SongoftheSouth.net
 
Erik Rolf
as John

Born: June 29, 1915; St. Joseph, MO
Died: May 28, 1957; San Diego, CA (Age 45)
Interred at: Mount Hope Cemetery, San Diego, CA

Born of Norwegian parents in Minneapolis, the son of a clergyman and a teacher, Rolf Erik Ylvisaker was attracted to the theatre at an early age, and at fourteen was playing dramatic roles on the local radio station. One of the most active and versatile players in the New York radio world, he once set a record for appearing on forty-odd different shows in one week.

Erik was not only the acting husband of Sally in Song of the South, but also her husband in real life as well. Erik Rolf and Ruth Warrick were married April 15, 1938, and were divorced circa 1946. They had two children, Karen Elizabeth Rolf (born March 13, 1941) and Jon Erik Warrick Ylvisaker Rolf (a.k.a. Jon McNamara), born 1942. Their marriage and children were unknown to the public at the time.

Rolf appeared in roughly 20 films from 1942 to 1950, in both credited and uncredited roles, beginning with Atlantic Convoy (1942) as Gunther and ending with Davy Crockett, Indian Scout (1950) as Mr. Simms. He died in 1957 at the age of 45 of unknown cause, and is interred at Mount Hope Cemetery in San Diego, CA.

Little else is known about Erik Rolf, so if you have more information you'd like to share, please contact us!

Erik Rolf Photo Gallery: