“A professional comedian” – Wisława Szymborska said about Kobiela. Andrzej Wajda praised him for his acting skills. “He was endowed with great acting technique and could play virtually anything. Because he also had enormous comic power, he was mechanically cast in comedy roles. (…) I think what he suffered most was the fact that the audience demanded less from him than he could give” – The director was quoted by “Film” magazine in 1969. However, the actor would almost choose a completely different career path.
He almost became an actor. After graduation, he worked with the greatest
Kobiela wanted to study economics, but he changed his mind at the last minute and ended up at the State Higher School of Acting in Krakow. He ended up spending a year with Kalina Jędrusik, Leszek Herdegen and Zbigniew Cybulski. He graduated with distinction. He played in theaters such as the Wybrzeże Theater in Gdańsk, was active in the Dudek cabaret and Wagabunda, then one could admire his creations at the Ateneum and the Komedia Theater. Soon he also joined the Television Theater.
He made his big screen debut in 1953. He then played the role of Grześ in “Three Stories” by Konrad Nałęcki. For years, he was employed in the cinema for episodic appearances; he received his first serious task from Andrzej Munk, when the director cast him as Lieutenant Dębski in the film “Eroika”. A year later, in 1958, he starred in Andrzej Wajda’s production of “Ashes and Diamonds”. The actor’s career gained momentum.
He was waiting for the role of a lifetime. The plans were thwarted by tragedy
In 1960, Kobiela played the role of a lifetime in “Bad Happiness”. He played the role of Piszczyk again under Munk’s supervision, and the film became a sensation. “The role of Piszczyk was written especially for Kobiela. Without him, the film would perhaps have been just a didactic satire on people without a face of their own. (…) The actor showed a man entangled in untruth and exposed this untruth. His hero wants to take on a form in which others would They accepted him. He wants to be like others, but bad luck, or perhaps an excess of good intentions, makes this zealot recognized and ridiculed? – recalled Tadeusz Sobolewski in the “Film” magazine from 1979, quoted by the culture.pl portal.
In the following years, Kobiela could not complain about the lack of work. He played the main roles in “Kryptonym Nectar”, “Man from M-3” and “Przekładaniec”. Although subsequent creators made offers to him, the actor dreamed of a role that would seal his career, about which he himself spoke with distance. “I play quite often in films, although I didn’t have many important roles or interesting characters. However, I still hope that I will find my role,” Onet quotes the actor.
Did Bogusław Kobiela predict tragic events? The words of the letter to his wife turned out to be prophetic
Unfortunately, Kobiela did not manage to fulfill his dreams, he died in an accident on July 2, 1969. The day before, he discussed details of his main role in “Macbeth” with Andrzej Wajda. In turn, Marek Piwowarski was supposed to cast him in the main role in “Rejs”. The plans did not come to fruition. The actor collided head-on with a bus while driving on one of the roads in Buszkowo. At the beginning, it seemed that both Kobiela, his wife, and the hitchhikers they picked up along the way escaped the accident unscathed.
Unfortunately, in the hospital in Bydgoszcz, Kobiela had a collapse. It turned out that his spleen had ruptured and he required surgery for internal bleeding. The procedure was successful, but the actor’s condition suddenly deteriorated. He died eight days after the accident at the age of only 38. It is said that Kobiela predicted the tragedies. A few years after the wedding, in one of the letters to his wife, the actor wrote: “I am really more and more afraid that something unforeseen, bad may happen because we are too good. And I think that nature always equalizes, unfortunately” – the portal quotes the actor’s words dzie.pl.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
