Erland Van Lidth De Jeude
Encyclopedia
Erland van Lidth de Jeude (June 3, 1953 - September 23, 1987) was a Dutch
-born actor who appeared in several Hollywood films, as well as being a wrestler, an opera
singer bass-baritone
, and also worked with computer
s. While his large size (2.03m", ~380 lbs, c.
1980) was not unusual in the opera and wrestling worlds, it was key to his movie roles.
, the Netherlands
, and came to the United States
with his family in 1958, where they resided in Orange, New Jersey
until 1960, Stamford, Connecticut
(1960-1962), Ridgefield, Connecticut
(1962-1970), and Mont Vernon, New Hampshire
(1970-1973). In addition to studying computer science
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(graduating with an B.S.
in Computer Science & Electrical Engineering in 1977), he also distinguished himself on the wrestling team and in stage productions, the most successful of which was A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
, in which he played Miles Gloriosus
. After graduation he worked in Manhattan
as a computer professional, while also attending the 1976 Summer Olympics
in Montreal
as an alternate in the heavyweight
wrestling team. His preparation for the 1980 Olympics
in Moscow
was cut short when the United States boycotted the event. He also won the Bronze Medal in the international competition held in Tehran
in 1978.
Erland was spotted in the New York Athletic Club by a casting director, which led to his role as the fearsome "Terror", leader of the Fordham Baldies, in the 1979 film The Wanderers
. The next year, Erland was featured in the hit comedy Stir Crazy
, playing Grossberger, the cellmate of Richard Pryor
and Gene Wilder
. He continued to juggle his careers in film and computers while also singing frequently with the Amato Opera
in New York, studying to become a Heldenbaritone
, and teaching computer programming at Manhattan Community College. Erland was also featured in the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger
film The Running Man
, which was his last film appearance. Playing Dynamo, a sadistic "stalker" who is known for electrocuting his victims, Erland also got the chance to use his operatic experience by having his character sing excerpts from opera.
He was born into the Dutch noble family Van Lidth de Jeude and held the predicate of nobility Jonkheer
(comparable to the British Esquire
and the German Junker
).
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
-born actor who appeared in several Hollywood films, as well as being a wrestler, an opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer bass-baritone
Bass-baritone
A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing three Wagnerian roles: the Dutchman in Der fliegende...
, and also worked with computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
s. While his large size (2.03m", ~380 lbs, c.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1980) was not unusual in the opera and wrestling worlds, it was key to his movie roles.
Biography
Van Lidth de Jeude was born in HilversumHilversum
is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Located in the region called "'t Gooi", it is the largest town in that area. It is surrounded by heathland, woods, meadows, lakes, and smaller villages...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, and came to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with his family in 1958, where they resided in Orange, New Jersey
Orange, New Jersey
The City of Orange is a city and township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 30,134...
until 1960, Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 122,643, making it the fourth largest city in the state and the eighth largest city in New England...
(1960-1962), Ridgefield, Connecticut
Ridgefield, Connecticut
Ridgefield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains, the 300-year-old community had a population of 24,638 at the 2010 census. The town center, which was formerly a borough, is defined by the U.S...
(1962-1970), and Mont Vernon, New Hampshire
Mont Vernon, New Hampshire
Mont Vernon is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,409 at the 2010 census.It is not clear why it is spelled differently from the many other towns in the United States named after Mount Vernon, the home of George Washington...
(1970-1973). In addition to studying computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
(graduating with an B.S.
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in Computer Science & Electrical Engineering in 1977), he also distinguished himself on the wrestling team and in stage productions, the most successful of which was A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart....
, in which he played Miles Gloriosus
Miles Gloriosus
Miles Gloriosus is a stock character of a boastful soldier from the comic theatre of ancient Rome, and variations on this character have appeared in drama and fiction ever since. The character derives from the alazôn or "braggart" of the Greek Old Comedy...
. After graduation he worked in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
as a computer professional, while also attending the 1976 Summer Olympics
1976 Summer Olympics
The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
as an alternate in the heavyweight
Heavyweight
Heavyweight is a division, or weight class, in boxing. Fighters who weigh over 200 pounds are considered heavyweights by the major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the World Boxing Association, the World Boxing Council, and the World Boxing...
wrestling team. His preparation for the 1980 Olympics
1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament...
in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
was cut short when the United States boycotted the event. He also won the Bronze Medal in the international competition held in Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
in 1978.
Erland was spotted in the New York Athletic Club by a casting director, which led to his role as the fearsome "Terror", leader of the Fordham Baldies, in the 1979 film The Wanderers
The Wanderers (1979 film)
The Wanderers is a 1979 greaser film based on the novel by Richard Price .-Overview:...
. The next year, Erland was featured in the hit comedy Stir Crazy
Stir Crazy (film)
Stir Crazy is a 1980 American comedy film starring Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor as down-on-their-luck friends who are given 125-year prison sentences after being framed for a bank robbery; while in prison they befriend other inmates and ultimately escape. In 2000, Total Film magazine voted it the...
, playing Grossberger, the cellmate of Richard Pryor
Richard Pryor
Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor was an American stand-up comedian, actor, social critic, writer and MC. Pryor was known for uncompromising examinations of racism and topical contemporary issues, which employed colorful vulgarities, and profanity, as well as racial epithets...
and Gene Wilder
Gene Wilder
Gene Wilder is an American stage and screen actor, director, screenwriter, and author.Wilder began his career on stage, making his screen debut in the film Bonnie and Clyde in 1967. His first major role was as Leopold Bloom in the 1968 film The Producers...
. He continued to juggle his careers in film and computers while also singing frequently with the Amato Opera
Amato Opera
The Amato Opera was an opera company located in the East Village neighborhood of the Manhattan borough of New York City. The company was produced by the husband and wife team of Anthony and Sally Amato and presented opera on a small scale with a reduced orchestra at low prices...
in New York, studying to become a Heldenbaritone
Heldenbaritone
A Heldenbaritone is an opera singer, a German dramatic baritone."Heldenbaritone" is a fach that is usually associated with the operas of Richard Wagner. It is usually sung by bass-baritones such as Hans Hotter, Theo Adam or Bryn Terfel. Wagner himself calls this voice type "Hoher Bass" rather...
, and teaching computer programming at Manhattan Community College. Erland was also featured in the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
film The Running Man
The Running Man (film)
The Running Man is a 1987 American action film loosely based on Stephen King's 1982 novel of the same name. Directed by Paul Michael Glaser, the film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, María Conchita Alonso, Jesse Ventura, Jim Brown, and Richard Dawson....
, which was his last film appearance. Playing Dynamo, a sadistic "stalker" who is known for electrocuting his victims, Erland also got the chance to use his operatic experience by having his character sing excerpts from opera.
Death
Van Lidth De Jeude died of heart failure in September 1987, a few months after finishing work on The Running Man: he was 34 years old.Personal
Erland van Lidth de Jeude married Annette Friend on September 22, 1986, with whom he had one son, Christiaan. His brother Philip van Lidth de Jeude and sister Philine van Lidth de Jeude are also opera singers.He was born into the Dutch noble family Van Lidth de Jeude and held the predicate of nobility Jonkheer
Jonkheer
Jonkheer is a Dutch honorific of nobility.-Honorific of nobility:"Jonkheer" or "Jonkvrouw" is literally translated as "young lord" or "young lady". In medieval times such a person was a young and unmarried son or daughter of a high ranking knight or nobleman...
(comparable to the British Esquire
Esquire
Esquire is a term of West European origin . Depending on the country, the term has different meanings...
and the German Junker
Junker
A Junker was a member of the landed nobility of Prussia and eastern Germany. These families were mostly part of the German Uradel and carried on the colonization and Christianization of the northeastern European territories during the medieval Ostsiedlung. The abbreviation of Junker is Jkr...
).
Filmography
- The WanderersThe Wanderers (1979 film)The Wanderers is a 1979 greaser film based on the novel by Richard Price .-Overview:...
(1979) "Terror" (as Erland Van Lidth De Jeude) - Stir CrazyStir Crazy (film)Stir Crazy is a 1980 American comedy film starring Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor as down-on-their-luck friends who are given 125-year prison sentences after being framed for a bank robbery; while in prison they befriend other inmates and ultimately escape. In 2000, Total Film magazine voted it the...
(1980) "Grossberger" (as Erland van Lidth de Jeude) - Alone in the DarkAlone in the Dark (1982 film)Alone in the Dark is a 1982 slasher film directed by Jack Sholder. It was the director's debut film and was the first motion picture to be released by New Line Cinema. The film's tagline is: "They're out... for blood! Don't let them find you--"-Plot:...
(1982) "Ronald 'Fatty' Elster" (as Erland van Lidth) - As the World Turns (1982) "Bruno" (as Erland van Lidth and as Erland van Lidth de Jeude)
- The Running ManThe Running Man (film)The Running Man is a 1987 American action film loosely based on Stephen King's 1982 novel of the same name. Directed by Paul Michael Glaser, the film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, María Conchita Alonso, Jesse Ventura, Jim Brown, and Richard Dawson....
(1987) "Dynamo" (as Erland Van Lidth)