Ursula Karusseit
Ursula Karusseit (2 August 1939 – 1 February 2019) was a German actress.
Ursula Karusseit

Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-G0926-0022-001 / CC-BY-SA 3.0 · This image was provided to Wikimedia Commons by the German Federal Archive (Deutsches Bundesarchiv) as part of a cooperation project. The German Federal Archive guarantees an authentic representation · CC BY-SA 3.0 de
- Name
- Ursula Karusseit
- Born
- 2 August 1939
- Died
- 1 February 2019
- Birthplace
- Elbing, East Prussia, Free State of Prussia, Nazi Germany (present-day Elbląg, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland)
- Place of death
- Berlin, Germany
- Occupation
- Actress
- Spouse
- Benno Besson
- Nationality
- Germany
- Education
- Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts
- Honours
- National Prize of East Germany
- Languages
- German
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Ursula Karusseit (2 August 1939 – 1 February 2019) was a German actress.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
No house-authored Note is published until its assertions and sources pass the VALÉORINE evidence contract. The documentary article remains available in full while that enrichment is being consolidated.
Documentary enrichment in progress · no unsupported statement published
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Ursula Karusseit. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Evidence Panel
not yet certified
- Identity
- resolved
- Independent source families
- 0
- Admitted assertions
- 0
- Open conflicts
- 0
Authority files
wikidata · Q95473 · wikipedia · Ursula Karusseit
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Ursula Karusseit • Born — 2 August 1939 • Died — 1 February 2019 • Birthplace — Elbing, East Prussia, Free State of Prussia, Nazi Germany (present-day Elbląg, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland) • Place of death — Berlin, Germany • Occupation — Actress • Spouse — Benno Besson • Children — Pierre Besson (actor)
Life and career
Life and career
Karusseit was born in Elbing, Germany (now Elbląg, Poland). After the expulsion from her hometown, she grew up Parchim and Gera. She studied at the State drama school in East Berlin until 1962 and gave her TV debut in "Was ihr wollt" (an adaption of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night) in 1963. Karrusseit appeared for a long time at the Volksbühne and became one of the most prominent stage actresses in East Germany. From 1986 on she worked for appeared for three years as the eponymous character in Bertolt Brecht's play Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder (Mother Courage and Her Children) in Cologne. In addition to her stage career, Karusseit also appeared in over 50 films and numerous television productions. Her role as Gertrud Habersaat in the TV-mini series Ways across the Country in 1968 also made her a well-known name in West Germany. In 1971 she portrayed German resistance fighter Hilde Coppi in Horst E. Brandt's KLK Calling PTZ – The Red Orchestra. After the German reunification, Karusseit appeared for twenty years until her death in the German hospital series In aller Freundschaft, playing the operator of the hospital's cafeteria. Karusseit married Benno Besson in 1969 and held Swiss citizenship through her marriage. She died of heart problems in Berlin, aged 79, on 1 February 2019.
Filmography
Filmography
Film • Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1971 — KLK Calling PTZ - The Red Orchestra — Hilde Coppi • 1974 — Der nackte Mann auf dem Sportplatz — Gisi Kemmel • 1980 — Levins Mühle (film) — Frau Rosinke • 1981 — Die Stunde der Töchter — Ruth • 1983 — Olle Henry — Rothaarige Dame Lola • 1983 — Der entführte Prinz — Riesin • 1984 — Film-Salabim • 1984 — Die vertauschte Königin — Königin und Schmiedin • 1985 — Die Gänse von Bützow — Witwe Hornborstel • 1993 — Wer zweimal lügt — Mrs. Mertens • 1993 — Die Wildnis • 1999 — Nightshapes — Frau Gerhardt • 1999 — Waschen, schneiden, legen — Mutter Schatz • 2006 — Atomised — Großmutter • 2008 — Where the Grass is Greener — Eva's Mother • 2013 — King Ordinary — Karin Müller TV • Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1968 — Ways across the Country — Gertrud Habersaat — 5 episodes • 1998-2019 — In aller Freundschaft — Charlotte Gauß — 728 episodes, (final appearance)
Identity
Identity
Ursula Karusseit is recorded as having received National Prize of East Germany.

For documentary purposes the German Federal Archive often retained the original image captions, which may be erroneous, biased, obsolete or politically extreme. Zentralbild-Spremberg frie 3.10.68 Hohe staatliche Auszeichnungen verliehen
Hans-Joachim Spremberg · Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-G1003-0040-001 / Spremberg, Joachim / CC-BY-SA 3.0 · This image was provided to Wikimedia Commons by the German Federal Archive (Deutsches Bundesarchiv) as part of a cooperation project. The German Federal Archive guarantees an authentic representation

For documentary purposes the German Federal Archive often retained the original image captions, which may be erroneous, biased, obsolete or politically extreme. ADN-ZB-Kutscher 5.5.74
Kutscher (verehe. Kubiziel), Sig · Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-N0505-0014 / Kutscher (verehe. Kubiziel), Sig / CC-BY-SA 3.0 · This image was provided to Wikimedia Commons by the German Federal Archive (Deutsches Bundesarchiv) as part of a cooperation project. The German Federal Archive guarantees an authentic representation
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
2019
Ursula Karusseit died in 2019 at Berlin.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Elbląg.
Birth place
Berlin.
Death place
Awards
• 1968: National Prize of the German Democratic Republic • 2009: Goldene Henne (German media prize) for her lifetime achievement
Literature
Scholarly footprint
A count of publications is evidence of attention, not of standing, and is given here only as a measure.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.imfernsehen GmbH & Co KG. Lebensläufe (1998) Folge 160: Ursula Karusseit – eine Vollblutschauspielerin. fernsehserien.de.
- 2.Dietmar Bartsch. Am letzten Montag vor der Wahl. die-linke.de. 2009-09-21.
- 3.Klaus Nerger. Das Grab von Ursula Karusseit. knerger.de.
- 4.Schauspielerin Ursula Karusseit gestorben. Deutschlandfunk Kultur. 2019-02-01.
- 5.Senzig: „Köfer liest Karusseit“ bei maz-online.de. Abgerufen am 2. November 2020.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Film memorabilia
37,408 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Ursula AndressPerson
- Úrsula CorberóPerson
- Ursula HaydenPerson
- Ursula HowellsPerson
- Ursula KarvenPerson
- Ursula KüblerPerson
- Ursula KuczynskiPerson
- Ursula MeierPerson
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Ursula Karusseit?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.