripts and Manfred was the one who said, I don’t like it anymore. And 16 years is an awfully long time. We talked about it for a while. He had wanted to quit before and, thank God, had thought of something else at the time. I would only have continued if he had said we would do it. But Manfred didn’t want to do it anymore and that was the end of the matter.
Since you got along very well with Manfred Krug, the fact that you sang with him as “Swinging Cops” in every “Tatort” episode from 1996 onwards was really a reflection of your private situation?
Yes, we shared a trailer while filming and were both big jazz freaks. And I knew who Manfred was in the GDR – 50 percent of his work there was singing. We often trilled something and at some point, I think at a mountain festival, we sang something together for fun and we also knew that we like to sing something to ourselves during a break. The boss in charge at the time then said: Why don’t we actually use that? And then they built it into an episode. It was absolutely clear: If people don’t like it, we’ll stop it immediately. But you know what happened to it. Some people waited for it, although it was always a minute at most. Musician Klaus Doldinger always had a lot of fun with us and we always knew which scene to include. The authors didn’t always think that was great… Well, and then this CD was created, which is still available for purchase, we’ve probably sold around 200,000 of them by now. We recorded the 14 songs within three days with Klaus Doldinger in Munich.
Did you remain friends with Manfred Krug until his death in 2016?
Yes yes. Manfred was a lazy pig when it came to traveling; he never visited me in Switzerland. But I was often in Berlin and we always saw each other. And we wrote and made phone calls anyway.
How do you view today’s “crime scene” landscape?
I’m not a loyal “crime scene” watcher. I much prefer going to the cinema. When I go to Basel, I also have the chance to see the films in their original language. And you can also watch films in the original sound on Netflix, which I prefer to do than watch dubbed films.
The job of an actor has become more difficult. Can we still, in good conscience, advise young people to become actors?
From an economic point of view, you would have to say leave it alone. But if someone has an obsession, you don’t have to say anything, then they will do it. But the times I experienced will never happen again. The financial and time pressure and what the broadcasters do with the productions is different today.
You were able to build up a good financial cushion with the “Tatort” fees?
You could make a living from it, no question. And I have always worked a lot in my life, even in between. Manfred too, he even shot some of “Liebling Kreuzberg” at the same time.
You also have a few other TV series in your CV. What are your personal highlights besides the “crime scene”?
I liked making “Velvet and Silk”. »Our teacher Dr. Specht” was also a very nice and well-written series. And “The Schölermann Family” was my rent and brought great experiences for my career.
How often are you recognized and spoken to on the street today?
Now and again. Our “crime scenes” are fondly remembered and repeats are welcome.
Is there anything else you want professionally?
No, nothing at all. I want to stay healthy and I’m doing something about that. And if there are any other things that I enjoy and that I can do, then I’ll do them.
bIn the series “Television Legends” we talk to actors who have long since made their way into the audience’s memory with roles in popular TV series. A dossier with all previous episodes of this interview series can be found at:
FRANK HAGENAUER
About the person: Charles Brauer
Berlin-born Charles Brauer was born in 1935 and made his film debut at the age of eleven. He graduated from the Max Reinhardt acting school in Berlin, had a leading role in the first German TV family series “The Schölermann Family” for over 100 episodes in the 1950s and played at the Deutsches Schauspielhaus for 20 years from the 1950s to the 1970s in Hamburg Theater. Over the decades, Brauer appeared at a number of theaters and his career as a theater actor is still ongoing.
Brauer became particularly famous starting in 1986 as Hamburg crime scene detective Peter Brockmöller, whom he played alongside Manfred Krug for a total of 38 episodes until 2001. From 2000 to 2005, Brauer appeared in the family series “Velvet and Silk” for over 100 episodes; in the 1990s he also appeared in around 30 episodes of “Our Teacher Dr. Specht”, as well as countless roles in other TV formats.
He also made a name for himself as a dubbing and radio play actor. Among other things, Brauer is still the German regular speaker for the novels of the US writer John Grisham. He also continues to tour with readings.
For example, Brauer will be giving the reading “Tatort: Christmas” on December 4th (8 p.m.) at the Augustinerschule (Goetheplatz 4) in Friedberg, Hesse.
Charles Brauer is a father of three and lives with his wife, the set designer Lilot Hegi, in a Swiss village near Basel. (hage)
