Roland Carey, a 1960s Italian epic star of Swiss-French dual nationality, stood out from other "peplum" actors due to his formal education at the Paris Conservatory. Born in Lausanne, Switzerland in 1933 to an Irish father and French mother, Roland's early career included performances on the Paris stage, such as Fortinbras in Hamlet, and several roles for the Comedie-Francaise.
From 1951, Roland played small parts in French films, and in 1956, he made his international screen debut in Trapeze, doubling for Burt Lancaster. Two years later, he attempted to make it big in Hollywood, but due to work permit issues, he was limited to television bit parts in Bonanza, Laramie, The Twilight Zone, U.S. Steel Hour, and Thriller.
Returning to Europe, Roland appeared in the television series Tales of the Vikings, produced in Munich for Kirk Douglas's company. This led to his discovery by Rome studios, who were seeking athletic actors to star in historical epics. With a diverse range of sporting activities listed on his CV, including tennis, horse riding, ice hockey, roller hockey, soccer, American football, skiing, water skiing, swimming, motor racing, sailing, boxing, karate, fencing, cycling, motocross, side-car racing, volleyball, basketball, and rafting, it was no surprise that Riccardo Freda chose him to play the lead role of mythological hero Jason in The Giants of Thessaly (1960).
Roland's subsequent roles included Sword of El Cid (1963) and Revolt of the Barbarians (1964). After his epic days, he shifted to more artistic parts and cameo roles, and used the pseudonym "Rod Carter" for action movies. Due to his theatrical background, he was also in demand as a voice actor at Fono Roma, where he dubbed Italian pictures into French, and he is fluent in English, German, and Italian.
Since 1982, Roland has been based almost entirely in Switzerland, residing near Florence. The Cinematheque Suisse assisted with this biography, and special thanks go to Roland Carey for his kind help.
