Bekim Fehmiu

Biography

Bekim Fehmiu (Albanian: [bɛˈkim fɛhˈmiu]; Cyrillic: Беким Фехмију; 1 June 1936 – 15 June 2010) was a Yugoslavian theater and film actor of Albanian ethnicity. He was the first Eastern European actor to star in Hollywood during the Cold War. In 1960, Fehmiu became a member of the Yugoslav Drama Theatre in Belgrade, which he left in 1967, citing bad treatment, to become a free artist. Fehmiu's big break was the 1967 film I Even Met Happy Gypsies, a subtle portrayal of Roma life which won two awards in Cannes and was nominated for an Oscar. Known for his macho appearance and mild manner, Fehmiu was then wooed by Western filmmakers and signed a contract with the Academy Award-winning producer Dino De Laurentiis. It was De Laurentiis who, in 1968, cast him as Odysseus in the acclaimed mini-series of The Odyssey. It was the first blockbuster of Italian television and made Fehmiu an icon in parts of Europe. Fehmiu seemed poised for stardom in Hollywood as well, but his first American film, The Adventurers, was a critical and financial disaster which "ruined any chances for Fehmiu to achieve similar stardom in Hollywood". In 1971, Fehmiu starred in the western action drama The Deserter,…

Movies & TV Shows

1. Black Sunday (1977) — Fasil
2. Salon Kitty (1976) — Hans Reiter
3. I Even Met Happy Gypsies (1967) — Bora
4. The Odyssey (1969) — Odysseus
5. Special Education (1977) — Žarko Munižaba
6. The Last Snows of Spring (1973) — Roberto
7. The Battle of the Eagles (1979) — Major Dragan
8. The Odyssey (1968) — Odysseus
9. The Adventurers (1970) — Dax Xenos
10. A Child Called Jesus (1987) — Joseph
11. Libera, My Love (1975) — Sandro Poggi
12. Amazons of Rome (1961) — Etruscan Soldier (uncredited)
13. Permission to Kill (1975) — Alexander Diakim
14. The Deserter (1970) — Captain Victor Kaleb
15. Sasha (1962) — Marić, poručnik Kraljevske vojske
16. Do Not Mention the Cause of Death (1968) — Mihajlo
17. Ready for Anything (1977) — Marco
18. The Wind (1974) — Adam Milovanović
19. Shoot and It Shall Open (1965)
20. Klaxon (1965) — Marko
21. The Girl (1965)
22. Under the Same Sky (1964) — Kerim
23. Broad Are the Leaves (1981) — Baja
24. The Enemy (1965)
25. The Feverish Years (1966) — Mirko
26. The Swarm (1966) — Halil Beg
27. Deps (1974) — Deps
28. A Trap for the General (1971) — Doktor, obaveštajac OZNE
29. The Time of Love (1966) — Milija, trubač (segment "Put")
30. Protest (1967) — Ivo Bajšić
31. Arrive Before Daybreak (1978) — Esad Ljumi
32. Pavle Pavlovic (1975) — Pavle Pavlović
33. The Red and the Black (1985) — Ivan Pipan
34. Silence the Witness (1974) — Il dottor Giorgio Sironi
35. The Balad of Mamelouk (1982) — Ruler
36. Heart and Sword (1998) — Gormond
37. Cagliostro (1975) — Count Alexander Cagliostro / Giuseppe Balsamo
38. Bekim Fehmiu Visits Albania (1972) — Himself
39. Il gioco della verità (1974) — Alberto Santoro
40. The Last Story (1987)