Süleyman Turan

Süleyman Turan — Biography

Süleyman Turan, born Recep Süleyman Başturan, was born on 19 November 1936 in Istanbul's Kadıköy district; while attending Haydarpaşa High School he became friends with future actors Göksel Arsoy and İzzet Günay, and he later entered but did not finish a philology degree at Istanbul University. During his military service in the Korean War he was introduced to film reels by American soldiers; back home he worked as a magazine illustrator and cartoonist, publishing drawings in Akbaba magazine and comic strips in the newspapers Akşam and Sabah, even selling tickets at the Veliefendi racetrack to make ends meet. In 1963 a competition run by Ses magazine brought him into cinema, and he quickly became one of Yeşilçam's best-known supporting actors, beloved for playing the leading man's loyal friend; he won the Golden Boll's best supporting actor award in 1971 for Yarın Son Gündür and the Golden Orange's equivalent in 1972 for Güllü, later receiving an honorary Golden Orange award in 2003. He wrote three film screenplays and, in later years, played police chief Kemal in the series Yılan Hikayesi (1999-2001) and appeared in Kabadayı (2007) and Yahşi Batı (2009). He died of a heart attack at his home in Kadıköy on 10 September 2019; his body was found two days later. He had a daughter, Beliz Turan.