Fritz Wepper (17 August 1941 – 25 March 2024) was a German
film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Inspector Harry
Klein in the long-running crime series Derrick (1974–1998). Wepper is also
remembered for his roles in the films Cabaret (1972) and The Bridge (1959) and
as Mayor Wöller in the TV series Um Himmels Willen (2002–2021).
His character Harry Klein, the assistant in the long-running
crime series Derrick, became a cult figure all over the world. He played this
role between 1974 and 1998 in 281 episodes of Derrick. Before playing Klein in
Derrick he portrayed the same character on the popular television drama Der
Kommissar (1969–1976) from the series' start until 1974 when he was transferred
to Derrick. Harry Klein was replaced by his brother Erwin (played by Fritz
Wepper's real-life brother Elmar Wepper).
Fritz and Elmar Wepper appeared together in the television
series Zwei Brüder (1994–2000), playing a pair of different brothers hunting
criminals and solve difficult cases. From 2002 until the show's cancellation in
2021, Wepper played the sneaky and sly, but ultimately good-hearted Mayor
Wolfgang Wöller in the TV series Um Himmels Willen, which was for many years
one of the most-watched German television series (with some 7.2 million views
per episode).
Wepper died in Munich on 25 March 2024, at the age of 82.