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Ljubiša Samardžić

Ljubiša Samardžić (Serbian Cyrillic: Љубиша Самарџић; 19 November 1936 – 8 September 2017), nicknamed Smoki, was a Serbian actor and director, best known as Šurda in the Vruć vetar TV series, and Inspector Boško Simić in the comedy crime series Policajac sa Petlovog brda (The Policeman from Petlovo Brdo) and film of the same name.

Early life

Samardžić was born in Skopje, the son of an impoverished coal miner born in Krivošije (in Montenegro) and a mother from Kosovo. His parents met in Priština. He grew up in the village of Jelašnica near Niška Banja, where his father Dragoljub (died 1948) also worked in the local mine. He finished gymnasium in Niš.

His acting talent was discovered very early and he won a scholarship with director Bojan Stupica. Samardžić was educated at the Belgrade Academy of Arts. After graduation, he obtained a role in Igre na skelama (1961).

Career

In the 1960s, he established himself as one of the most recognisable and popular stars of former Yugoslav cinema.

He was married to Mirjana Samardžić since 1966. Nicknamed Smoki, he was credited as Ljubisa Samardjic, Luba Samardy, Ljubisa Samardzic-Smoki, and Smoki Samardì.

In the 1990s, he and his son, Dragan, founded a film production company. Despite the break-up of Yugoslavia and UN sanctions against Yugoslavia, the company made many popular and commercial successful films. He starred in over 180 films.

Awards

Samardžić received six Golden Arenas at the Pula Film Festival, and numerous awards at Italian film festivals. As a director, his movies were awarded with the Grand Prix at Montpellier, the Public Award at Palm Springs, and Opera Prima at the Milan Film Festival. In August 1995, he received Life Achievement Award "Pavle Vujisić" for his roles in Yugoslav cinematography.