Marthe Keller
Contributors to Wikimedia projects
/static/apple-touch/wikipedia.png
Swiss actress (born 1945)

Marthe Keller (born 28 January 1945)[1] is a Swiss actress. She is perhaps best known for her role in the film Marathon Man (1976), for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award.

Career

[edit]

Early years

[edit]

Keller studied ballet as a child, but stopped after a skiing accident at age 16. She changed to acting, and worked in Berlin at the Schiller Theater and the Berliner Ensemble.[2]

Film work

[edit]

Keller's earliest film appearances were in Funeral in Berlin (1966, in which she was not credited) and the German film Wilder Reiter GmbH (1967). She appeared in a series of French films in the 1970s, including Un Cave (1971), La Raison du Plus Fou (1973) and Toute Une Vie/And Now My Love (1974). Her most famous American film appearances are her Golden Globe-nominated performance as Dustin Hoffman's girlfriend in Marathon Man (1976) and her performance as a femme fatale Palestinian terrorist who leads an attack on the Super Bowl in Black Sunday (1977). Keller acted alongside Al Pacino in the 1977 romantic drama film Bobby Deerfield, based on Erich Maria Remarque's novel Heaven Has No Favorites, and subsequently the two were involved in a relationship. She also acted alongside William Holden in Billy Wilder's 1978 romantic drama Fedora.

After 1978, Keller did more work in European cinema than in Hollywood. Her later films include Dark Eyes (1987), with Marcello Mastroianni.[3]

In April 2016, she was announced as the president of the jury for the Un Certain Regard section of the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.[4]

Theatre work

[edit]

In 2001, Keller appeared in an all-star Broadway adaptation of Abby Mann's play Judgment at Nuremberg, directed by John Tillinger, as Mrs. Bertholt, in the role played by Marlene Dietrich in the 1961 Stanley Kramer film version.[5][6] She was nominated for a Tony Award as Best Featured Actress for this performance.

Opera work

[edit]

In addition to her work in film and theatre, Keller has developed a career in classical music as a speaker and opera director. She has performed the speaking role of Joan of Arc in Arthur Honegger's oratorio Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher on several occasions, with conductors such as Seiji Ozawa[7][8] and Kurt Masur.[9] She has recorded the role for Deutsche Grammophon with Ozawa (DG 429 412-2). Keller has also recited the spoken part in Igor Stravinsky's Perséphone.[10][11] She has performed classical music melodramas for speaker and piano in recital.[12] The Swiss composer Michael Jarrell wrote the melodrama Cassandre, after Christa Wolf's novel, for Keller, who performed in the world premiere in 1994.

Keller's first production as an opera director was Dialogues des Carmélites for Opéra national du Rhin in 1999. This production subsequently received a semi-staged performance in London that year.[13] She has also directed Lucia di Lammermoor for Washington National Opera and for Los Angeles Opera.[14] Her directorial debut at the Metropolitan Opera was in a 2004 production of Don Giovanni.[15][16][17]

Personal life

[edit]

Keller has one son, Alexandre (born 1972),[18] from her relationship with director Philippe de Broca.[19] She also dated director Claude Lelouch and actor Al Pacino.[20]

Theatre

[edit]

Year Title Author Director Notes 1970 A Day in the Death of Joe Egg Peter Nichols Michel Fagadau Théâtre de la Gaîté-Montparnasse 1979 Three Sisters Anton Chekhov Lucian Pintilie Théâtre de la Ville 1982 Emballage perdu Vera Feyder Nelly Borgeaud Théâtre des Mathurins 1983 Exiles James Joyce Andreas Voutsinas Théâtre Renaud-Barrault 1983-86 Jedermann Hugo von Hofmannsthal Ernst Haeussermann & Gernot Friedel Salzburg Festival 1984 Betrayal Harold Pinter Sami Frey Théâtre des Célestins 1986 Don Carlos Friedrich Schiller Michelle Marquais Théâtre de la Ville 1988 Hamlet William Shakespeare Patrice Chéreau Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers 1997 Kinkali Arnaud Bedouet Philippe Adrien Théâtre national de la Colline 2001 Judgment at Nuremberg Abby Mann John Tillinger Broadway theatre 2008 The Stronger August Strindberg Wadsworth Arclight Theatre 2011 Jan Karski (mon nom est une fiction) Yannick Haenel Arthur Nauzyciel [fr; ru] Festival d'Avignon

Films

[edit]

Year Title Role Director Notes 1964 The Trojan War Will Not Take Place The Peace Franz Josef Wild [de] TV film His and Hers Jean Franz Josef Wild (2) TV film 1965 Antiquitäten Young Lady Marran Gosov [de] Short Und nicht mehr Jessica Jessica Lovell Falk Harnack TV film Mariana Pineda Wilm ten Haaf [de] TV film 1966 Funeral in Berlin Brigit Guy Hamilton Kein Freibrief für Mord Christine Foster Karlheinz Bieber [de] TV film Corinne und der Seebär Corinne Thomas Engel TV film 1967 Wilder Reiter GmbH [de] The nun Franz-Josef Spieker Nominated – German Film Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role Pfeiffer Marthe Marran Gosov (2) Short 1969 The Devil by the Tail Amélie Philippe de Broca 1970 Les caprices de Marie Marie Panneton Philippe de Broca (2) 1972 The Old Maid Vicka Jean-Pierre Blanc Un cave [fr] Catherine Gilles Grangier P'pa je serai serrurier The woman Ulysse Laugier Short 1973 Elle court, elle court la banlieue Marlène Réval Gérard Pirès La raison du plus fou The hitchhiker François Reichenbach La chute d'un corps Marthe Renon Michel Polac 1974 And Now My Love Sarah & Rachel Stern Claude Lelouch Only the Wind Knows the Answer Angela Delpierre Alfred Vohrer 1975 Down the Ancient Staircase Bianca Mauro Bolognini L'aigle à deux têtes The Queen Pierre Cavassilas TV film 1976 Marathon Man Elsa Opel John Schlesinger Bambi Award for Best Actress – National

Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Le guêpier Melba Roger Pigaut 1977 Black Sunday Dahlia Iyad John Frankenheimer Bobby Deerfield Lillian Sydney Pollack 1978 Fedora Fedora / Antonia Billy Wilder 1980 The Formula Lisa Spangler John G. Avildsen 1981 The Amateur Elisabeth Charles Jarrott Nominated – Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actress 1983 Der Platzanweiser Peter Gehrig Jedermann Buhlschaft C. Rainer Ecke TV film 1984 Femmes de personne Cecile Christopher Frank 1985 Red Kiss Bronka Véra Belmont Joan Lui Judy Johnson Adriano Celentano 1986 Die Frau des Reporters Esther Heide Pils TV film 1987 Dark Eyes Tina Nikita Mikhalkov Nominated – David di Donatello for Best Supporting Actress The Hospice Dominique Othenin-Girard TV film 1988 La ruelle au clair de lune Nelly Édouard Molinaro TV film Una vittoria Luigi Perelli TV film 1989 Seven Minutes [de] Mrs. Wagner Klaus Maria Brandauer 1991 Lapse of Memory Linda Farmer Patrick Dewolf Young Catherine Princess Johanna Michael Anderson TV film 1992 Im Kreis der Iris Marikka Peter Patzak TV film Turbulences Hélène Élisabeth Rappeneau TV film À deux pas du paradis Eva Grundberg Michel Vianey TV film 1993 Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher Joan of Arc Akio Jissoji TV film Liberate mio figlio Elena Roberto Malenotti TV film 1994 My Friend Max Catherine Mercier Michel Brault 1995 Sostiene Pereira Mrs. Delgado Roberto Faenza Tödliches Geld Beatrice Belmont Detlef Rönfeldt TV film 1997 Women Barbara Luís Galvão Teles K Nora Winter Alexandre Arcady Nuits blanches Julia Sophie Deflandre 1998 The School of Flesh Madame Thorpe Benoît Jacquot 1999 Le derrière Christina Valérie Lemercier 2001 Tout va bien c'est Noël ! Jacqueline Bréaud Laurent Dussaux TV film 2002 Time of the Wolf Rebecca McGregor Rod Pridy 2003 Par amour Nicole Doucet Alain Tasma TV film

Biarritz International Festival of Audiovisual – Best Actress

Luchon International Film Festival – Best Actress 2004 Nightsongs [de] Mother Romuald Karmakar La nourrice Madame Dumayet-Ponti Renaud Bertrand TV film 2005 Fragile Emma Laurent Nègre Swiss Film Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role 2007 Chrysalis Professor Brügen Julien Leclercq UV The mother Gilles Paquet-Brenner Dans l'ombre du maître Maria David Delrieux TV film Le lien Eva Denis Malleval TV film 2008 Cortex Carole Rothmann Nicolas Boukhrief Bouquet final Nickye Michel Delgado 2009 Sous un autre jour Iréne Alain Tasma (2) TV film 2010 Hereafter Dr. Rousseau Clint Eastwood 2011 The Giants Rosa Bouli Lanners My Best Enemy Hannah Kaufmann Wolfgang Murnberger Page Eight Leona Chew David Hare TV film

Nominated – Online Film & Television Association Award for Best Ensemble in a Motion Picture or Miniseries La résidence Léa Laurent Jaoui TV film 2012 In a Rush Mina Louis-Do de Lencquesaing 2013 The Mark of the Angels – Miserere Laura Bernheim Sylvain White 2014 Homo Faber (Trois Femmes) Hanna Richard Dindo La vie à l'envers Nina Anne Giafferi TV film 2015 Amnesia Martha Sagell Barbet Schroeder 2016 After Love Christine Joachim Lafosse 2017 The Witness Judge D'Amici Mitko Panov Sources Vives Irène Meyer Bruno Bontzolakis TV film The Escape Anna Dominic Savage 2018 Dévoilées Isabelle Jacob Berger TV film 2019 The Staggering Girl Sofia Luca Guadagnino Short film 2023 Mars Express Beryl (voice) Jérémie Périn

TV series

[edit]

Year Title Role Director Notes 1971 Arsène Lupin Countess Natasha Jean-Pierre Decourt 3 episodes 1972 La demoiselle d'Avignon Koba Lye-Lye Michel Wyn 6 episodes 1982 La certosa di Parma Gina Sanseverina Mauro Bolognini (2) TV miniseries 1983 Wagner Mathilde Wesendonck Tony Palmer TV miniseries 1988 Sueurs froides Diane Régis Wargnier 1 episode 1989 The Nightmare Years Tess Shirer Anthony Page TV miniseries 1995 Belle Époque Antoinette Gavin Millar TV miniseries 2007 La prophétie d'Avignon Dona Flores David Delrieux (2) TV miniseries 2008 Le sanglot des anges Eléonore Jacques Otmezguine TV miniseries 2018 The Romanoffs Anushka Matthew Weiner Episode: "The Violet Hour" 2019 Marie Antoinette Pete Travis TV series

References

[edit]