Alvin Rakoff
Introduction '''Alvin Rakoff''' (born '''Abraham Rakoff''', February 6, 1927) is a Canadian director of film, television and theatre productions. He has worked with actors including Laurence Olivier, Peter Sellers, Sean Connery, Judi Dench, Rex Harrison, Rod Steiger, Henry Fonda and Ava Gardner.Rakoff awarded Sean Connery his first leading role, and gave Alan Rickman his first job when he was a drama student. Other actors he worked with early in their careers include Michael Crawford, Jeremy Irons, and Michael Caine.
Early life Rakoff's mother came from Rovno in Ukraine; his father was from Voronezh in Russia. His parents, secular Jews, met in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He is the third of seven children. His parents had a shop in Kensington Market. After graduation from the University of Toronto, he became a journalist and began writing for Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's nascent television service. He was seconded by the CBC to visit "the country where TV first started - England". Days after arriving he sold a script to the British Broadcasting Corporation, at the time the only television broadcaster in the UK. The BBC subsequently invited him to join their television directors' training course. At 26 years of age, he became the youngest producer/director in the BBC drama department. He became a resident in the United Kingdom through working extensively worldwide.When Rakoff was 16, he changed his first name from Abraham to Alvin, inspired by Alvin York and the film ''Sergeant York''. Wilton House acted as location for Inns of Court during shooting of''A Voyage Round My Father'' (1982). Laurence Olivier with his feet up taking a break with assistant director Shirley Cleghorn looking on.
Career A BBC adaptation in 1953 of the Irwin Shaw novel ''The Troubled Air'' was his first major writing assignment for television. In 1954, his production of ''Waiting For Gillian'' won the ''Daily Mail''s National TV Award with actors Patrick Barr and Anne Crawford also honoured. He later recreated this production in French for transmission throughout France. In 1955, on the night commercial TV first appeared in the UK he was asked by the BBC to offer the main opposition, ''The Hole In The Wall'' with Mervyn Johns and Sidney Tafler, of which ''The Times'' wrote: "Mr. Rakoff who seems to be a master of this medium".In his 1957 production ''Requiem for a Heavyweight'' he lifted an unknown actor, Sean Connery, from the ranks of walk-ons and gave Connery his first leading role. Also in this production was another performer early in his career, Michael Caine. In 1958, Rakoff adapted, directed, and produced Herman Wouk's ''The Caine Mutiny Court Martial'' for the BBC.In 1962, the BBC asked Rakoff to produce/direct its entry for the European-wide 'The Largest Theatre In The World' written especially for the occasion by Terence Rattigan and called ''Heart to Heart'', with Kenneth More and Ralph Richardson. In 1964, when the new channel BBC 2 was launched Rakoff was selected to direct plays filling the first three Sunday-night drama slots (''The Seekers''). He won his first Emmy Award in 1967 for ''Call Me Daddy'', which had featured Donald Pleasence, and 15 years later won it again for ''A Voyage Round My Father'' (Laurence Olivier, Alan Bates, and Jane Asher took the leads) which he produced and directed.His production of ''The Adventures of Don Quixote'' (1973) with Rex Harrison and Frank Finlay achieved international praise. In his 1978 production of ''Romeo & Juliet'' for the BBC Television Shakespeare series he cast the then unknown actor Alan Rickman as Tybalt. In 1997 he produced and co-directed the award-winning ''A Dance to the Music of Time'' with John Gielgud, Simon Russell Beale, and Miranda Richardson.His films include ''On Friday at Eleven'' (a.k.a. ''World in My Pocket'' in the U.S.) starring Rod Steiger; ''Say Hello to Yesterday'' (1970), which he also wrote, featured Jean Simmons and Leonard Whiting; ''Hoffman'' starred Peter Sellers; ''City on Fire'', which he co-wrote, starred Henry Fonda, Ava Gardner, and Shelley Winters.Rakoff's writing includes ''Too Marvellous For Words'', the story of lyricist Johnny Mercer presented at  The Mill Theatre, Sonning, and King's Head Theatre, London. He has written three novels. His first, ''& Gillian'', a romantic odyssey, was translated into 10 languages. His second, ''Baldwin Street'', based on his early days in his parents' shop in Toronto, was published in 2008. ''The Seven Einsteins'', a third novel, is a genetic thriller published in 2014.A successful adaptation of Raymond Chandler's ''The Big Sleep'' was produced in 2012.Currently, Rakoff is developing and writing ''An Act of Love'' for Orchard Films Ltd.His theatre work ranges from ''Hamlet'' at Bristol Old Vic to a Charity Cruise performance at the Royal Albert Hall before Her Majesty the Queen, and continues with his association with The Mill Theatre, Sonning, directing productions of ''Separate Tables'' with Anthony Valentine and his own adaptation of Chandler's ''The Big Sleep''.In 2010, Rakoff directed ''A Sentimental Journey'', the story of Doris Day, at Wilton's Music Hall, London, and subsequently (2012) El Portal Theatre, Hollywood.He is a former president of the Directors Guild of Great Britain.
Filmography ===Feature films (director)=== Year Film Cast 1958 ''Passport to Shame'' Eddie Constantine 1959 ''The Treasure of San Teresa'' Eddie Constantine 1961 ''World in My Pocket'' Rod Steiger 1964 ''The Comedy Man'' Kenneth More 1969 ''Crossplot''Roger Moore, Claudie Lange, Francis Matthews, Gabrielle Drake, Bernard Lee 1970 ''Hoffman'' Peter Sellers, Sinead Cusack 1971 ''Say Hello to Yesterday'' Jean Simmons, Leonard Whiting 1979 ''City on Fire'' Henry Fonda, Ava Gardner, Shelley Winters1979''King Solomon's Treasure''David McCallum, Patrick Macnee, Britt Ekland1980''Death Ship''George Kennedy, Richard Crenna, Nick Mancuso1981 ''Dirty Tricks'' Elliott Gould===Television (director)=== Year Title Cast 1953 ''Holiday Girl'' Mantovani Orchestra 1953 ''Starlight'' 1953 ''A Place of Execution'' 1953 ''Strictly Personal'' 1953 ''The Emperor Jones'' by Eugene O'Neill 1954 ''Willie the Squouse'' 1954 ''The Lover''Diana Wynyard 1954 ''Waiting for Gillian'' Patrick Barr, Anne Crawford (National Television Award) 1955 ''Waiting for Gillian'' (French TV version form Paris, re-titled ''Un Chemin Dans La Nuit'') 1954 ''The Face of Love'' Peter Cushing, Mary Morris, George Rose 1954 ''Return to the River'' 1954 ''The Good Partners'' 1954 ''Tyrant's Tower'' 1954 ''Teckman Biography'' by Francis Durbridge 1955 ''Three Empty Rooms'' by Reginald Rose  Jacqueline Hill 1955 ''The New Executive'' 1955 ''The Hole in the Wall'' Mervyn Johns, Sidney Tafler 1955 ''Thunder in the Realm'' (Canada) 1955 ''The Legend of Pepito'' Sam Wanamaker, Jacqueline Hill 1956 ''The Reclining Figure'' Donald Wolfit 1956 ''For the Defence'' 1956 ''The Condemned'' André Morell, Sean Connery 1956 ''Epitaph'' Trevor Howard, Leo McKern 1956 ''The Seat of the Scornful'' Basil Sydney, Finlay Currie, Jacqueline Hill 1956 ''No Man's Land'' Alec McCowen 1957 ''Dial 999'' (series, 4 episodes) 1957 ''The Staring Match'' 1957 ''Requiem for a Heavyweight'' Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Warren Mitchell 1957 ''Our Town'' Heather Sears 1958 ''The Caine Mutiny Court Martial'' 1958 ''Breakdown'' Nigel Davenport, Roger Livesey 1958 ''Man in the Corner'' 1959 ''Velvet Alley'' Sam Wanamaker, Jacqueline Hill 1959 ''The Ransom of Red Chief'' (USA) William Bendix, Hans Conreid 1959 ''The Dark Side of the Earth'' 1960 ''The Leather Jungle'' Freddie Mills, Neil McCallum 1960 ''A Town Has Turned to Dust'' Rod Steiger 1960 ''Come In Razor Red'' Richard Harris 1961 ''Joker's Justice'' Dan Massey, Leo McKern 1961 ''The Room'' by Harold Pinter 1961 ''A Reason for Staying'' Anthony Quayle, Denholm Elliott, Warren Mitchell 1962 ''Heart to Heart'' by Terence Rattigan ("The Largest Theatre in the World", European Union television drama entry) Kenneth More, Ralph Richardson, Wendy Craig, Jean Marsh 1962 ''A Quiet Game of Cards'' Bernard Braden 1962 ''Call Me Back'' Alec McCowen 1963 ''The Remarkable Incident at Carsons Corners'' 1964 ''The Seekers'' Michael Bryant 1964 ''The Blackpool Trilogy'' Julia Foster, Nicola Pagett 1965 ''Court Martial'' (series) Peter Graves, Bradford Dillman 1966 ''You'll Know Me by the Stars in My Eyes''  Jane Asher, Nigel Patrick, Phyllis Calvert 1966 ''The Move After Checkmate'' Michael Crawford 1966 ''The Sweet War Man'' Kenneth More 1967 ''The Girl'' Joss Ackland, Brenda Bruce 1967 ''The Man Who Understood Women'' Jane Asher 1967 ''Call Me Daddy'' (Emmy Award) Donald Pleasence 1968 ''Murder'' Peter Egan 1971 ''A Kiss Is Just a Kiss'' Keir Dullea 1971 ''Summer and Smoke'' Lee Remick 1972 ''Blur & Blank via Cleckheaton'' Denholm Elliott 1972 ''A Man About a Dog'' 1972 ''The Adventures of Don Quixote'' Rex Harrison, Frank Finlay, Rosemary Leach 1973 ''Shadow of a Gunman'' Stephen Rea 1973 ''Harlequinade'' 1974 ''Cheap in August'' Leo McKern, Virginia McKenna 1974 ''Jan & Tony, "Rooms"'' 1974 ''How to Impeach A President'' (USA) 1974 ''A Brisk Dip Sagaciously Considered'' 1974 ''Shall We Have a King?'' (USA) 1975 ''Husband to Mrs Fitzherbert'' Nicholas Jones 1975 ''The Nicest Man in the World'' Celia Johnson 1975 ''The October Crisis'' (Canada) 1975 ''Lulu Street'' (Canada) 1975 ''The Liberty Tree'' Jeremy Irons, Julian Fellowes 1976 ''The Killers'' 1976 ''In Praise of Love'' Kenneth More, Claire Bloom 1976 ''Mrs Amsworth'' Glynis Johns 1976 ''The Promise'' 1976 ''The Dame Of Sark'' Celia Johnson, Peter Dyneley 1977 ''The Kitchen'' Peter Egan, Sinéad Cusack 1978 ''Romeo & Juliet'' Alan Rickman, Celia Johnson, Michael Hordern, Jacqueline Hill 1980 ''The Quiet Days of Mrs Stafford'' Susan Littler 1981 ''The Breadwinner'' Michael Gambon 1982 ''Disraeli'' Richard Pasco 1982 ''A Voyage Round My Father'' Laurence Olivier, Alan Bates, Jane Asher 1983 ''Firework For Elspeth'' Fiona Shaw 1983 ''Mr Halpern & Mr Johnson'' Laurence Olivier, Jackie Gleason 1983 ''A Talent for Murder'' Laurence Olivier, Angela Lansbury 1984 ''The First Olympics, Athens 1896'' Angela Lansbury, Louis Jordan, David Caruso 1985 ''Paradise Postponed'' Zoe Wanamaker, David Threlfall, Michael Hordern, etc. 1989 ''Haunting Harmony'' 1990 ''Gas & Candles'' 1991/1992 ''Sam Saturday''Ivan Kaye 1992 ''The Best Of Friends'' John Gielgud, Wendy Hiller, Patrick McGoohan 1997 ''A Dance to the Music of Time'' Miranda Richardson, Simon Russell Beale, Alan Bennett, John Gielgud===Writing (television, films, books)=== Year Title Role 1953 ''The Troubled Air'' adaptor (TV) 1953 ''A Flight of Fancy'' writer (TV) 1953 ''Our Town'' adaptor (TV) 1954 ''Waiting for Gillian'' co-adaptor (TV) 1958 ''The Caine Mutiny Court Martial'' adaptor (TV) 1970 ''Say Hello To Yesterday'' writer (film) 1973 ''A Man About Dog'' adaptor (TV) 1973 ''Shadow Of A Gunman'' adaptor (TV) 1978 ''City On Fire'' co-writer (film) 1991/92 ''Sam Saturday'' creator (TV series) 1996 ''& Gillian'' (novel, Little Brown) 2001/02 ''Too Marvelous For Words'' writer (musical) 2008 ''Baldwin Street'' (novel, Bunim & Bannigan, New York)2012 ''The Big Sleep'' by Raymond Chandler (stage adaptation)2014 ''The Seven Einsteins''(novel, Author House)===Theatre credits (director)===* 1965 - ''Hamlet'', Bristol Old Vic	 (Richard Pasco, Barbara Leigh Hunt, Margaret Courtney, etc. )* 1982 - Celia Johnson Theatre fund, Aldwych Theatre	 (Ralph Richardson, Jeremy Irons, Richard Briers, etc. )* 1984 - ''Cruise Charity'', Albert Hall	(Richard Briers, John Gielgud, Penelope Keith, Wayne Sleep, etc. )* 1995 – ''Stage Struck'' by Simon Gray, The Mill at Sonning	(Nicholas Jones)* 2001-2002 – ''Too Marvelous For Words: The Story of Lyricist Johnny Mercer''	(written and directed) The Mill at Sonning* 2002 – ''Too Marvelous For Words'', King's Head Theatre, London* 2004 – ''I Remember You'' by Bernard Slade, The Mill at Sonning* 2005 – ''Separate Tables'' by Terence Rattigan, The Mill at Sonning	(Anthony Valentine, Glynis Barber)* 2007 – ''Same Time Next Year'' by Bernard Slade, The Mill at Sonning	(Steven Pacey, Shona Lindsay)* 2009 – ''A Sentimental Journey, The Story of Doris Day''. The Mill at Sonning	(Sally Hughes, Glyn Kerslake)* 2010 – ''A Sentimental Journey, The Story of Doris Day''. Wilton's, London* 2011 - ''The Big Sleep'' by Raymond Chandler. The world's first stage adaptation of the famous crime novel. Adapted with his son John D. Rakoff. * 2011 - ''A Sentimental Journey, The Story of Doris Day'' - Edinburgh Festival; The Mill at Sonning; El Portal Theater, Los Angeles.
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