Boes Boestami

Boes Boestami
Boestami in 1954
Born	(1922-12-30)30 December 1922 Batavia, Dutch East Indies
Died	11 September 1970(1970-09-11) (aged 47) Jakarta, Indonesia
Occupation	Journalist, actor
Years active	1950–1970

Boes Boestami (Perfected Spelling: Bus Bustami; 30 December 1922 – 11 September 1970) was an Indonesian journalist and film actor. He was mostly known for his comedic roles.

Biography

Boestami was born in Batavia, Dutch East Indies, on 30 December 1922. As a child he went to a Europeesche Lagere School (European school), later studying at a trade school.^[1]

Boestami eventually began a career as a journalist, often covering film and entertainment news under the pen name "Bintang Ketjil" ("Little Star"). He was soon involved in the film industry as an actor, making his debut with a supporting role in Pelarian Pagar Besi. He soon appeared in films by various production houses, including Borobudur Film, Bintang Surabaja, Asiatic Film Company, and Golden Arrow.^[1] At this last company, he secured a janitorial job for Wim Umboh, who later went on to become a multi-Citra Award winning director.^[2] Umboh eventually directed Boestami in Laki-Laki Tak Bernama (1969), the actor's last film.^[3]

Boestami did two films for Persari, a company owned by Djamaluddin Malik: Supir Istimewa and Leilani.^[1] In the latter film, he portrayed an obese man who fell in love with a young villager who said she would only marry him if he lost weight. The magazine Film Varia considered his role a highlight of the film.^[4] Boestami continued to act until the end of the 1960s.^[5]

While acting, Boestami continued to work as a journalist, at one point serving as the deputy chair of the film branch of the Indonesian Journalists Union. He served as editor of Aneka and Purnama, and wrote for Bintang Timur, Pemuda, Bintang Minggu, and Film Indonesia.^[1] While working with Bintang Timur, Boestami was part of the Indonesian delegation to the 1959 Asian Film Festival in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Aside from covering the trip—Usmar Ismail, the head of the delegation, wrote that the newspaper was one of the staunchest opponents of Indonesia's participation in the festival^[6]—Boestami performed the Tempurung dance.^[7]

Boestami died in Jakarta on 11 September 1970.^[1] At the funeral, the film producer Misbach Yusa Biran, remembering Boestami's large collection of film stills from the colonial period, was inspired to begin documenting the history of Indonesian cinema. He tried to purchase Boestami's collection, and though it had already been sold, Biran's efforts led to the establishment of Sinematek Indonesia in 1975.^[8]

Filmography

During his twenty-year career, Boestami appeared in almost forty films.^[5] He was best known as a comedic actor.^[1]

References

Works cited

External links

• Boes Boestami at the Internet Movie Database