Fred Applegate (actor)

Fred Applegate
Born (1953-02-20) February 20, 1953 (age 71)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • singer
  • dancer

Frederick Applegate (born February 20, 1953)[1] is an American actor, singer and dancer.

Early life and education

Applegate grew up in Maplewood, New Jersey, and South Orange, New Jersey. He attended Columbia High School and was on the original Ultimate (Frisbee) team. He graduated from Northwestern University.[2]

Career

Stage

Applegate played Cogsworth in the national tour of Beauty and the Beast. He originated the roles of Inspector Kemp and The Blind Hermit in the Broadway musical Young Frankenstein (2007).[3] He originated the role of the Monsignor in the Broadway production of Sister Act (2011)[4] and the role of Father Jack O'Brien in The Last Ship, which premiered on Broadway in October 2014.[3]

Other Broadway credits include M. Dindon/M. Renaud in La Cage aux Folles (2010),[5] Max Bialystock in The Producers (replacement, 2003; in the West End production in 2005[6]) and as Franz Leibkind in the first national tour. He also played Max Detweiler in The Sound of Music. (1998).[3]

Applegate appeared Off-Broadway at Lincoln Center's Mitzi Newhouse Theater in the musical Happiness in 2009, directed and choreographed by Susan Stroman.[7] Applegate played the role of "Panisse" in the Encores! staged concert of Fanny in February 2010.[8] He participated in a reading of a new musical, Presto Change-O in December 2014, directed by Marc Bruni, as a presentation of the Barrington Stage Company Musical Theatre Lab.[9] He appeared in the national tour of Anything Goes, as "Moonface Martin", which started in October 2012.[10]

Applegate has played the role of the Wizard in the Broadway production Wicked, [11][3] played the role of Constable Joe in the Broadway musical Tuck Everlasting, [12][3] and also played the role of Uncle Patrick Carney in the Broadway play The Ferryman.[13]

Applegate was a member of the resident acting company of the Guthrie Theatre for three years.[5]

In 2022, he played Arvide Abernathy in Guys and Dolls at the Kennedy Center.[14]

Voice, television and film

Applegate's voice can be recognized as the narrator of documentaries for PBS, National Geographic, Disney, Bravo, and A&E. He has guest starred in over 150 episodes of television including Seinfeld, Cosby, Growing Pains, FM, Malcolm in the Middle, ER, Murphy Brown, Newhart, Will & Grace and many others.[5] His film credits include Georgia Rule,[15] Stuart Saves His Family (1995),[16] and The Producers.[17][1]

References

  1. ^ a b Fred Applegate at the Internet Broadway Database
  2. ^ Official website; accessed September 18, 2015
  3. ^ a b c d e "Fred Applegate Broadway" playbillvault.com, accessed September 18, 2015
  4. ^ Hetrick, Adam. "Victoria Clark, Fred Applegate, Chester Gregory Will Be Part of Broadway's 'Sister Act'" Playbill, February 1, 2011
  5. ^ a b c "Fred Applegate Joins Cast of 'La Cage Aux Folles'", nymetroparents.com, accessed September 18, 2015.
  6. ^ Inverne, James. "Fred Applegate Named New Max for London Producers", Playbill, April 7, 2005
  7. ^ Happiness Archived 2012-10-08 at the Wayback Machine, lortel.org, accessed September 18, 2015
  8. ^ Gans, Andrew. "Encores! 'Fanny' Plays City Center Beginning Feb. 4", Playbill, February 4, 2010
  9. ^ Gioia, Michael. "Kerry Butler, Jeremy Jordan, Judy McLane, Brad Oscar Say 'Presto Change-O' in Today's Musical Reading" Playbill, December 19, 2014
  10. ^ Jones, Kenneth. "National Tour of 'Anything Goes' Has Fred Applegate, Erich Bergen, Alex Finke, Joyce Chittick On Board", Playbill, August 7, 2012.
  11. ^ Lloyd Webber, Imogen. "Welcome New Ozians! Michele Lee & Fred Applegate Will Join Cast of Wicked on Broadway", Broadway.com, June 23, 2015.
  12. ^ Gioia, Michael. "Carolee Carmello and Andrew Keenan-Bolger Will Return to Broadway as Mother and Son in 'Tuck Everlasting'", Playbill, September 17, 2015.
  13. ^ "Fred Applegate". Playbill. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  14. ^ Guys and Dolls cast
  15. ^ "'Georgia Rule' Cast and Overview", TCM.com, accessed September 18, 2015.
  16. ^ "'Stuart Saves His Family' Cast and Overview", TCM.com, accessed September 18, 2015
  17. ^ Fred Applegate at IMDb