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Henry Woolf
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{{Short description|English actor (1930β2021)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2021}} {{Use British English|date=August 2016}} {{Infobox person | name = Henry Woolf | image = Portrait_of_Henry_Woolf.webp | image_size = | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1930|01|20}} | birth_place = [[Homerton]], London, England | death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2021|11|11|1930|01|20}} | death_place = [[Saskatoon]], Saskatchewan, Canada | other_names = | occupation = Actor, [[theatre director]] | years_active = 1957β2021 | spouse = {{marriage|Susan Williamson|1968}} | children = 4 | website = }} '''Henry Woolf''' {{Post-nominals|country=CAN|SOM}} (20 January 1930 β 11 November 2021) was a British actor, theatre director, and teacher of acting, drama and theatre who lived in Canada. He was a longtime friend and collaborator of 2005 [[Nobel Prize in Literature|Nobel Laureate]] [[Harold Pinter]], having stimulated Pinter to write his first play, ''[[The Room (play)|The Room]]'' (1957), in 1956. Woolf served as a faculty member at the [[University of Saskatchewan]] from 1983 to 1997 and as artistic director of [[Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan]] from 1991 until 2001. ==Early life== Henry Woolf was born to [[Jews|Jewish]] parents in [[Homerton]], London on 20 January 1930.<ref>[https://www.thetimes.com/uk/obituaries/article/henry-woolf-obituary-qvvb6qk98 Henry Woolf obituary] ''The Times''</ref> He was educated at [[Hackney Downs School]], where he met [[Harold Pinter]]; he and Pinter were friends and collaborators for over 60 years.<ref name=Woolf>Henry Woolf, [https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2007/jul/12/theatre.haroldpinter "My 60 Years in Harold's Gang"], ''[[Guardian.co.uk|The Guardian]]'' 12 July 2007, Stage, accessed 21 August 2008.</ref> He earned a [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree from the [[University of London]] and then pursued a postgraduate course in directing at the [[University of Bristol]], before going to the [[United States]], to earn a postgraduate diploma <!--in what field(s)?--> from the [[College of William and Mary]], in [[Williamsburg, Virginia]].{{citation needed|date=August 2008}} In the process of undertaking his directing course at Bristol, he asked his old school friend Harold Pinter if he could write a one act play for him to produce for his graduation. Pinter said that he had never written a play before but would give it a try. Within three days he had written ''[[The Room (play)|The Room]]'' (1957), in which Woolf also originated the role of Mr Kidd.<ref name=Woolf/><ref>{{cite book |last1=Bowker |first1=Gordon |title=Glimpses of a Biographer's Diaries 1961 β 2000 |date=2025 |publisher=Ramdei Bowker |location=London |isbn=978-1-0684423-9-1 |pages=471 |edition=Kindle |url=https://amzn.eu/d/5ZNvFdY |access-date=22 March 2025}}</ref> ==Professional career== Woolf's film credits include ''[[San Ferry Ann]]'' (1965), ''[[Marat/Sade (film)|Marat/Sade]]'' (1967), ''[[Tell Me Lies (film)|Tell Me Lies]]'' (1968), ''[[The Lion in Winter (1968 film)|The Lion in Winter]]'' (1968), ''[[Great Catherine (film)|Great Catherine]]'' (1968), ''[[The Bed Sitting Room (film)|The Bed Sitting Room]]'' (1969), ''[[Alfred the Great (film)|Alfred the Great]]'' (1969), ''[[The Ruling Class (film)|The Ruling Class]]'' (1972), ''[[The Love Pill]]'' (1972), ''[[Galileo (1974 film)|Galileo]]'' (1975), ''[[The Rocky Horror Picture Show]]'' (1975), ''[[Rogue Male (1976 film)|Rogue Male]]'' (1976), ''[[The Hound of the Baskervilles (1978 film)|The Hound of the Baskervilles]]'' (1978), ''[[Gorky Park (film)|Gorky Park]]'' (1983), ''[[Superman III]]'' (1983), and ''[[Maid to Order]]'' (1987). In ''[[All You Need Is Cash]]'' (1978), a film by [[the Rutles]] (a fictional [[The Beatles|mock-Beatles]] band jointly created by [[Eric Idle]] and [[Neil Innes]]), Woolf played a character named Arthur Sultan, a fictional spoof of [[Maharishi Mahesh Yogi]]. His later film appearances include in the 2004 short film, ''Of Note'' and the 2007 short film ''smallfilm''. On British television, Woolf played the Man in [[Harold Pinter]]'s one-man play ''Monologue'' (1973); parts in ''[[Rutland Weekend Television]]'' (1975β1976) and ''[[The Sweeney]]'' (1975); [[List of Doctor Who villains#The Collector|the Collector]] in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' serial ''[[The Sun Makers]]'' (1977); served as the host of the 1970s pre-school British educational series ''Words and Pictures''; and performed the role of Doctor Cornelius in the [[BBC]] adaptation of ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia (TV serial)|Prince Caspian]]'' (1989). He also played a role in ''[[Steptoe and Son]]'' (1974) as local gangster Frankie Barrow, a role which had originated in ''[[Steptoe and Son Ride Again]]'' (1973), the second film spin-off of the series. Woolf joined the faculty of the [[University of Saskatchewan]] in 1983, was promoted to professor in 1990, also serving as head of its Drama Department, and received the university's Master Teacher Award in 1994, before retiring in 1997, at the Canadian mandatory retirement age of 67.<ref name=NeilInnes>[http://www.neilinnes.org/articles/henry/henry.htm "An Exclusive Neilinnes.org Interview with Henry Woolf (Arthur Sultan)"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080723135044/http://www.neilinnes.org/articles/henry/henry.htm |date=23 July 2008 }}, ''neilinnes.org'' (Official Website of [[Neil Innes]]) 26 May 2005, updated 25 July 2005, accessed 23 August 2008.</ref> He served as artistic director of the annual summer [[Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan]] festival, in [[Saskatoon]], from 1991<ref>http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/discover-more/artists/henry-woolf{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> until his retirement from that position in 2001. In 2001 he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Saskatchewan. In March 2003, Woolf directed an all-female production of ''[[Twelfth Night]]'', by [[William Shakespeare]], at the [[University of Winnipeg]].<ref name=UWinnPR>[https://www.uwinnipeg.ca/index/media-twelfth_night "Media Release: Renowned British Actor Henry Woolf Directs All-Female Twelfth Night at UWinnipeg"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303182949/http://www.uwinnipeg.ca/index/media-twelfth_night |date=3 March 2016 }}, ''uwinnipeg.ca'' ([[University of Winnipeg]]) 10 March 2003, accessed 23 August 2008.</ref> In April 2007, Woolf reprised his roles as Mr Kidd in a production of Pinter's ''The Room'' (1957), marking the 50th anniversary of the original production, and as the Man in Pinter's ''Monologue'' (1973), both of which occurred at the [[University of Leeds]] conference [[Harold Pinter and academia#Artist and Citizen: 50 Years of Performing Pinter|Artist and Citizen: 50 Years of Performing Pinter]].<ref name=Leeds>[http://www.leeds.ac.uk/theatre/pinter/ "Artist and Citizen: 50 years of Performing Pinter"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070421153016/http://www.leeds.ac.uk/theatre/pinter/ |date=21 April 2007 }}, Workshop Theatre, School of English, [[University of Leeds]], 12β14 April 2007. (Includes hyperlinked "[http://www.leeds.ac.uk/theatre/pinter/schedule2.htm Conference Schedule"]{{dead link|date=January 2018|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}.)</ref> He was a member of the [[Saskatchewan Order of Merit]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Saskatchewan Order of Merit|url=https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/heritage-honours-and-awards/saskatchewan-order-of-merit}}</ref> He received the Saskatchewan Centennial Medal on 17 February 2006 [[Saskatchewan Centennial Medal]].<ref>{{cite web|title= Spring 2019 β Green & White β University of Saskatchewan|url= https://www.usask.ca/greenandwhite/issues/2006/spring2006/departments/class_notes.php|access-date= 18 August 2017|archive-date= 14 September 2014|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140914214131/http://www.usask.ca/greenandwhite/issues/2006/spring2006/departments/class_notes.php|url-status= dead}}</ref> ==Personal life== In 1978, with his wife, actress/director Susan Williamson, whom he married in 1968, Woolf moved to Canada where he took a teaching position at the [[University of Alberta]] Drama Department. By 1983, they had settled in [[Saskatoon]], Saskatchewan, where they were resident until his death. They had four children. Woolf died on 11 November 2021, at the age of 91.<ref>[https://www.scifibulletin.com/2021/11/13/rip-henry-woolf/ RIP Henry Woolf]</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Saskatoon theatre legend Henry Woolf dies at 91 |date=2021-11-14 |website=[[CBC News]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220506132106/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/henry-woolf-theatre-saskatoon-1.6248306 |archive-date=2022-05-06 |url-status=live |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/henry-woolf-theatre-saskatoon-1.6248306}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Saskatoon theatre icon Henry Woolf dies at 91 |date=2021-11-14 |website=[[CTV News]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403203532/https://saskatoon.ctvnews.ca/saskatoon-theatre-icon-henry-woolf-dies-at-91-1.5665644 |archive-date=2022-04-03 |url-status=live |url=https://saskatoon.ctvnews.ca/saskatoon-theatre-icon-henry-woolf-dies-at-91-1.5665644}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2021/nov/24/henry-woolf-obituary|title=Henry Woolf obituary|website=[[TheGuardian.com]]|date=24 November 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thestarphoenix.remembering.ca/obituary/henry-woolf-1083799881|title=Remembering the life of Henry WOOLF}}</ref> ==Filmography== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes |- |1965|| ''[[A Home of Your Own]]'' || || |- |1965|| ''[[San Ferry Ann]]'' || French Van Driver || |- |1967|| ''[[Marat/Sade (film)|Marat/Sade]]'' || Father || |- |1968|| ''[[Tell Me Lies (film)|Tell Me Lies]]'' || Guest #27 || Documentary |- |1968|| ''[[The Lion in Winter (1968 film)|The Lion in Winter]]'' || Strolling Player || |- |1968|| ''[[Great Catherine (film)|Great Catherine]]'' || Egrebyomka || |- |1969|| ''[[The Bed Sitting Room (film)|The Bed Sitting Room]]'' || Electricity Man || |- |1969|| ''[[Alfred the Great (film)|Alfred the Great]]'' || Wenda || |- |1970|| ''[[Figures in a Landscape (film)|Figures in a Landscape]]'' || Helicopter Pilot || |- |1972|| ''[[The Ruling Class (film)|The Ruling Class]]'' || Inmate #1 || |- |1972|| ''[[Savage Messiah (1972 film)|Savage Messiah]]'' || Gendarme || Uncredited |- |1972|| ''The Love Pill'' || Libido || |- |1972|| ''[[The Edwardians" Episode 2 Horatio Bottomley]]'' || Tommy Cox || |- |1973|| ''[[Steptoe and Son Ride Again]]'' || Frankie Barrow || |- |1975|| ''[[Galileo (1974 film)|Galileo]]'' || Father Clavius || |- |1975|| ''[[The Rocky Horror Picture Show]]'' || The Transylvanian #18 || |- |1976|| ''[[Rogue Male (1976 film)|Rogue Male]]'' || Ticket Seller || TV movie |- |1977|| ''[[Joseph Andrews (film)|Joseph Andrews]]'' || Mr. Wilson's Companion || |- |1978|| ''[[The Hound of the Baskervilles (1978 film)|The Hound of the Baskervilles]]'' || Shopkeeper || |- |1983|| ''[[Superman III]]'' || Penguin Man || |- |1983|| ''[[Gorky Park (film)|Gorky Park]]'' || Levin || |- |1987|| ''[[Maid to Order]]'' || Jailer || |- |1990|| ''Sylvan Lake Summer'' || Bastini || |- |2018|| ''Dancing Day'' || Mr. Doudie || |} ==Notes== <!--needs source citations throughout article to document statements, as per [[WP:BLP#Sources]]. Formatted section for subsequent notes.--> {{Reflist}} ==References== *Andrews, Jamie. [http://www.bl.uk/projects/theatrearchive/theroom.html "Interviews: Harold Pinter's 'The Room' "]. [[Theatre Archive Project]] ([[British Library]], the [[University of Sheffield]], and [[Arts and Humanities Research Council|AHRC]]). Accessed 21 August 2008. (Transcripts of interviews with [[Susan Engel]], [[James Severns]], [[Auriol Smith]], and Henry Woolf.) *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080723135044/http://www.neilinnes.org/articles/henry/henry.htm "An Exclusive Neilinnes.org Interview with Henry Woolf (Arthur Sultan)"]. ''neilinnes.org'' (Official Website of [[Neil Innes]]). 26 May 2005. Updated 25 July 2005. Accessed 23 August 2008. *[[Richard Eyre|Eyre, Richard]], and [[Nicholas Wright (playwright)|Nicholas Wright]]. ''[[Changing Stages: A View of British Theatre in the Twentieth Century]]''. London: [[Bloomsbury Publishing]], 2000. New York: [[Alfred A. Knopf|Knopf]], 2001. {{ISBN|0-375-41203-4}} (10). {{ISBN|978-0-375-41203-5}} (13). *Merritt, Susan Hollis. "Talking about Pinter". ''The Pinter Review: Collected Essays 2001 and 2002''. Ed. Francis Gillen and Steven H. Gale (Tampa: U of Tampa P, 2002). 144β67. (On the [[Lincoln Center]] 2001: [[Harold Pinter]] Festival Symposia; Woolf participated in "Actors on Pinter", along with [[Blythe Danner]] and [[Liev Schreiber]], as quoted.) *βββ. "''[[Monologue (play)|Monologue]]'' at Lincoln Center". ''Pinter Review'' (2002): 171β82. (Extended performance rev. (19 July 2001) incorporating interview with Woolf (the Man) and director Gari Jones, conducted in [[New York City]], on 29 July 2001.) *Nathan, David. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20220118064816/https://archive.thejc.com/search/dt4?&u=602424691227&s=henry%20woolf&m=and&refno=%2Farchive%2Foutput%2F2000%2F2000-2-+-+0395.pdf First Impressions: Room for a Little One"]. ''[[Jewish Chronicle]]'' 17 March 2000: 43. (Lead: "Actor Henry Woolf went to school with [[Harold Pinter]] and helped him get his [break?] in the theatre with 'The Room'. Now, Henry and Harold are working together again, [[David Nathan (journalist)|David Nathan]] reports.") [Includes interview with Woolf. Viewable and printable version accessible only to paid subscribers.] *Woolf, Henry. [https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2007/jul/12/theatre.haroldpinter "My 60 Years in Harold's Gang"]. ''[[Guardian.co.uk|The Guardian]]'' 12 July 2007, Stage. Accessed 21 August 2008. ==External links== * {{IMDb name|0941146|name=Henry Woolf}} * {{discogs artist|Henry Woolf}} * ''[http://www.haroldpinter.org/plays/title_monologue.shtml Monologue]'' at ''haroldpinter.org''. * ''[http://www.haroldpinter.org/plays/title_room.shtml The Room]'' at ''haroldpinter.org''. *{{Rotten Tomatoes person|henry_woolf|Henry Woolf}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Woolf, Henry}} [[Category:1930 births]] [[Category:2021 deaths]] [[Category:Alumni of the University of London]] [[Category:College of William & Mary alumni]] [[Category:English male film actors]] [[Category:Jewish English male actors]] [[Category:English male stage actors]] [[Category:English male television actors]] [[Category:Members of the Saskatchewan Order of Merit]] [[Category:People educated at Hackney Downs School]] [[Category:Homerton]] [[Category:Actors from the London Borough of Hackney]] [[Category:Academic staff of the University of Saskatchewan]] [[Category:English emigrants to Canada]] [[Category:Male actors from London]]
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