Shaike Ophir

Biography

Shaike Ophir (Hebrew: שייקה אופיר; November 4, 1928 – August 17, 1987) was an Israeli film and theater actor, comedian, playwright, screenwriter, director, and the country's first mime. Yeshayahu (Shaike) Goldstein-Ophir was born in Jerusalem. His family was Masortiim, and his Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry in the city goes back to the mid-19th century. He studied acting as an adolescent but left school in the 1940s to enlist in the Palmach. During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War he escorted convoys to the besieged city of Jerusalem and took part in naval battles. Thanks to his comic skills he was accepted to the Chezbatron, an army entertainment troupe. In the 1950s, he made a name for himself as a multi-talented performer. He even recorded a few hit songs during this period. During the late 1950s and early 1960s Ophir occasionally guest-starred in American TV shows such as Shirley Temple's Storybook and Alfred Hitchcock Presents (in the episode "The Waxwork," where he was billed as Shai K. Ophir). Ophir acted in 28 films, wrote, directed, and starred in several variety shows, and was an accomplished mime, appearing alongside Marcel Marceau. He reached the peak of his international fame i…

Movies & TV Shows

1. The Delta Force (1986) — Father Nicholas
2. King Solomon's Mines (1985) — Kassam
3. Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955) — Bourdette
4. America 3000 (1986) — Lelz
5. Operation Thunderbolt (1977) — Gadi Arnon
6. The House on Chelouche Street (1973) — Haim
7. The Policeman (1971) — Constable Sgt. Abraham Azulai
8. The Big Dig (1969) — Police Officer
9. Sleeping Beauty (1987) — Elf Master
10. Climax! (1954) — Spider
11. Hole in the Moon (1964)
12. Diamonds (1975) — Moshe
13. The Garden (1977) — Avram
14. The Magician of Lublin (1979) — Schmul
15. Ervinka (1967)
16. Shirley Temple's Storybook (1958) — Rumpelstiltskin
17. Daughters, Daughters (1974) — Sabbatai Alfandari
18. El Dorado (1963) — Shneider
19. The Fox in the Chicken Coop (1978) — Amitz Dolniker
20. Moishe Air-Condition (1966) — אפס אפס אפס
21. Theft from a Thief (1977)
22. The Fifth Column (1960)
23. The Great Telephone Robbery (1972)
24. Wrong Number (1979) — Superintendent Moshe Cohen
25. Half a Million Black (1977)
26. Fish, Football and Girls (1968)
27. Tel Aviv Taxi (1956) — Mark
28. The Father (1975)
29. Without Home (1956)
30. Einer wird gewinnen (1964) — Self
31. Carlos (1971)
32. Hansel and Gretel (1958) — Miney
33. 500000 Black (1977)
34. Dalia and the Sailors (1964) — Jacko

Directed

1. Half a Million Black (1977) — Director
2. 500000 Black (1977) — Director