Bernhard Droog

Bernhard Droog (5 January 1921 in Cologne, Germany – 22 December 2009 in Ede, Netherlands) was a Dutch actor who appeared in 17 films, including the 1997 Academy Award-winning Character, and numerous television and theatre roles.

He initially studied singing, with a view to joining an opera company (his parents had worked as semi-professional opera singers) but in 1945 he became a member of a theatre group run by Pierre Balledux, for whom he would make over 300 appearances.

[2] Droog's film debut came in 1955 in the role of Leraar in Ciske de Rat, based on a famous children's novel by author Piet Bakker, which in terms of cinema admissions remains one of the most popular films in Dutch history.

However he made notable appearances in Wat zien ik, a 1971 comedy centred on the lives of two Amsterdam prostitutes (and the first feature film directed by Paul Verhoeven), and another World War II feature, 1978's Pastorale 1943.

Droog's final screen appearance came in 1997 in Character, which went on to win that year's Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.