Velimir "Bata" Živojinović (Serbian Cyrillic: Велимир "Бата" Живојиновић; 5 June 1933 – 22 May 2016) was a Serbian actor and politician.

Živojinović was born in the village of Koraćica under the Kosmaj mountain, near Mladenovac. After graduating from acting schools in Niš and Novi Sad, he enrolled at the Drama Academy in Belgrade.

Živojinović preferred acting in theatre to acting on screen, and made his screen debut in 1955 film Pesma sa Kumbare was the beginning of a prolific film career. Bata Živojinović's played both heroes and villains and switched between leading and supporting roles. The zenith of his popularity came with WW2-themed action films in the 1970s. One of his best known films from that period was Valter brani Sarajevo (Walter Defends Sarajevo), which gained major success in China.

He was also known for his close friendship with the Croatian actor Boris Dvornik. In 1991 Živojinović and Dvornik renounced each other in a series of open letters, which was a gesture often seen as symbolic of the breakup of Yugoslavia. In 2004 it was reported that the two men tried to reconcile. In 2006, the two men publicly reconciled on TV via a video link between Split and Belgrade. The actor said that "In the last few years there hasn't been hatred between us", and Dvornik completed the sentence "only a misunderstanding".

In 1990 he was elected for the Serbian Parliament, as a member of the Socialist Party of Serbia. He was a candidate in the september-october 2002 presidential election, receiving 3.27% of the popular vote.

Živojinović had a heart attack in October 2006 and suffered from gangrene in his right foot for about three years afterwards. Doctors initially wanted to amputate the limb, but he traveled to Cuba, where his daughter lives, and within the 25 days that he spent being treated there, was cured of the gangrene by Doctor Montekin, who has also treated Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

On 4 July 2012 he suffered a severe stroke and was transported to a hospital specializing in cerebrovascular diseases called Sveti Sava in Belgrade. He was treated in the intensive care unit and was reported to be in critical condition. Reports also stated that after the stroke he was in a coma for two days. He remained in critical condition in the hospital for about three weeks. After treatment for the stroke, he was discharged from the hospital, but reported to not be able to walk without assistance and that it was difficult for him to speak.

On 6 May 2016, after being transferred from Sveti Sava hospital to "KBC Dedinje", he was subject of an emergency surgery which, in order to stop his gangrene, resulted in a leg amputation. He died on 22 May 2016 in Belgrade.

Awards and honours

Živojinović was awarded Golden Arena for Best Actor at the Pula Film Festival, the most prestigious film award in the SFR Yugoslavia, three times: in 1965, 1967 and 1972. He won the award for Best Actor at the 11th Moscow International Film Festival in 1979 for his role in Moment. In 1981 he was a member of the jury at the 12th Moscow International Film Festival.

He was the recipient of the October Award of the City of Belgrade in 1972, and the 7th July Award of Serbia in 1981. In August 1993, he was awarded Life Achievement Award "Slavica".

Selected filmography

• Train Without a Timetable (1959)
• Dubrowsky (1959)
• Atomic War Bride (1960)
• Signal Over the City (1960)
• Kozara (1962)
• Double Circle (1963)
• Thundering Mountains (1963)
• Three (1965)
• Flaming Frontier (1965)
• Looking Into the Eyes of the Sun (1966)
• The Dream (1966)
• I Even Met Happy Gypsies (Skupljači perja) (1967)
• The Birch Tree (1967)
• It Rains in My Village (1968)
• The Bridge (1969)
• Battle of Neretva (1969)
• Walter Defends Sarajevo (1972)
• The Master and Margaret (1972)
• Traces of a Black Haired Girl (1972)
• The Battle of Sutjeska (1973)
• The Dervish and Death (1974)
• Hell River (1974)
• Anno Domini 1573 (1975)
• Beach Guard in Winter (1976)
• The Dog Who Loved Trains (1977)
• Group Portrait with a Lady (1977)
• Moment (1978)
• The Tiger (1978)
• Special Treatment (1980)
• The Promising Boy (1981)
• High Voltage (1981)
• The Fall of Italy (1981)
• Balkan Express (1983)
• Great Transport (1983)
• Mala pljačka vlaka (1984)
• In the Jaws of Life (1984)
• Unseen Wonder (1984)
• Balkan Spy (1984)
• No problem (1984)
• The End of the War (1984)
• The Promised Land (1986)
• Days to Remember (1987)
• The Felons (1987)
• Oktoberfest (1987)
• Let's Fall in Love (1987/1990)
• A Better Life (1987/1991)
• Vuk Karadžić (TV series) (1987)
• Battle of Kosovo (1989)
• The Fall of Rock and Roll (1989)
• War and Remembrance (1989)
• The Original of the Forgery (1991)
• Holiday in Sarajevo (1991)
• Aliens are to Blame for Everything (1991)
• Dama koja ubija (1992)
• The End of Obrenović Dynasty (1995)
• Pretty Village, Pretty Flame (1996)
• Cabaret Balkan (1998)
• Barking at the Stars (1998)
• The Wounds (1998)
• The White Suit (1999)
• The Dagger (1999)
• Shadows of Memories (2000)
• War Live (2000)
• Frozen Stiff (2002)
• Ivkova Slava (2005)
• Made in YU (2005)
• The Sisters (2011)