Oliver Tobias

A remote and rather prevailing sullenness has only enhanced the mystique and charisma found in dashingly handsome 'Oliver Tobias' (qv), who has enjoyed over a three decade-long career on stage, screen and TV. Born 'Oliver Tobias' (qv) Freitag in Zurich, Switzerland on August 6, 1947, he was the son of Swiss actor 'Robert Freitag' (qv) and German actress 'Maria Becker' (qv), who subsequently divorced when he was young. Living in England from age 8, he was sent to boarding school and was later encouraged by his mother to study at the East 15 Acting School (1965-1968) which coincided with dance training at the Ecole de Dance in Zurich.In 1968 he appeared in the original London production of "Hair" playing the prime rebel role of Berger. The following year he starred, staged and choreographed the rock opera in Amsterdam and again helmed a production in 1970 in Tel Aviv. Oliver continued his shaggy-haired, counterculture musical career with the role of Judas in a German touring company of "Jesus Christ Superstar."Around this time he started making an impression in films with the international productions of _Ein Kerl zum Pferdestehlen (1971)_ (qv), _'Tis Pity She's a Whore (1971)_ (qv), which co-starred 'Charlotte Rampling' (qv), and _The God King (1974)_ (qv) in a Mephistophelean-styled role. On TV he enhanced a number of classic, age-old stories from Sherlock Holmes to Robin Hood. He earned TV stardom as King Arthur in the series _Arthur of the Britons (1972)_ (qv), then again played the youthful ruler of Camelot in _King Arthur, the Young Warlord (1975)_ (qv) on film. From there he graced a number of colorful costumers, including _Arabian Adventure (1979)_ (qv) and on TV portrayed composer Johann Strauss in an equally colorful outing. Despite this attention he did not give up his musical roots, showing his prowess in the title role of the rock opera "Peer Gynt" in Zurich, and in the role of The Pirate King in "The Pirates of Penzance" at London's Drury Lane Theatre. As a stretch he also appeared as Bassa Selim in the Mozart opera "The Abduction from the Seraglio" in 1988 and 1989, then appeared in a non-musical, the powerful AIDS drama "The Normal Heart," shortly after.Oliver's taste in movies have been eclectic to say the least, and not always tasteful. He appeared in 'Joan Collins' (qv)' scurrilous, soft-core flick _The Stud (1978)_ (qv) as an amorous waiter who sleeps his way to the top, and was part of the cast in the costumed romp _Mata Hari (1985)_ (qv) which focused more on the disrobing of its star 'Sylvia Kristel' (qv) than anything else. For variety he portrayed a Vietnam veteran in _Operation Nam (1986)_ (qv), a galactic dictator in _Nexus 2.431 (1994)_ (qv), and a U-boat captain in _The Brylcreem Boys (1998)_ (qv). In 1999 he again returned to musical limelight, this time in London as King Roderick in "La Cava," based on the Dana Broccoli novel. He returned to the role a second time in 2001. In 2003 he was Percival Brown in the 50th anniversary production of "The Boyfriend" and the very next year toured in the rock musical "Footloose."Millennium films include prime appearances in the crime thriller _Don't Look Back! (2003)_ (qv) and the romance thriller _Method (2004)_ (qv), and featured roles in the war comedy _Dad's Army (2016)_ (qv), the mystery drama _Open My Eyes (2016)_ (qv), and two horror flicks, _When the Devil Rides Out (2017)_ (qv) and _Conjuring: The Book of the Dead (2020)_ (qv). Also more recent work on Swiss TV movies and series.Divorced from Camilla Ravenshear, he has two daughters, Angelika and Celeste. In 2001 he married Polish-born Arabella Zamoyska. The rugged charmer is in the process of writing a tell-all autobiography.::Gary Brumburgh / gr-home@pacbell.net