Ekrem Dümer

Ekrem Dümer — Biography

Ekrem Dümer, born on 15 October 1928 in Istanbul, was one of Yeşilçam's best-known character actors. He was typically cast as authority figures — a police chief, doctor, judge, lawyer or caring family patriarch — lending gravity to the films he appeared in; among these roles were the police chief in Sosyete Şaban and the doctor in Tarzan Rıfkı, and he also appeared in cult series such as Hababam Sınıfı Dokuz Doğuruyor.

After gaining amateur stage experience at the people's houses (halkevleri) between 1937 and 1947, he made his professional debut in 1947 with the Sadi Tek Theatre, then performed with the Tevhid Bilge and Aziz Basmacı troupes and for years with the Istanbul City Theatres before moving into film from 1954 onward. He shared sets with stars such as Kemal Sunal, Tarık Akan and Filiz Akın across hundreds of films, with Fadime, Kanlı Para, Acı Hayat, Kin, Şafakta Buluşalım, İnsanları Seveceksin, Canikom and Kanun Gücü among the highlights of his career. In the 1990s he became known to younger audiences as well through his role as Nihat in the television series Süper Baba.

His son, Yalçın Dümer, also became an actor and one of Yeşilçam's well-known leading men. Ekrem Dümer died in Istanbul on 9 March 2000 from an illness for which he was being treated at Cerrahpaşa Medical Faculty Hospital.