Jan Ladislav Rubeš CM (6 June 1920 – 29 June 2009) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

bass opera singer and actor.

Life and career

Rubeš was born in

Volyně Volyně is a town in Strakonice District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. Administrative parts Villages of Če ...

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

, to Ružena (née Kellnerová) and Jan Rubeš. Not long after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he graduated from the Prague Conservatoire and joined the Prague Opera House as a bass singer. In 1948, he won first prize at the Geneva International Music Festival and emigrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

at the end of the year to pursue a career in a wider sphere. Beginning as a singer with the

Canadian Opera Company The Canadian Opera Company (COC) is an opera company in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest opera company in Canada and one of the largest producers of opera in North America. The COC performs in its own opera house, the Four Seasons Cent ...

, he subsequently directed and became director of touring, before switching to radio and television, where he became well known as an actor and presenter in Canada. He is noted for his portrayal of

Amish The Amish (; pdc, Amisch; german: link=no, Amische), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptist Christian church fellowships with Swiss German and Alsatian origins. They are closely related to Mennonite churches ...

patriarch Eli Lapp in

Peter Weir Peter Lindsay Weir ( ; born August 21, 1944) is a retired Australian film director. He's known for directing films crossing various genres over forty years with films such as '' Picnic at Hanging Rock'' (1975), ''Gallipoli'' (1981), ''Witness ...

's major-market film ''

Witness In law, a witness is someone who has knowledge about a matter, whether they have sensed it or are testifying on another witnesses' behalf. In law a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, e ...

'' and Jan in '' D2: The Mighty Ducks''.

Family

On 22 September 1950, Rubeš married actress Susan Douglas. The couple had three sons: Christopher (died 1996), Jonathan, and Anthony. They remained married until his death in 2009.

Death

On 29 June 2009, Rubeš died following a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

at Toronto General Hospital.

Awards and recognition

* 1989: nominee, 10th Genie Awards, Best Actor, '' Something About Love'' * 1990: winner,

Earle Grey Award The Earle Grey Award is the lifetime achievement award for television acting of the Canadian Screen Awards, and its predecessor the Gemini Awards. It can be presented to an individual or collaborative team (such as SCTV or Royal Canadian Air Farce) ...

* 1995: appointed Member,

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

Filmography

Motion pictures

*1950: ''

Forbidden Journey ''Forbidden Journey'' was a 1950 political thriller film situated in post-World War II Canada. A communist spy (Jan Rubeš) attempts to pass information to his uncle in Canada while spies try to hunt him down. It starred Jan Rubeš and his future ...

'' - Jan Bartik *1963: ''

The Incredible Journey ''The Incredible Journey'' (1961), by Scottish author Sheila Burnford, is a children's book first published by Hodder & Stoughton, which tells the story of three pets as they travel through the Canadian wilderness searching for their beloved m ...

'' - Carl Nurmi *1975: ''

Lions for Breakfast ''Lions for Breakfast'' is a Canadian family drama film, directed by William Davidson and released in 1975.Bryan Johnson, "Heartwarming drama comes up cold". ''The Globe and Mail'', November 25, 1975. The film centres on two brothers, 22-year old ...

'' - Ivan *1980: ''

Mr. Patman ''Mr. Patman'' (also known as ''Crossover'') is a 1980 Canadian film directed by John Guillermin and starring James Coburn. Synopsis A nurse working the night shift in a psycho ward begins to lose his grip on reality. Cast Production The film ...

'' - Vrakettas *1981: '' The Amateur'' - Kaplan *1981: '' Your Ticket Is No Longer Valid'' - Psychiatrist *1983: ''

Utilities A public utility company (usually just utility) is an organization that maintains the infrastructure for a public service (often also providing a service using that infrastructure). Public utilities are subject to forms of public control and r ...

'' - Mort *1985: ''

'' - Eli Lapp *1985: ''

One Magic Christmas ''One Magic Christmas'' is a 1985 Christmas fantasy film directed by Phillip Borsos. It was released by Walt Disney Pictures and stars Mary Steenburgen and Harry Dean Stanton. It was shot in Meaford, Ontario with some scenes in Owen Sound, Ontari ...

'' - Santa Claus *1987: '' Dead of Winter'' - Dr. Joseph Lewis *1988: '' Blood Relations'' - Andreas *1988: ''

The Outside Chance of Maximilian Glick ''The Outside Chance of Maximilian Glick'' is a 1988 Canadian film based on the novel by Morley Torgov. The film was shot in Winnipeg and Beausejour, Manitoba. Plot The early 1960s: In preparation for his Bar Mitzvah, a Jewish boy from a small Man ...

'' - Augustus Glick *1988: ''This Kiss'' - Gordon Tobin *1988: '' Something About Love'' - Stan Olynyk *1989: '' The Experts'' - Illyich *1989: ''

Cold Front A cold front is the leading edge of a cooler mass of air at ground level that replaces a warmer mass of air and lies within a pronounced surface trough of low pressure. It often forms behind an extratropical cyclone (to the west in the Norther ...

'' - Zoubov *1989: ''Blind Fear'' - Lasky *1990: ''Divided Loyalties'' *1990: '' Courage Mountain'' - Grandfather *1990: ''

The Amityville Curse ''The Amityville Curse'' (released in the Philippines as ''Amityville Horror 1993'') is a 1990 Canadian supernatural horror film directed by Tom Berry and starring Kim Coates, Cassandra Gava and Jan Rubeš. It is loosely based on the novel of the ...

'' - Priest *1991: ''

Class Action A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class actio ...

'' - Pavel *1991: ''

Deceived ''Deceived'' is a 1991 American psychological thriller film directed by Damian Harris. The script was written by Mary Agnes Donoghue and rewritten by Bruce Joel Rubin. Goldie Hawn and John Heard star as a happily married couple whose lives ar ...

'' - Tomasz *1991: ''On My Own'' - The Colonel *1992: ''Don Gio'' - Journalist No. 2 *1994: ''Boozecan'' - Pops *1994: '' D2: The Mighty Ducks'' - Jan *1994: ''Mesmer'' - Prof. Stoerk *1995: '' Roommates'' - Bolek Krupa *1996: '' Never Too Late'' - Joseph *1997: ''Bach Cello Suite #4: Sarabande'' - Dr. Kassovitz *1998: ''Music from Another Room'' - Louis Klammer *1998: ''The White Raven'' - Markus Strand *1999: ''

Snow Falling on Cedars ''Snow Falling on Cedars'' is a 1994 novel by David Guterson. Guterson, a teacher, wrote the book in the early morning hours over ten years then quit his job to write full-time. Plot Set on the fictional San Piedro Island in the Strait of Jua ...

'' - Ole Jurgensen *1999: ''Nightmare Man'' - Evan Hannibal *2000: ''Believe'' - Jason Stiles *2001: ''Anthrax'' - Arthur Kowalski *2002: '' The Burial Society'' - Marvin Telekunsky *2003: ''The Republic of Love'' - Strom *2004: ''Daniel and the Superdogs'' - The Colonel

Television movies

*1975: ''Deadly Harvest'' *1977: ''The Day My Granddad Died'' *1978: '' Catsplay'' *1985: ''

Charlie Grant's War ''Charlie Grant's War'' is a Canadian television film, directed by Martin Lavut and broadcast by CBC Television in 1985.Donald Martin, "A Canadian hero finally gets his due". ''The Globe and Mail'', January 26, 1985. Set during World War II, the f ...

'' - Jacob *1985: ''Murder by Reason of Insanity'' - Giorgi Denerenko *1986: ''

The Marriage Bed ''The Marriage Bed'' is a Canadian television film, directed by Martin Lavut and broadcast by CBC Television in 1986. Adapted from the novel by Constance Beresford-Howe, the film stars Linda Griffiths as Annie Graham, a woman who is pregnant wit ...

'' - Max Ehrlich *1988: ''No Blame'' - Dr. Bloomer *1988: '' Two Men'' - Michael Barna *1990: '' Descending Angel'' - Bishop Dancu *1992: ''Devlin'' - Vittorio Di Fabrizi *1994: '' The Birds II: Land's End'' - Karl *1994: ''Lamb Chop in the Haunted Studio'' - Phantom *1995: '' Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story'' - Far *1997: ''Flood: A River's Rampage'' *1999: ''What Katy Did'' - Dr. Reinhart *2000: ''

The Christmas Secret ''The Christmas Secret'' is a 2000 American made-for-television family fantasy-drama film starring Richard Thomas and Beau Bridges based on the speculative book ''Flight of the Reindeer'' written by Robert Sullivan. It premiered on CBS on Dece ...

'' - Andree *2005: '' Our Fathers'' - Pope John Paul

Television series

*1963: '' The Forest Rangers'' - Jaworski / Gregor Kowalski *1970: ''Castle Zaremba'' - Col. Kazimir Zaremba *1983: ''Vandenberg'' - Lewis Vanderberg *1975-1983: ''Guess What'' (host) *1985: ''Kane & Abel'' (miniseries) - The Polish Consul *1985: ''

Murder in Space :''Murder in Space is also the title of a 1955 science fiction novel by David V. Reed and a 2007 mystery novel by Sydney J. Bounds.'' ''Murder in Space'' is a 1985 science fiction murder mystery television movie set in the near future. The cre ...

'' - Gregory Denarenko *1986: ''

Kay O'Brien ''Kay O'Brien'' is an American medical drama television series set at fictional Manhattan General Hospital, which aired for one season on CBS from September 25 to November 13, 1986, during the 1986-87 television season. Overview The series star ...

'' - Dr. Josef Wallach *1986: '' Crossings'' (miniseries) - Isaac Zimmerman *1988: ''

Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show ''The Elephant Show'' (from the second season onward, ''Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show'') is a Canadian preschool television show. The series premiered on CBC on October 8, 1984, and ended on February 26, 1989, after 65 episodes over five s ...

'' (as a special guest) - Jan Rubes *1990: '' Street Legal'' (season 4, Episode 4X13 "Leon's Story") - Arthur Robinovitch *1990: ''

Max Glick ''Max Glick'' is a Canadian television comedy-drama series, which aired on CBC Television from 1990 to 1991. Based on the Morley Torgov novel ''The Outside Chance of Maximilian Glick'' and its 1988 film adaptation, the series centred on Maximilia ...

'' - Augustus Glick *1992-1993: ''By Way of the Stars'' (miniseries) - Hausierer Nathan *1996: ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...

'' (Episodes '' Tunguska'' ncreditedand '' Terma'') - Vassily Peskow *1996-1998: '' Due South'' - Dr. Mort Gustafson *1997: ''The Third Twin'' (miniseries) *1999: '' The Outer Limits'' (Episode, "

Tribunal A tribunal, generally, is any person or institution with authority to judge, adjudicate on, or determine claims or disputes—whether or not it is called a tribunal in its title. For example, an advocate who appears before a court with a single ...

") - Robert Greene / Older Karl Rademacher *2000: ''

Stargate SG-1 ''Stargate SG-1'' (often stylized in all caps, or abbreviated ''SG-1'') is a military science fiction Adventure fiction, adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate, ''Stargate'' franchise. The show, created by Brad Wrigh ...

'' (season 3, Episode 21 "Crystal Skull") - Nicholas Ballard

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rubes, Jan 1920 births 2009 deaths People from Volyně Czech male film actors Czechoslovak male opera singers Czech male stage actors Czech male television actors Czechoslovak emigrants to Canada Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Members of the Order of Canada University of Windsor faculty Wilfrid Laurier University faculty Czech emigrants to Canada Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Canadian Screen Award winners