Jonathan Frakes - guest 2027
Guest appearance: Saturday 17. April - Sunday 18. April 2027
Jonathan Frakes is an American actor and director. He was born in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, and raised in Bethlehem, where he attended Liberty High School. During his school years, he ran track, played trombone in the Liberty High School Grenadier Band, and graduated in 1970.
Frakes later studied at Pennsylvania State University, earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theater Arts in 1974. Although he had performed in school plays from an early age, it was during his time at Penn State that he decided to pursue acting professionally. He continued his education at Harvard University, where he joined the Loeb Drama Center acting company and graduated with a Master of Arts degree in 1976.
In 1987, Frakes was cast as Commander William T. Riker in Star Trek: The Next Generation, a role that would define much of his career. He was one of only two actors to appear in every episode of the series and directed eight episodes during its run. Following the show's conclusion in 1994, he reprised the role in the Star Trek: The Next Generation feature films (Star Trek: Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection and Star Trek: Nemesis), directing Star Trek: First Contact (1996) and Star Trek: Insurrection (1998).
Beyond The Next Generation, Frakes has appeared in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: Picard, and Star Trek: Lower Decks, making him the only regular Star Trek actor to appear across six different Star Trek television series.
Outside the Star Trek universe, Frakes is also well known as the longtime host of Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction, presenting seasons two through six of the popular anthology series exploring paranormal and unexplained phenomena.