Frederick Rolf

Frederick Rolf (born Rolf Günther Friedrichs; August 14, 1926) is an American actor and director whose career spans British and American film, theater, television and opera.

Biography Born to Dr. Theodor Friedrichs and his wife Ilse, Rolf escaped Nazi Germany on a Kindertransport in May 1939 and fled to England where he attended the City of Bath Boys' School. He worked in the BBC’s European Service during the war. He became an actor in 1946 and changed his name from Rolf Günther Friedrichs to Frederick Rolf. He made his debut with the West Riding Theatre in Halifax, West Yorkshire as Capt. Frederic de Foenix in Trelawny of the Wells. After two years serving his apprenticeship in various regional theatres, he emigrated to the U.S., where he became a naturalized citizen in 1953. Rolf has been a regular on many TV shows from Law & Order to All My Children. He has directed many plays Off-Broadway – including Hogan's Goat, starring Ralph Waite and Faye Dunaway as well as Steve Tesich's Lake of the Woods with Hal Holbrook and Armand Assante. He has also directed Aida, Fidelio. Die Walküre, On The Town, The Great Waltz and numerous plays in regional theatres. He has been a guest director for the Juilliard Drama Department in New York, for the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and the Stella Adler Conservatory of Acting. For nine years he served on the board of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers. He is listed in Who’s Who in the American Theatre.

Translations He has translated numerous plays including Henrik Ibsen’s Little Eyolf, Max Frisch’s Don Juan or the Love of Geometry, Friedrich Schiller’s Love and Intrigue (published by Barron’s) and Gützkow’s Uriel Acosta. His translation of Berlin – Shanghai – New York. My Family’s Flight from Hitler by Dr. Theodor Friedrichs, was published by Cold Tree Press.

Filmography Year Title Role Notes1973 Blade Medical Examiner 1976 Damien's Island 1979 The Seduction of Joe Tynan Harvard Professor 1980 The First Deadly Sin Judge James Braggs 1983 Daniel Paine Lodge Speaker 1985 Witness Stoltzfus 1987 Street Smart Joel Davis 1988 The House on Carroll Street FBI Director 1990 Q&A District Attorney 1996 Everyone Says I Love You Le Cirque Waiter 1996 The Associate Carl Bode 1997 Deconstructing Harry Harvey's Doctor 1998 Celebrity Book Reviewer