This page uses content from the Sig Ruman biography page on the English version of Wikipedia and is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. This list of authors can be seen in the page history. Rotten Tomatoes disclaims any and all warranties as to the accuracy or reliability of the content.

Sig Ruman (born Siegfried Rumann) (October 11, 1884 - February 14, 1967) was a German-American actor known for his comic portrayals of pompous villains.

Born in Hamburg, he studied electrical engineering before serving with the Imperial German army during the First World War. After moving to the United States in 1924, his acting career blossomed. Befriending playwright George S. Kaufman and theater critic Alexander Woollcott, he enjoyed success in many Broadway productions.

With the advent of talkies, Ruman became a favorite of the Marx Brothers, appearing in A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races, and A Night in Casablanca. His German accent and large stature kept him busy during World War II, playing sinister Nazi characters in a series of wartime thrillers. During this period, he also appeared in several films by Ernst Lubitsch, a fellow German immigrant.

Despite poor health during the 50's and 1960s, Ruman continued to find work, making many guest appearances on television. In 1953, he played what is perhaps his most famous role—that of "Schultz", the bumbling, two-faced POW camp guard in Stalag 17. He died of a heart attack on February 14th, 1967, in Julian, California.

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