Belgrade, Serbia: Karl Malden Statue

Karl Malden had a problem as a young actor: his name. The original version was Mladen Djordje Sekulovic, and that didn't exactly fit on to a movie poster easily. Even so, Mladen was very proud of his Serbian heritage and didn't want to give up his name.

Alas, director Elia Kazan's argument carried the day. Sekulovic became Karl Malden, who went on to fame as one of Hollywood's top actors. Still, the Serbian influence never left Mladen. He used his original name in credits whenever he could. Karl organized a Serbian choir and a Serbian gymnastics club in the United States. 

Malden died in 2009 at the age of 97, having led a rich, full life in many ways. A monument went up in his honor in Belgrade about nine years later, right in front of the Film Archive. At that time, he was called one of Serbia's ambassadors to the world.