- Source: Ben Dova
Ben Dova (born as Joseph Späh (also written as Spah) on March 14, 1905, in Strasbourg, Alsace–Lorraine – died September 30, 1986, in Manassas, Virginia) was a German–American acrobat and actor.
Career
He emigrated from Germany to the United States in 1922 and became a contortionist in the vaudeville genre, using the artist name Ben Dova, from the English "bend over". His signature act was playing a drunk man balancing on a street light. In 1933 he performed his act on top of the 56-story Chanin Building in New York with no safety measures, for the benefit of the newsreels.
Next to his acrobatic career he became an actor, performing in small parts in movies and television episodes, most notably as Klaus Szell (the brother of the movie's antagonist) in Marathon Man (1976).
Hindenburg disaster
Dova was a passenger on board the LZ 129 Hindenburg during the Hindenburg disaster and escaped using his acrobatic skills. The FBI investigated him as a possible saboteur but found no evidence and cleared him from wrongdoing.
He was played by Robert Clary in the motion picture The Hindenburg (1975).
Filmography
A Chinatown Fantasy (1930, short)
The Way of All Freshmen, (1933, a Broadway Brevity short) – Acrobatic dancer
Toast of the Town (1952, television variety show, one episode)
Naked City (1962, television series, season 3, episode 20: To Walk Like a Lion) – Tailor
Marathon Man (1976) – Klaus Szell
Der Preis fürs Überleben (1980, West German movie) – Jim
Dear Mr. Wonderful (1982, West German movie) – Ben
Höllenfahrten: Titanic der Lüfte – Die letzte Fahrt der Hindenburg (2000, German TV episode) – Self
Die letzten Stunden der Hindenburg (2011, German documentary) – Self
References
External links
Ben Dova at IMDb
Faces of the Hindenburg – Joseph Späh
Kata Kunci Pencarian:
- Ben Dova
- Marathon Man (film)
- Hindenburg disaster
- Dear Mr. Wonderful
- Hellzapoppin (musical)
- List of German films of the 1980s
- Naked City (TV series)
- List of American films of 1976
- The Streets of Paris
- La Schmoove
