William Berger, also known as Bill Berger and Wilhelm Berger, born Wilhelm Thomas Berger (June 20, 1928 – October 2, 1993) was an Austrian actor, mostly associated with Euro and spaghetti Westerns.
Contents
Biography
Career
A former roommate of Keith Richards, his earliest work was in Broadway theatre, but while visiting Italy, he was cast in his first Western, Break Up, in 1965. A series of Westerns followed, including Face to Face (1967), Today We Kill, Tomorrow We Die! (1968), If You Meet Sartana Pray for Your Death (1968), Sabata (1969), and Keoma (1975). He also starred in the horror films Five Dolls for an August Moon, My Dear Killer, Monster Shark, and The Murder Clinic.
Berger was heavily into drug experimentation, which frequent co-star Brett Halsey said sometimes interfered with filming, recounting one incident where they were shooting a scene on horseback and without warning Berger leant forwards and slid off his horse. In the early 1970s, Berger spent some time in an Italian prison, having been wrongly accused of possession of hashish and cocaine, but resumed his acting career after his release. His later fare included Super Fly T.N.T. (1973), Oil! (1977), Hercules (1983), and The King's Whore (1990). His 1985 memoirs, Half Way Home, recount his life to that point.
Berger collaborated with his good friend, famed Spanish horror film director Jesus Franco, appearing in seven of his films: The Sinister Eyes of Dr. Orloff, Night of the Killers, Faceless, Golden Temple Amazons, Love Letters of a Portuguese Nun, Dirty Game in Casablanca, and A Captain of 15 Years.
