This socially committed stage writer and director has subsidized his strikingly original London theater work with (usually) villainous film and TV roles.
Born in London and trained at the Webber-Douglas Academy and in France, Berkoff has been appearing on stage since the late 1950s, usually in his own original or adapted works, which include "Kvetch" and "Prisoner in Rio" and versions of Kafka's "The Trial" and "Metamorphosis".
Berkoff made his screen debut in Stanley Kubrick's "A Clockwork Orange" (1971) and was also featured in the director's "Barry Lyndon" (1975). His feature career blossomed in the 80s with turns as generally unscrupulous characters, such as in "Octopussy" (1983). He is perhaps best known as the arch-villain of "Beverly Hills Cop" (1984), as Adolf Hitler in the TV epic "War and Remembrance" (ABC, 1988) and as the rival gangster who gets it between the eyes in "The Krays" (1990). He wrote, directed and played multiple roles in "Decadence" (1993), an adaptation of his play focusing on grotesque British aristocrats.
- Also Credited As:
Leslie Steven Berks
- Born:
August 3, 1937 in London, England, United Kingdom
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Job Titles:
Actor, Director, Playwright
Family
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Father: Alfred Berks. changed family surname from Berkovitch
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Mother: Pauline Berks.
Significant Others
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Companion: Clara Fisher. German
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Companion: . was married and divorced a second time
Education
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Ecole Jacques Le Coq, Paris, France, 1965
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Webber-Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, London, England
Milestones
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1959 Stage debut in Arthur Miller s A View from the Bridge
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1971 Film acting debut in A Clockwork Orange , sirected by Stanley Kubrick
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1975 Played fetured role in Kubrick s Barry Lyndon
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1979 London stage directing debut, Hamlet
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1984 Co-starred as villain, Victor Maitland, in Beverly Hills Cop
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1987 Wrote and directed the off-Broadway play Kvetch
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1993 Feature directorial debut (also starred), Decadence
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1999 Wrote the semi-autobiographical play East ; premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival
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2000 Appeared at Joe Pub in NYC in the one-person show, Shakespeare s Villains: A Masterclass in Evil
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2002 Returned to NYC stage in Berkoff Is Back ; also directed
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2003 Starred in the comedy feature Nine Dead Gay Guys
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2004 Appeared in the WWII drama Head in the Clouds starring Charlize Theron and Penélope Cruz
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Born in the East End of London
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During WWII, was evacuated to Luton before spending one year in the USA and then returning to England
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Founded London Theatre Group