Gülsen Tuncer, Aşk-ı Memnu’s Arsen, Dies at 81 After Five-Decade Career
Gülsen Tuncer death at the age of 81 has brought an end to a career spanning more than five decades across Turkish theater, cinema, television, radio and education.
Tuncer was widely known to international and Arab audiences for playing Arsen Ziyagil in the hit Turkish television drama Aşk-ı Memnu, or Forbidden Love.
Film-San Foundation announced her death after her health had deteriorated in recent days. Anadolu Agency reported that the veteran actress had been receiving treatment for brain cancer.
Gülsen Tuncer Death: Funeral Set for September 20
Tuncer’s funeral is scheduled for Sunday, September 20, in Istanbul.
Funeral prayers will be held at Şişli Mosque following the noon prayer, after which she will be buried at Kozlu Cemetery in Topkapı, according to Anadolu Agency and Turkish media reports.
Tuncer served as vice president of the Film-San Foundation between 2009 and 2011.
Remembered as Arsen in Aşk-ı Memnu
Although Tuncer’s professional career extended far beyond television, millions of viewers came to know her through Aşk-ı Memnu and her portrayal of Arsen Ziyagil.
The character was the sister of Adnan Ziyagil and aunt to Nihal and Bülent, placing Tuncer at the center of several of the drama’s family storylines.
A Career Beginning in 1968
Born in Adana in 1945, Tuncer studied theater at the Istanbul Municipal Conservatory and trained with leading Turkish theater figures including Yıldız Kenter and Ayla Algan.
She began her professional stage career in 1968 and later worked extensively in film and television.
Anadolu Agency reported that Tuncer appeared as an actress in around 80 films and television productions, including Üç İstanbul, Çalıkuşu, Bugünün Saraylısı, Aşk-ı Memnu and Fazilet Hanım ve Kızları.
Beyond Acting
Tuncer’s career also included theater management, production, artistic direction, radio work and education.
She worked with TRT Istanbul Radio on poetry, radio drama and cultural programming and later taught acting and stage aesthetics.
She received several acting awards during her career as well as lifetime and achievement honors recognizing her contribution to Turkish cinema.
Report Sources: Anadolu Agency, Habertürk.
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