Biography
Richard Marner (born Alexander Pavlovich Molchanoff) was a British actor. Born in Petrograd in 1921, he moved to Britain as a child with his family and was educated at Monmouth School in Wales. After serving in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, he was invalided out, adopted the stage name Richard Marner and began his acting career, with an early stage success as Dracula.
He appeared in numerous films, frequently cast in military roles, including as Second Officer of Shona in The African Queen (1952) and in Ice Cold in Alex (1958), The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965) and The Dirty Dozen (1967). On television he played Marais in Secret Army (1977) and was best known for portraying Colonel Kurt von Strohm in the sitcom 'Allo 'Allo! (1984–1992), appearing in all nine series.
Marner died in Perth, Scotland, in 2004.
