Tom Rolf facts for kids

Ernst Ragnar Rolf (born December 31, 1931 – died July 14, 2014) was a very skilled film editor. He was known as Tom Rolf. Born in Sweden, he later became an American citizen. Tom Rolf worked on at least 48 movies during his career, which lasted over 50 years.

Some of his most famous movies include Taxi Driver by Martin Scorsese. For this film, he was nominated for a BAFTA Award in 1976. He also worked on The Right Stuff. For this movie, he and his team won an Oscar for Best Film Editing in 1983. Other well-known films he edited are WarGames, Jacob's Ladder, Heat, and The Horse Whisperer.

Tom Rolf was a member of the American Cinema Editors (ACE). This is a group for film editors. He was even the president of this group twice. He also served on the Board of Governors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for 15 years. This Academy gives out the Oscars. In 2003, he received a special award for his long and successful career.

About Tom Rolf's Life

Ernst R. Rolf was born in Stockholm, Sweden, on New Year's Eve in 1931. His father was an actor named Ernst Rolf. His mother, Tutta Rolf, was an actress from Norway. When Tom was very young, his father passed away.

Later, his mother married Jack Donohue. Jack was an American director and choreographer. He suggested that young Ernst try film editing. Before moving to the United States, Tom Rolf worked as a ski patrolman. He also worked as a sailor for the Norwegian Merchant Marine. After moving to the U.S., he spent three years in the United States Marine Corps.

Tom thought about becoming a film director, like his stepfather. But Jack Donohue told him that being a film editor first would teach him everything about directing. So, Tom decided to become an editor. Tom Rolf passed away in his home in France on July 14, 2014. He was 82 years old.

Tom Rolf's Editing Career

Starting Out in Film Editing

When Tom Rolf first started, he spent eight years learning the ropes. He worked as an apprentice and assistant editor. This means he helped more experienced editors. One of his first jobs as an editor was on a Swedish-American movie in 1959. It was called Space Invasion of Lapland.

He also worked as an assistant editor on the 1962 Western film Geronimo. Later, the same film company made him a main editor for their 1965 Western, The Glory Guys. He worked with another editor, Melvin Shapiro, on this film. They would work together again on Taxi Driver years later.

Tom Rolf also edited episodes for the TV show The Big Valley. He edited nine episodes in the first season (1965-1966). In 1966, he became the show's editorial coordinator. He held this job until the show ended in 1969. In 1967, he started using the name "Tom Rolf."

His first movie as a solo editor was Clambake in 1967. This film starred Elvis Presley. Tom Rolf worked on a few more movies for the same company. These included Underground (1970) and The McKenzie Break (1970). He worked with director Lamont Johnson on four films.

Big Movies of the 1970s

A major moment in Tom Rolf's career happened in 1975. Director Martin Scorsese asked him and Melvin Shapiro to edit his crime movie Taxi Driver. This film came out in 1976. It was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Many people now consider it one of the greatest films ever made.

Taxi Driver also received several BAFTA Award nominations. Tom Rolf, Melvin Shapiro, and Marcia Lucas were nominated for Best Editing. Martin Scorsese hired Tom Rolf again for his next movie, New York, New York (1977).

Paul Schrader, who wrote Taxi Driver, was very impressed with Tom Rolf. He hired Tom to edit his first movie as a director, Blue Collar (1978). He also worked with Paul Schrader on Hardcore. Tom Rolf also edited three films for director John Frankenheimer in the late 1970s. These included French Connection II (1975) and Black Sunday (1977).

Winning an Oscar and More Great Films

In the 1980s, Tom Rolf worked on Heaven's Gate. After that, he joined the editing team for Philip Kaufman's movie The Right Stuff. This film was about the space race. It was praised by critics and won four Academy Awards. Tom Rolf and his fellow editors won the Oscar for Best Editing.

Tom Rolf also won an "Eddie" Award from the American Cinema Editors (ACE) for his work on WarGames (1983). The director, John Badham, was so happy with Tom's first edit of WarGames that he approved it right away. Badham later worked with Tom Rolf again on Stakeout (1987).

For director Adrian Lyne, Tom Rolf edited 9½ Weeks (1986) and Jacob's Ladder (1990). Some experts believe Jacob's Ladder was a very important film for editing. This is because of how complex and detailed the editing was. Tom Rolf said in 2010 that Jacob's Ladder was the movie he enjoyed working on the most. He was very proud of it.

Tom Rolf also edited films for other famous directors. These included Black Rain (1989) for Ridley Scott. He also edited Heat (1995) for Michael Mann. He worked on The Horse Whisperer (1998) for Robert Redford. His last film was a Russian movie called Admiral, released in 2008.

Selected Films Edited by Tom Rolf