Robert Wolders

Here is a biographical sketch of Robert Wolders (with cited sources):

Biography: Robert Wolders

Full Name & Basic Info

  • Born 28 September 1936 in Rotterdam, Netherlands

  • Died 12 July 2018 in Malibu, California, USA

  • Nationality: Dutch

Career

  • Wolders moved to the U.S. initially to study psychotherapy at the University of Rochester.

  • He then enrolled at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York to train in acting.

  • He started appearing in U.S. television around 1965, with guest roles (e.g. in Flipper)

  • He is best known for playing Erik Hunter in the Western TV series Laredo (1966–1967)

  • He also had guest appearances on shows such as The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Bewitched, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Daniel Boone, The F.B.I., McMillan & Wife, among others

  • After marrying Merle Oberon in 1975, he largely stepped away from acting.

Personal Life & Relationships

  • Wolders married actress Merle Oberon in 1975; they remained married until her death in 1979.

  • From 1980 until Audrey Hepburn’s death in 1993, Robert Wolders was her companion.

  • Afterward, he was involved in relationships with Leslie Caron (1994–1995) and from 1995–2018 with Shirlee Fonda, widow of Henry Fonda.

Legacy & Recognition

  • Wolders is often remembered not just for his acting roles, but for his long, public relationship with Audrey Hepburn, during which he accompanied her on humanitarian missions with UNICEF.

  • He appears in archives such as the Television Academy, credited for his contributions to television in his acting career.

Articles by the author

At the time in our lives that we met, we had both made our mistakes. If chance would have had it that we would have met at an earlier stage, we might not have had the discoveries together that we did have and found those things in life together that were valuable to us at a later point in life when we were both more mature.

Robert Wolders