Theodore Bikel
Encyclopedia
Theodore Meir Bikel is a character actor
, folk singer and musician. He made his film debut in The African Queen (1951) and was nominated for an Academy award for his supporting role as Sheriff Max Muller in The Defiant Ones
(1958).
Bikel is President of the Associated Actors and Artistes of America
and was president of Actors' Equity
in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He serves as the Chair of the Board of Directors of Meretz USA, where he also lectures. His autobiography, Theo, was published in 1995.
. His family fled to Israel
following the Nazi occupation of Austria. In Israel, Bikel started acting while in his teens. He co-founded the Cameri Theatre there—which has gone on to become one of Israel
's biggest theaters—before moving to London
to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
in 1945. In 1948, Michael Redgrave
recommended Bikel to his friend Laurence Olivier
as understudy for the parts of both Stanley Kowalski
and Mitch in the West End
premiere of Tennessee Williams
' A Streetcar Named Desire
. Bikel graduated from understudy to star opposite the director's wife, Vivien Leigh
, who would go on to recreate her role as Blanche DuBois
in the film version opposite Marlon Brando
.
(1957) and played the captain of the Russian submarine in The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming
(1966). He also portrayed the sadistic General Jouvet in The Pride and the Passion
(1957) Bikel was screentested for the role of Auric Goldfinger
in the James Bond
film Goldfinger
(1964). The screentest can be seen on the "Ultimate Edition" DVD released in 2006. Bikel also appeared in Frank Zappa
's 1971 film 200 Motels
.
On Broadway
he originated the role of Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music
in 1959, for which he received his second Tony nomination.
Bikel did not like his role in "Sound of Music" because his ability to sing was limited in the play, and he did not like to perform the same role of the Captain repeatedly. In 1964, he played Zoltan Karpathy, the dialect expert, in the film version of My Fair Lady
. Since his first appearance as Tevye
in the musical Fiddler on the Roof
in 1967, Bikel has performed the role more often than any other actor (more than 2,000 times to date). When an injury required 74 year old fellow Israeli performer Chaim Topol
(veteran of many productions of the stage show and star of the motion picture of Fiddler on the Roof) to withdraw from a high-budget, much-promoted 2009 North American tour of the musical, Bikel substituted for him in several Canadian appearances, including Calgary in January 2010, and has scheduled appearances in the musical beyond his 86th birthday in May.
In the 1950s, Bikel produced and sang in several albums of Jewish folk songs, as well as Songs of a Russian Gypsy, in 1958. He was a co-founder of the Newport Folk Festival
(together with Pete Seeger
and George Wein
) in 1959. In 1962, he heard Bob Dylan
give his premiere performance of "Blowin' in the Wind
". Bikel then went to his scheduled performance and became the first singer besides Dylan to perform the song in public. Bikel (with business partner Herb Cohen
) opened the first folk music coffeehouse in Los Angeles, The Unicorn. Its popularity led to the two opening a second club, Cosmo Alley, which in addition to folk music presented poets such as Maya Angelou
and comics including Lenny Bruce
. Bikel became increasingly involved with civil rights issues and progressive
causes, and was a delegate
to the 1968 Democratic Convention.
In addition to scores of appearances on film and on the stage, Bikel was a guest star on many popular television shows. He appeared in an episode of the 1954 NBC
legal drama
Justice
based on cases from the Legal Aid Society of New York. He also appeared in the episode entitled "The Faithful Pilgrimage" of CBS's Appointment with Adventure
anthology series. The particular episode was written by Rod Serling
. He also appeared in a second episode of Appointment with Adventure entitled "Return of the Stranger."
Later, Bikel guest starred on Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone
(episode "Four O'Clock
" as Oliver Crangle). He appeared on episodes of Wagon Train
, Hawaii Five-O
, Columbo, Charlie's Angels
, Little House on the Prairie
, Mission: Impossible
, Gunsmoke
, Dynasty
, "All in the Family
, Knight Rider, and Law & Order
. He appeared on the game show Super Password as a celebrity guest in 1988.
In the early 1990s, he appeared on Star Trek: The Next Generation
, in the episode "Family", playing Sergey Rozhenko, the Russian-born adopted father of Worf
, who, as a petty officer
on the Starfleet
vessel Intrepid, had found Worf at the site of the Khitomer Massacre and taken him home to raise as his son. Bikel performed two roles in the Babylon 5
universe. In 1994 he portrayed Rabbi Koslov in the first season episode "TKO
". In 1998 he appeared in the TV movie Babylon 5: In the Beginning
as Anla'Shok leader Lenonn.
. He was president of Actors' Equity
in the late 1970s and early 1980s, in which office he supported human rights
. At the 1977 AFL–CIO Convention, Bikel welcomed the Russian dissident
Vladimir Bukovsky upon his release from the Soviet Union
. U.S. President Jimmy Carter
appointed him to serve on the National Council for the Arts in 1977 for a six-year term.
On January 28, 2007, he agreed to serve as Chair of the Board of Directors of Meretz USA, where he also lectures.
His autobiography, Theo, was published in 1995 by Harper Collins, and re-issued in an updated version by the University of Wisconsin Press
in 2002.
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
, folk singer and musician. He made his film debut in The African Queen (1951) and was nominated for an Academy award for his supporting role as Sheriff Max Muller in The Defiant Ones
The Defiant Ones
The Defiant Ones is a 1958 drama film which tells the story of two escaped prisoners, one white and one black, who are shackled together and who must co-operate in order to survive. It stars Tony Curtis, Sidney Poitier, Theodore Bikel, Cara Williams, Charles McGraw, and Lon Chaney, Jr...
(1958).
Bikel is President of the Associated Actors and Artistes of America
Associated Actors and Artistes of America
The Associated Actors and Artistes of America is the federation of trade unions for performing artists in the United States. The following unions belong to the 4As:* The Actors' Equity Association * The American Guild of Musical Artists...
and was president of Actors' Equity
Actors' Equity Association
The Actors' Equity Association , commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing the world of live theatrical performance, as opposed to film and television performance. However, performers appearing on live stage productions without a book or...
in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He serves as the Chair of the Board of Directors of Meretz USA, where he also lectures. His autobiography, Theo, was published in 1995.
Early years
Bikel was born in Vienna, Austria, the son of Miriam (née Riegler) and Josef Bikel from BukovinaBukovina
Bukovina is a historical region on the northern slopes of the northeastern Carpathian Mountains and the adjoining plains.-Name:The name Bukovina came into official use in 1775 with the region's annexation from the Principality of Moldavia to the possessions of the Habsburg Monarchy, which became...
. His family fled to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
following the Nazi occupation of Austria. In Israel, Bikel started acting while in his teens. He co-founded the Cameri Theatre there—which has gone on to become one of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
's biggest theaters—before moving to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art is a drama school located in London, United Kingdom. It is generally regarded as one of the most renowned drama schools in the world, and is one of the oldest drama schools in the United Kingdom, having been founded in 1904.RADA is an affiliate school of the...
in 1945. In 1948, Michael Redgrave
Michael Redgrave
Sir Michael Scudamore Redgrave, CBE was an English stage and film actor, director, manager and author.-Youth and education:...
recommended Bikel to his friend Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
as understudy for the parts of both Stanley Kowalski
Stanley Kowalski
Stanley Kowalski is a fictional character in Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire.-In the play:Stanley lives in the working class Faubourg Marigny neighborhood of New Orleans with his wife, Stella , and is employed as a factory parts salesman. He was an Army engineer in WWII, having...
and Mitch in the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
premiere of Tennessee Williams
Tennessee Williams
Thomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams III was an American writer who worked principally as a playwright in the American theater. He also wrote short stories, novels, poetry, essays, screenplays and a volume of memoirs...
' A Streetcar Named Desire
A Streetcar Named Desire (play)
A Streetcar Named Desire is a 1947 play written by American playwright Tennessee Williams for which he received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1948. The play opened on Broadway on December 3, 1947, and closed on December 17, 1949, in the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. The Broadway production was...
. Bikel graduated from understudy to star opposite the director's wife, Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh, Lady Olivier was an English actress. She won the Best Actress Academy Award for her portrayal of Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire , a role she also played on stage in London's West End, as well as for her portrayal of the southern belle Scarlett O'Hara, alongside Clark...
, who would go on to recreate her role as Blanche DuBois
Blanche DuBois
Blanche DuBois is a fictional character in Tennessee Williams' 1947 Pulitzer Prize-winning play A Streetcar Named Desire...
in the film version opposite Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
.
Acting career
After several plays and films in Europe, Bikel moved to the United States in 1954, and became a naturalized citizen in 1961. He was the U-boat first officer to Curt Jürgens in The Enemy BelowThe Enemy Below
The Enemy Below is a 1957 war film which tells the story of the battle between the captain of an American destroyer escort and the commander of a German U-boat during World War II. It stars Robert Mitchum, Curt Jürgens, David Hedison and Theodore Bikel. The movie was directed and produced by Dick...
(1957) and played the captain of the Russian submarine in The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming
The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming
The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming is an American comedy film. Based on the Nathaniel Benchley novel The Off-Islanders, the film was directed by Norman Jewison and adapted for the screen by William Rose....
(1966). He also portrayed the sadistic General Jouvet in The Pride and the Passion
The Pride and the Passion
The Pride and the Passion is a historical film drama starring Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra and Sophia Loren made by Stanley Kramer Productions. Set in the Napoleonic era, it is the story of a British officer who has orders to retrieve a huge cannon from Spain and take it to the British forces by ship...
(1957) Bikel was screentested for the role of Auric Goldfinger
Auric Goldfinger
Auric Goldfinger is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the James Bond film and novel Goldfinger. His first name, Auric, is an adjective meaning of gold...
in the James Bond
James Bond (film series)
The James Bond film series is a British series of motion pictures based on the fictional character of MI6 agent James Bond , who originally appeared in a series of books by Ian Fleming. Earlier films were based on Fleming's novels and short stories, followed later by films with original storylines...
film Goldfinger
Goldfinger (film)
Goldfinger is the third spy film in the James Bond series and the third to star Sean Connery as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Released in 1964, it is based on the novel of the same name by Ian Fleming. The film also stars Honor Blackman as Bond girl Pussy Galore and Gert Fröbe as the title...
(1964). The screentest can be seen on the "Ultimate Edition" DVD released in 2006. Bikel also appeared in Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
's 1971 film 200 Motels
200 Motels
200 Motels is a 1971 American-British musical surrealist film cowritten and directed by Frank Zappa and Tony Palmer and starring The Mothers of Invention, Theodore Bikel and Ringo Starr. The film covers a loose storyline about The Mothers of Invention going crazy in the small town Centerville...
.
On Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
he originated the role of Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
in 1959, for which he received his second Tony nomination.
Bikel did not like his role in "Sound of Music" because his ability to sing was limited in the play, and he did not like to perform the same role of the Captain repeatedly. In 1964, he played Zoltan Karpathy, the dialect expert, in the film version of My Fair Lady
My Fair Lady (film)
My Fair Lady is a 1964 musical film adaptation of the Lerner and Loewe stage musical, of the same name, based on the 1938 film adaptation of the original stage play Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. The ballroom scene and the ending were taken from the previous film adaptation , rather than from...
. Since his first appearance as Tevye
Tevye
Tevye the Dairyman is the protagonist of several of Sholem Aleichem's stories, originally written in Yiddish and first published in 1894. The character became best known from the fictional memoir Tevye and his Daughters , about a pious Jewish milkman in Tsarist Russia, and the troubles he has with...
in the musical Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
in 1967, Bikel has performed the role more often than any other actor (more than 2,000 times to date). When an injury required 74 year old fellow Israeli performer Chaim Topol
Chaim Topol
Chaim Topol , often billed simply as Topol, is an Israeli theatrical and film performer, actor, writer and producer. He has been nominated for an Oscar and Tony Award, and has won two Golden Globes.-Early life:...
(veteran of many productions of the stage show and star of the motion picture of Fiddler on the Roof) to withdraw from a high-budget, much-promoted 2009 North American tour of the musical, Bikel substituted for him in several Canadian appearances, including Calgary in January 2010, and has scheduled appearances in the musical beyond his 86th birthday in May.
In the 1950s, Bikel produced and sang in several albums of Jewish folk songs, as well as Songs of a Russian Gypsy, in 1958. He was a co-founder of the Newport Folk Festival
Newport Folk Festival
The Newport Folk Festival is an American annual folk-oriented music festival in Newport, Rhode Island, which began in 1959 as a counterpart to the previously established Newport Jazz Festival...
(together with Pete Seeger
Pete Seeger
Peter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
and George Wein
George Wein
George Wein is an American jazz promoter and producer who has been called "the most famous jazz impresario" and "the most important non-player... in jazz history"...
) in 1959. In 1962, he heard Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
give his premiere performance of "Blowin' in the Wind
Blowin' in the Wind
"Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan and released on his album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan in 1963. Although it has been described as a protest song, it poses a series of questions about peace, war and freedom...
". Bikel then went to his scheduled performance and became the first singer besides Dylan to perform the song in public. Bikel (with business partner Herb Cohen
Herb Cohen
Herbert "Herb" Cohen was an American personal manager, record company executive, and music publisher, best known as the manager of Frank Zappa, Tom Waits, and many other Los Angeles-based musicians in the 1960s and 1970s.-Life and career:Cohen was born in New York...
) opened the first folk music coffeehouse in Los Angeles, The Unicorn. Its popularity led to the two opening a second club, Cosmo Alley, which in addition to folk music presented poets such as Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou is an American author and poet who has been called "America's most visible black female autobiographer" by scholar Joanne M. Braxton. She is best known for her series of six autobiographical volumes, which focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first and most highly...
and comics including Lenny Bruce
Lenny Bruce
Leonard Alfred Schneider , better known by the stage name Lenny Bruce, was a Jewish-American comedian, social critic and satirist...
. Bikel became increasingly involved with civil rights issues and progressive
Progressivism in the United States
Progressivism in the United States is a broadly based reform movement that reached its height early in the 20th century and is generally considered to be middle class and reformist in nature. It arose as a response to the vast changes brought by modernization, such as the growth of large...
causes, and was a delegate
Delegate
A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization at a meeting or conference between organizations of the same level A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization (e.g., a government, a charity, an NGO, or a trade union) at a meeting or conference...
to the 1968 Democratic Convention.
In addition to scores of appearances on film and on the stage, Bikel was a guest star on many popular television shows. He appeared in an episode of the 1954 NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
legal drama
Legal drama
A legal drama is a work of dramatic fiction about crime and civil litigation. Subtypes of legal dramas include courtroom dramas and legal thrillers, and come in all forms, including novels, television shows, and films. Legal drama sometimes overlap with crime drama, most notably in the case of Law...
Justice
Justice (1954 TV series)
Justice is an NBC half-hour drama television series about attorneys of the Legal Aid Society of New York, which aired from April 8, 1954 to March 25, 1956. In the 1954-1955 season, Justice starred Dane Clark as Richard Adams and Gary Merrill as Jason Tyler. In the 1955-1956 season, William Prince...
based on cases from the Legal Aid Society of New York. He also appeared in the episode entitled "The Faithful Pilgrimage" of CBS's Appointment with Adventure
Appointment with Adventure
Appointment with Adventure is a half-hour adventure/dramatic anthology television series broadcast live on CBS from 1955-1956. The program has no host. It aired at 10 p.m...
anthology series. The particular episode was written by Rod Serling
Rod Serling
Rodman Edward "Rod" Serling was an American screenwriter, novelist, television producer, and narrator best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his science fiction anthology TV series, The Twilight Zone. Serling was active in politics, both on and off the screen and helped form...
. He also appeared in a second episode of Appointment with Adventure entitled "Return of the Stranger."
Later, Bikel guest starred on Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)
The Twilight Zone is an American anthology television series created by Rod Serling, which ran for five seasons on CBS from 1959 to 1964. The series consisted of unrelated episodes depicting paranormal, futuristic, dystopian, or simply disturbing events; each show typically featured a surprising...
(episode "Four O'Clock
Four O'Clock
"Four O'Clock" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.-Synopsis:Oliver Crangle is a fanatic who maintains records of people he deems evil, calling and writing their employers to remind them of the evil acts in question and to demand their immediate firing...
" as Oliver Crangle). He appeared on episodes of Wagon Train
Wagon Train
Wagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65...
, Hawaii Five-O
Hawaii Five-O
Hawaii Five-O is an American police procedural drama series produced by CBS Productions and Leonard Freeman. Set in Hawaii, the show originally aired for twelve seasons from 1968 to 1980, and continues in reruns. The show featured a fictional state police unit run by Detective Steve McGarrett,...
, Columbo, Charlie's Angels
Charlie's Angels
Charlie's Angels is a television series about three women who work for a private investigation agency, and is one of the first shows to showcase women in roles traditionally reserved for men...
, Little House on the Prairie
Little House on the Prairie (TV series)
Little House on the Prairie is an American Western drama television series, starring Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show was an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books...
, Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible is an American television series which was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicled the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The leader of the team was Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, except in...
, Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
, Dynasty
Dynasty (TV series)
Dynasty is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 12, 1981 to May 11, 1989. It was created by Richard & Esther Shapiro and produced by Aaron Spelling, and revolved around the Carringtons, a wealthy oil family living in Denver, Colorado...
, "All in the Family
All in the Family
All in the Family is an American sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. In September 1979, a new show, Archie Bunker's Place, picked up where All in the Family had ended...
, Knight Rider, and Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
. He appeared on the game show Super Password as a celebrity guest in 1988.
In the early 1990s, he appeared on Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
, in the episode "Family", playing Sergey Rozhenko, the Russian-born adopted father of Worf
Worf
Worf, played by Michael Dorn, is a main character in Star Trek: The Next Generation and in seasons four to seven of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He also appears in the films based on The Next Generation. Worf is the first Klingon main character to appear in Star Trek, and has appeared in more Star...
, who, as a petty officer
Petty Officer
A petty officer is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotion OR-6. They are equal in rank to sergeant, British Army and Royal Air Force. A Petty Officer is superior in rank to Leading Rate and subordinate to Chief Petty Officer, in the case of the British Armed...
on the Starfleet
Starfleet
In the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
vessel Intrepid, had found Worf at the site of the Khitomer Massacre and taken him home to raise as his son. Bikel performed two roles in the Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...
universe. In 1994 he portrayed Rabbi Koslov in the first season episode "TKO
TKO (Babylon 5)
"TKO" is an episode from the first season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5.- Synopsis :As Susan Ivanova comes to terms with her father's death , an old friend of Garibaldi's comes to the station to participate in a dangerous alien martial arts contest.Garibaldi arrests two aliens...
". In 1998 he appeared in the TV movie Babylon 5: In the Beginning
Babylon 5: In the Beginning
Babylon 5: In the Beginning is a science fiction television movie set in the Babylon 5 fictional universe. It was written by J. Michael Straczynski and directed by Michael Vejar....
as Anla'Shok leader Lenonn.
Actors' unions and charities: Leadership
Bikel is President of the Associated Actors and Artistes of AmericaAssociated Actors and Artistes of America
The Associated Actors and Artistes of America is the federation of trade unions for performing artists in the United States. The following unions belong to the 4As:* The Actors' Equity Association * The American Guild of Musical Artists...
. He was president of Actors' Equity
Actors' Equity Association
The Actors' Equity Association , commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing the world of live theatrical performance, as opposed to film and television performance. However, performers appearing on live stage productions without a book or...
in the late 1970s and early 1980s, in which office he supported human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
. At the 1977 AFL–CIO Convention, Bikel welcomed the Russian dissident
Dissident
A dissident, broadly defined, is a person who actively challenges an established doctrine, policy, or institution. When dissidents unite for a common cause they often effect a dissident movement....
Vladimir Bukovsky upon his release from the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. U.S. President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
appointed him to serve on the National Council for the Arts in 1977 for a six-year term.
On January 28, 2007, he agreed to serve as Chair of the Board of Directors of Meretz USA, where he also lectures.
His autobiography, Theo, was published in 1995 by Harper Collins, and re-issued in an updated version by the University of Wisconsin Press
University of Wisconsin Press
The University of Wisconsin Press is a non-profit university press publishing peer-reviewed books and journals. It primarily publishes work by scholars from the global academic community but also serves the citizens of Wisconsin by publishing important books about Wisconsin, the Upper Midwest, and...
in 2002.
Discography
- Songs of a Russian Gypsy (1958)
- Songs of Russia Old & New (1960)
- A Folksinger's Choice (1964)
- Songs of the Earth (1967)
- A New Day (1969)
- 'Folk Songs From Just About Everywhere' (1958)
Filmography
- The African Queen (1951)
- Moulin RougeMoulin Rouge (1952 film)Moulin Rouge is a 1952 film directed by John Huston, produced by Sir John Woolf and James Woolf of Romulus Films and released by United Artists. The film is set in Paris in the late 19th century, following artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec in the city's bohemian sub-culture in and around the...
(1952) - Never Let Me Go (1953)
- The Little KidnappersThe Little Kidnappers (1953 film)The Little Kidnappers, billed as The Kidnappers in the UK, is a 1953 British film, directed by Philip Leacock and written by Neil Paterson. It was remade as a TV movie in 1990.-Plot:...
(1953) - The Love LotteryThe Love LotteryThe Love Lottery is a 1954 Ealing Studios comedy film, directed by Charles Crichton and starring David Niven as a celluloid heart-throb taking part in a "love lottery".-Cast:* David Niven as Rex Allerton* Peggy Cummins as Sally...
(1954) - BetrayedBetrayed (1954 film)Betrayed is a 1954 war drama film made by MGM. It was directed by Gottfried Reinhardt, from a screenplay by Ronald Millar and George Froeschel. The music score was by Walter Goehr and Bronislau Kaper, the cinematography by Freddie Young....
(1954) (uncredited) - The Divided HeartThe Divided HeartThe Divided Heart is a black-and-white British film directed by Charles Crichton and released in 1954. The film is a drama, based on a true story and written by Jack Whittingham and Richard Hughes. It was produced by Michael Truman and edited by Peter Bezencenet, with cinematography by Otto Heller...
(1954) - The Young LoversThe Young LoversThe Young Lovers is a 1954 British Cold War romance drama, directed by Anthony Asquith and starring Odile Versois and David Knight. The film was produced by Anthony Havelock-Allan, with cinematography from Jack Asher and screenplay by George Tabori and Robin Estridge...
(1954) - The Colditz StoryThe Colditz StoryThe Colditz Story is a 1955 prisoner of war film starring John Mills and Eric Portman and directed by Guy Hamilton.It is based on the book written by P.R...
(1955) - Above Us the Waves (1955)
- The VintageThe VintageThe Vintage is a 1957 crime drama film made by MGM, and directed by Jeffrey Hayden. The screenplay was written by Michael Blankfort, based on novel by Ursula Keir...
(1957) - The Pride and the PassionThe Pride and the PassionThe Pride and the Passion is a historical film drama starring Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra and Sophia Loren made by Stanley Kramer Productions. Set in the Napoleonic era, it is the story of a British officer who has orders to retrieve a huge cannon from Spain and take it to the British forces by ship...
(1957) - The Enemy BelowThe Enemy BelowThe Enemy Below is a 1957 war film which tells the story of the battle between the captain of an American destroyer escort and the commander of a German U-boat during World War II. It stars Robert Mitchum, Curt Jürgens, David Hedison and Theodore Bikel. The movie was directed and produced by Dick...
(1957) - Fräulein (1958)
- I Bury the LivingI Bury the LivingI Bury the Living is a horror film directed by famed B-movie director Albert Band, father of Charles Band, and starring Richard Boone and Theodore Bikel.-Plot summary:...
(1958) - The Defiant OnesThe Defiant OnesThe Defiant Ones is a 1958 drama film which tells the story of two escaped prisoners, one white and one black, who are shackled together and who must co-operate in order to survive. It stars Tony Curtis, Sidney Poitier, Theodore Bikel, Cara Williams, Charles McGraw, and Lon Chaney, Jr...
(1958) - I Want to Live!I Want to Live!I Want to Live! is a 1958 film noir produced by Walter Wanger and directed by Robert Wise which tells the heavily fictionalized story of a woman, Barbara Graham, convicted of murder and facing execution. It stars Susan Hayward as Graham, and also features Simon Oakland, Stafford Repp, and Theodore...
(1958)
- Woman ObsessedWoman ObsessedWoman Obsessed is a 1959 romantic drama film about the hardships faced by a widow and her eight-year-old son on a rugged Canadian ranch.The film stars Susan Hayward and Stephen Boyd with Barbara Nichols, Theodore Bikel, and James Philbrook. It was made in CinemaScope with DeLuxe Color.- Plot...
(1959) - The Angry HillsThe Angry Hills (film)-Cast:* Robert Mitchum as Mike Morrison* Stanley Baker as Conrad Heisler* Elisabeth Müller as Lisa Kyriakides* Gia Scala as Eleftheria* Theodore Bikel as Dimitrios Tassos* Sebastian Cabot as Chesney* Peter Illing as Leonides* Leslie Phillips as Ray Taylor...
(1959) - The Blue AngelThe Blue Angel (1959 film)-Cast:* Curd Jürgens as Professor Immanuel Rath * May Britt as Lola-Lola* Theodore Bikel as Klepert* John Banner as Principal Harter* Fabrizio Mioni as Rolf* Ludwig Stössel as Dr. Fritz Heine* Wolfe Barzell as Clown* Ina Anders as Gussie...
(1959) - A Dog of FlandersA Dog of FlandersA Dog of Flanders is an 1872 novel by English author Marie Louise de la Ramée published with her pseudonym "Ouida". It is about a Flemish boy named Nello and his dog Patrasche....
(1960) - My Fair LadyMy Fair Lady (film)My Fair Lady is a 1964 musical film adaptation of the Lerner and Loewe stage musical, of the same name, based on the 1938 film adaptation of the original stage play Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. The ballroom scene and the ending were taken from the previous film adaptation , rather than from...
(1964) - Sands of the KalahariSands of the KalahariSands of the Kalahari is a 1965 film British drama film starring Stuart Whitman, Stanley Baker, Susannah York, Harry Andrews and Theodore Bikel, based on the 1960 novel by William Mulvihill. The movie was written by Cy Endfield and William Mulvihill and directed by Cy Endfield...
(1965) - The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are ComingThe Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are ComingThe Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming is an American comedy film. Based on the Nathaniel Benchley novel The Off-Islanders, the film was directed by Norman Jewison and adapted for the screen by William Rose....
(1966) - Sweet NovemberSweet November (1968 film)Sweet November is a 1968 romantic drama film written by Herman Raucher and starring Sandy Dennis, Anthony Newley and Theodore Bikel. The film had originally been written as a stage play by Raucher, but before it was even performed, Universal Pictures got wind of the project and paid Raucher...
(1968) - My Side of the MountainMy Side of the Mountain (film)My Side of the Mountain is a 1969 film adaption of the novel by Jean Craighead George. A family movie by Paramount Pictures, the story revolves around thirteen-year old Sam Gribley , a devotee of Thoreau, as many were back in the 1960s...
(1969) - Darker than AmberDarker than Amber (film)Darker than Amber is a 1970 film adaptation of the John D. MacDonald novel Darker than Amber. It was directed by Robert Clouse from a screenplay by MacDonald and Ed Waters. It starred Rod Taylor as the main series character: Travis McGee. Darker than Amber remains the only McGee novel adapted to...
as Meyer (1970) - 200 Motels200 Motels200 Motels is a 1971 American-British musical surrealist film cowritten and directed by Frank Zappa and Tony Palmer and starring The Mothers of Invention, Theodore Bikel and Ringo Starr. The film covers a loose storyline about The Mothers of Invention going crazy in the small town Centerville...
(1971) - Victory at EntebbeVictory at EntebbeVictory at Entebbe is a made-for-television film from 1976 based on an actual event: Operation Entebbe and the freeing of Israeli hostages at Entebbe Airport in Uganda...
(1976) (TV) - Columbo: The Bye-Bye Sky High IQ Murder Case (1977) (TV)
- The Stingiest Man In TownThe Stingiest Man In TownThe Stingiest Man in Town is a Christmas special created by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass, which featured traditional animation rather than the Animagic most often used by the company...
(1978) (TV) (voice) - The Return of the KingThe Return of the King (1980 film)The Return of the King, also known as The Return of the King: A Story of the Hobbits, is a 1980 animated television special created by Rankin/Bass and Topcraft. The film is an adaptation of the third volume in The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R...
(1980) (voice) - The Final DaysThe Final Days (film)The Final Days is a 1989 television movie adaptation of the book written by Bob Woodward, and Carl Bernstein. The movie is directed by Richard Pearce and follows the events in the Nixon White House after the Washington Posts Watergate revelations....
(1989) (TV) - Shattered (1991)
- Shadow ConspiracyShadow ConspiracyShadow Conspiracy is a 1997 political thriller film starring Charlie Sheen, Donald Sutherland and Linda Hamilton. Sam Waterston, famous for his role as a district attorney in Law & Order, appears in the film as the president of the United States. It is the final film directed by George P...
(1996) - Crime and PunishmentCrime and Punishment (2002 film)Crime and Punishment is a 2002 film adaptation of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's novel of the same name. The film starred Crispin Glover and Vanessa Redgrave and was directed by Menahem Golan.-Plot:...
(2002)
External links
- Theodore Bikel Official website
- Discography at SonyBMG Masterworks
- Theodore Bikel at the Internet Accuracy Project.
- Theodore Bikel: "In der Mariahilferstraße hatten wir Nachbarn, die waren sehr nette und anständige Menschen". In: Christian Cargnelli, Michael Omasta (eds.): Aufbruch ins Ungewisse. Österreichische Filmschaffende in der Emigration vor 1945. Vienna: Wespennest, 1993.