Biographie
Frank Fontaine was born in Montreal and raised in New York State and England. He hails from a typical dysfunctional family. He started his college education at Georgetown University in Washington D.C., but left abruptly to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. Since then, he has portrayed over a hundred characters on screen and stage. His feature film credits include The Covenant, The Last Kiss, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, The Sum of All Fears, Where the Money Is, The Bone Collector, and Two Summers. His television work includes At the Hotel, The Reagans, Redeemer, Indian Summer, Foreign Objects, Nuremberg, and Maurice Richard. On stage, he has taken on roles such as Samuel Beckett in Burnt Piano, Caesar in Julius Caesar, Malvolio in Twelfth Night, Henry in The Fantasticks, Norman in On Golden Pond, Charles in The Middle Ages, Frank Srang in Equus, Lord Brockhurst in The Boyfriend, and Von Strack in Amadeus.
One of Frank’s greatest strengths is his abundant energy, which enables him to explore uncharted territories. He enjoys portraying multi-dimensional characters that defy conventional types. When recently asked about the similarities between himself and Herbert Poppy, the character he created in Two Summers, Frank responded, “Herbert and I met, became good friends; as often happens, we influenced each other. Our identities blurred. But once filming ended, he went his way and I went mine.” Trust plays a significant role in his life. “The more I trust myself and especially those around me on a project, the better my work becomes,” he explains.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Frank Fontaine worked as a news reporter in Quebec City for CFCM (Tele 4) and CKMI 5. He is also a writer. His television and stage plays, including The Great Bergen, The Monster, The Great Symphonic Adventure, The Inquest, and others, have been produced by CBC. A skilled storyteller, he crafts characters on the page with the same ease that he brings to life as a talented character actor.
