Ilona Kassai (born Ilona Hiller; 8 July 1928) is a Hungarian actress of stage, film, television, and voice actress recognized for her long career and prominent work in Hungarian dubbing. [1]
Ilona Kassai | |
|---|---|
 Kassai in 2005 | |
| Born | Ilona Hiller July 8, 1928 Szeged, Hungary |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1949–present |
| Children | Ganxsta Zolee |
| Awards | Kossuth Prize |
Hiller was born on 8 July 1928 in Szeged, Hungary. She studied at Lehotay Árpád’s private acting school in Szeged, trained under instructors including Abonyi Tivadar and János Rajz. In 1949, at age 19, she was admitted to the Academy of Drama (Színművészeti Főiskola) in Budapest, though she temporarily returned home before graduating. [2]
She began her career in 1949 with the Állami Bányász Színház (State Miners' Theatre), later becoming a founding member of the Állami Déryné Színház (1951). From 1976, she performed at the Budapesti Gyermekszínház (later Arany János Theatre) and was at Ruttkai Éva Színház for three years starting in 1985. Her noted roles includes: Melinda in Bánk bán , Desdemona in Othello , Antigone in Antigone and Lady Milford in Intrigue and Love .
Kassai has appeared in multiple Hungarian and international productions, including: Old Lady in the Window in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), and The Last Kingdom. [3]
She is also known as the Hungarian voice for Maggie Smith (Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter series) and Angela Lansbury, and dubbed characters in Columbo , Sherlock Holmes , and animated works such as The Aristocats , Anastasia and The Fox and the Hound . [4]
Ilona changed her surname to Kassai, from her first husband, opera singer János Kassai, [5] to avoid confusion with Adolf Hitler’s surname. [6] Her second husband was lyricist Kálmán Fülöp. [7] In 1965, she married her fourth husband, actor József Zana, from whom she divorced in 1984. Their child is musician Zoltán Zana [8] who became famous under the stage name Ganxsta Zolee. [9] Kassai was hospitalised with Covid-19 in 2023 but was recovered. [10]
She lives in a care home near Budapest, [11] and remains active in voice work, and received the Jászai Mari Prize in 1961 and the Kossuth Prize in 1963. [12]