Werner Friedrich Dissel (August 26, 1912 – January 22, 2003) was a distinguished German actor, director, and a courageous resistance fighter against the Nazi regime.
Dissel's career began in the late 1920s as a newspaper photographer. However, following the ascent of the Nazis, he became actively involved in anti-fascist activities. As a member of a group led by Harro Schulze-Boysen, he contributed to the resistance newspaper "Wille zum Reich." His activism led to his arrest, and he was imprisoned from 1937 to 1939. Notably, during his imprisonment, the Gestapo attempted to gather incriminating evidence by arranging a meeting with Boysen, who cleverly used a cigarette pack to communicate that there was no solid evidence against Dissel. After his release, at Boysen's urging, he enlisted in the Wehrmacht to undermine the Nazi forces from within, serving in a military meteorology unit just before the invasion of Poland. He narrowly escaped arrest during a Gestapo crackdown on the Red Orchestra in 1942.
Post-war, Dissel joined the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and fulfilled his aspiration of becoming an actor. He performed in a cabaret in Wiesbaden and migrated to East Germany in 1950, where he featured in numerous plays, films, and television shows, collaborating with prominent institutions like the Berliner Ensemble, DEFA, and DFF. After German reunification, he continued to act, leaving behind a legacy of over a hundred film and television appearances. In recognition of his contributions to the arts, he received the Art Prize of the German Democratic Republic in October 1986.
