Robert Riettii

Second World War His successful career on the stage and in motion pictures was interrupted by the outbreak of the Second World War. Rietti and his brother, being Italian, were interned at Ascot internment camp. He later joined the Rifle Brigade, but accepted the army's request for him to head "Stars in Battledress", a group of young actors, which included the young Peter Ustinov and Terry-Thomas, who toured England, and were flown throughout liberated Europe, to entertain Allied troops. In 1945, he was invited by John Gielgud to join his production of Hamlet for troops in the Far East. After the war, he returned to work in the theatre, films, radio, and the latest medium, early television.

Career

Radio In radio, he teamed up with Orson Welles in the radio series The Third Man (1951), and then again on the popular series The Black Museum (1952), which was broadcast to the US Armed Forces. This was to be the beginning of many collaborations between Rietti and Orson Welles, who remained close friends. He was also a regular on the radio series Horatio Hornblower (1952) with Michael Redgrave, The Scarlet Pimpernel (1952), Theatre Royal (1954) with Sir Laurence Olivier, and the classic Sherlock Holmes (1954) with John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson.

Television His frequent work in television and many guest appearances made him a familiar face in the 1950s and 1960s. He is credited with 164 television appearances. He guest starred together with his father in The Jack Benny Program (1957) and in Harry's Girls (1960), which were both directed by his friend Ralph Levy, director of The Burns and Allen Show. They also performed together in three versions of his father's television success To Live in Peace and his father's television play Against the Stream (1959). In 1958, George Sanders presented Candle for the Madonna, an original television play Robert had written, in which Robert also played the lead.

Films Among the earliest of his film appearances were with Leslie Howard in The Scarlet Pimpernel and with Douglas Fairbanks in The Private Life of Don Juan (both 1934). Of his 83 film appearances throughout his career, he is best remembered for contribution to the original James Bond pictures: besides Sean Connery, he was the only actor who appeared in both Thunderball (1965) and the re-make Never Say Never Again (1983). Other popular films he appeared in include The Italian Job (1969), Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971), The Omen (1976), as well as a cameo in Hannibal (2001). He played Robert Grant in Hell Is Empty (1967) for his brother, the producer Ronald Rietti.

Dubbing With the growing popularity of epic international films in the 1950s, Rietti gained a reputation for his work in dubbing. He began his involvement in Paris, during an actor's strike in Britain, and would eventually be hired for both performing and directing jobs. He was also responsible for bringing in the French rythmo-band system into the United Kingdom.

Later life and death In 2012, he received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Florida for his lifetime achievements and contribution to the Arts. The year also marked an 80-year milestone for the then 89-year-old actor. Rietti remained active in his last years. He lectured to film students at film academies and universities, published an anthology of Italian Plays and was an active member of BAFTA.

Rietti died on 3 April 2015 in London, England, aged 92.

He is the father of Rabbi Jonathan Rietti, an educator and prominent speaker on Orthodox Judaism, most prominently for the international organisation Gateways.

Selected filmography

I Spy (1934) Girls Will Be Boys (1934) The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934) The Private Life of Don Juan (1934) In Town Tonight (1935) Emil and the Detectives (1935) Children of the Fog (1935) Runaway Ladies (1938) Call of the Blood (1949) Prelude to Fame (1950) The Black Rider (1954) They Who Dare (1954) Stock Car (1955) Mr. Arkadin (1955) Checkpoint (1956) The Truth About Women (1957) Tank Force (1958) Bluebeard's Ten Honeymoons (1960) Conspiracy of Hearts (1960) Sink the Bismarck (1960) The Story of Joseph and His Brethren (1961) Middle Course (1961) Time to Remember (1962) On the Beat (1962) The Scarlet Blade (1963) The Bible: In the Beginning... (1966) as Abraham's Steward The Italian Job (1969) as Turin Police Chief On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) as Casino Baccarat Official Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971) The Hiding Place (1975) as Willem ten Boom The Omen (1976) as Monk No Longer Alone (1976) as Joan's father Never Say Never Again (1983) as Italian Minister #1 Madame Sousatzka (1988) as Leo Milev The March (1990) as Leo Borelli 30 Door Key (1991) Sherlock Holmes and the Leading Lady (1991, TV Movie) as Franz Hoffman The Sea Change (1998) as Luigi Hilary and Jackie (1998) as Italian Flunky Hannibal (2001) as Sogliato

Voice-over filmography As performer Police Superintendent Duff (William Foster-Davis) The Devil and the Ten CommandmentsMonsignor Trousselier (Lucien Baroux) The Secret of My SuccessPresident Esteda (Lionel Jeffries) 1968BarbarellaProfessor Ping (Marcel Marceau)

As director