Ludwig Donath (6 March 1900 – 29 September 1967) was an Austrian actor who appeared in many American films.
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Life
Born to a Jewish family, Donath graduated from Vienna's Academy of Dramatic Art and became a prominent actor on the stage in Berlin. When Hitler came to power in 1933, he returned to Vienna and was active there in theater and film until the Anschluss in 1938. He began his American film career with Lady from Chungking (1942) and went on to appear in dozens of films, including Gilda (1946), The Jolson Story (1946), Jolson Sings Again (1949), The Great Caruso (1951), My Pal Gus (1952), Sirocco (1951), and Torn Curtain (1966).
Donath played the father of entertainer Al Jolson (Larry Parks) in the two biopics The Jolson Story (1946) and Jolson Sings Again (1949), although he was less than 15 years older than Parks as Jolson.
He also appeared frequently on television and on Broadway.
He died of leukemia in 1967. His cremains are interred at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.
Television appearances
Decoy: "The Gentle Gun-Man" (1958) - "Knish" (Dave Levine)
Ben Casey "Behold, They Walk An Ancient Road" (1962) Rabbi Meyer Levinson
Bonanza: "The Way of Aaron" (1963) – Aaron Kaufman
The Twilight Zone: "He's Alive" (1963) – Ernst Ganz
Branded: "A Proud Town" (1965) - Julius Perrin
The Fugitive: "Blessings of Liberty" (1966) – Dr. Josef Karac