Born in Budapest, Hungary, his true name is Paul Rudolf Schell von Bauschlott, the scion of a once wealthy German patrician family. His father, the Baron Paul Schell von Bauschlott, was a well-respected diplomat until the Nazis confiscated their estates during WWII, while his mother was Countess Katharina Maria Etelka Georgina Elisabeth Teleki de Szék. His family was living in poverty until 1948 when they sought asylum in Vienna and Salzburg as the communist regime began to take hold in Hungary. In 1950, his family emigrated to the States and Baron von Schell Bauschlott renounced his title in order for his family to gain citizenship. In 1957, his father joined Radio Free Europe, taking the family to Munich where she developed an interest for acting and trained at the prestigious Falconberg School. Paul Rudolf is often mistakenly thought of as a brother of actors Maximilian Schell, Maria Schell, Immy Schell and Carl Schell, but he is not.

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Paul von Schell

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