Joop Doderer

Johan Heinrich (Joop) Doderer (28 August 1921 – 22 September 2005)[1] was a Dutch actor, well known for his role as the tramp Swiebertje in the eponymous television series. The series ran for 17 seasons between 1955 and 1975, and was broadcast by the NCRV. Beside the role as Swiebertje, Doderer played in dozens of radio and television programs, he played the role of Alfred Doolittle in My Fair Lady, acted in Dutch and English movies, and appeared on stage in comedies, musicals, cabaret and dramas.

Joop Doderer
Joop Doderer in No no Nanette
Born	Johan Heinrich Doderer 28 August 1921 Velsen, Netherlands
Died	22 September 2005 (aged 84) Roelofarendsveen, Netherlands
Resting place	Zorgvlied cemetery
Nationality	Dutch
Occupation	Actor
Known for	Swiebertje

Bust of Joop Doderer as Swiebertje in Oudewater, Netherlands.

Biography

Doderer was born in Velsen,[1] but brought up in Amsterdam. After finishing the Hogereburgerschool, he persuaded his parents to let him take acting lessons. In 1939, aged 18, the Amsterdam acting school rejected him for 'lack of talent'. Instead, he started his acting career as an extra at the Nederlandsch Toneel, which enabled him to study actors like Cor van der Lugt Melsert.

After World War II, he played in many comedies and musicals. For seven years, he was part of the ensemble of Wim Sonneveld, where he met his first wife Conny Stuart. He also acted in some movies (Het Wonderlijke leven van Willem Parel, 1959) and featured on the radio (De bonte dinsdagavondtrein and Koek en ei). From the 1950s onwards, Doderer was a star. He often ad-libbed on stage, to the amusement of the audience, but not of his co-players. At age 52 he married the 21-year-old Ester. Together they had two children.[1]

Between 1955 and 1975 he played Swiebertje on television. In 2001, the series was given the one-time only Signaal award for the best television show in the past 50 years by the Dutch television viewers. Doderer was quite proud of his fame as Swiebertje, although it took him many years after the end of the series to look back positively (see below). In 2003, a bust of Swiebertje was placed in the town of Oudewater, where many of the outdoor scenes of the series were shot.[2]

Doderer was a Ridder in de Orde van Oranje-Nassau (Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau).

Doderer died in a nursing home in Roelofarendsveen and is buried at Zorgvlied cemetery.

Swiebertje-effect

Being identified with Swiebertje hampered Doderer when playing serious roles after 1975, to the point where on one occasion the audience started singing the tune of Swiebertje when Doderer got on stage. In the Netherlands, this effect of typecasting became known as the Swiebertje-effect. Doderer even moved to England and for four years he performed in high-quality television dramas.[2] In 1979, he played a South African agent in The Human Factor, by Otto Preminger, together with Richard Attenborough, Derek Jacobi and John Gielgud.

In the 1990s Doderer finally succeeded in shedding his comedian image, and he played serious roles in Dutch theaters under the direction of Ivo van Hove and Ger Thijs.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1955	Het Wonderlijke leven van Willem Parel	De Groninger
1973	Op de Hollandse toer	Jan de Buschauffeur
1979	Uit elkaar	Businessman
1979	The Human Factor	Cornelius Muller
1980	Let the Doctor Shove	Pastoor
1984	Moord in Extase	De Cock
1985	De prooi	Wim Gerritsen
1989	Wilde Harten	Ormas
1995	Hoogste tijd	Pierre de Vries
1999	Little Crumb	Koster
2001	De Vriendschap	Prof. Rijckevorsel
2002	Pietje Bell	Oude Man #1
2013	A Perfect Man	Hendrik	(final film role)

References

1. "Joop Doderer overleden". Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved 2014-01-06.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). nos.nl. 22 September 2005
2. Ockhuysen, Ronald (23 September 2005). "Swiebertje was een man van iedereen". de Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 19 October 2013.

External links

• Joop Doderer at IMDb
• (in Dutch) Doderer was ook groot in drama.