Trivia

He was one of the first pop stars in Russian Empire and was in love with the silent film actress Vera Kholodnaya who died at 25 during Russian Civil War.

In 1925 he married Nina Pavlishcheva, a courtier ballet dancer.

By the late 1930s, he was living in Riga, Latvia,where he played in the troupe of Russian Drama Theatre.

When he realized that the World War II was inevitable, he accepted an invitation to tour South Africa from his local Jewish friends.

He stayed in South Africa and became a founder of one of the first professional theatre companies in a country. Besides, he produced operas for the State Theatre in mid-1940s.

Runitsch acted for five years on the Russian stage, appeared in the first Russian film version of Tolstoy's War and Peace,.

Born in St. Petersburg of an assimilated family from Vitebsk.

Apparently, when he realised that the World War II was inevitable, he accepted an invitation to tour South Africa from his local Jewish friends. He stayed in South Africa and became a founder of one of the first professional theatre companies in a country. Besides, he produced operas for the State Theatre in mid-1940s.

Ossip Runitsch also remained true to the theater and he worked in 1921 and between 1925 and 1928 in Paris regularly where he took part in operas and stage plays.

Runitsch was a long time admirer of his co-star Kholodnaya, who played with him in the movie 'Posledneiye tango', and after her death in 1919 during Russian Civil War, he fled Russia and left for Italy where he took part in a number of films. Later, he moved to Germany where he starred together with Emil Jannings and other famous German actors.

He only appeared one more time in front of the camera during the sound film era of the 30s in "Das Donkosakenlied" (1930).

The actor Ossip Runitsch began his acting career at the St. Petersburger Eremitage theater and he soon became a demanded stage actor in his home country.

Ossip Runitsch left Russia after the October revolution like many other Russians and he went to Western Europe. There he was able to continue his film career, first in Italy and from 1920 in Germany as well.

He was one of the biggest stars of Russian silent cinema and one of the first iconic figures of Russian cinematography.