Ivar Kants
Ivar Kants (born 19 July 1949) (commonly credited as Ivor Kants or Ivar Kanz) is an Australian actor of Latvian descent who has played numerous roles in soap operas including A Country Practice, G.P., All Saints, Water Rats, and Blue Heelers. He portrayed the role of Ken Garrett in the soap opera The Restless Years (1979)[1] and starred as Father Menotti, a caring inner-city parish priest in the 1980–81 TV series Menotti.[2]
Ivar Kants | |
|---|---|
| Born | 19 July 1949 Adelaide, South Australia, Australia |
| Occupation | Actor |
A more prominent role was as school principal Barry Hyde, a regular in Home and Away. He has also appeared in Neighbours, Heartbreak High and in the TV movie The Plumber.[3] He narrated the Hairy Maclary audiobook series released by ABC for Kids.
Early life
Ivar Kants was born on July 19, 1949, in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. Both his parents were originally from Latvia, but they immigrated to Australia before he was born. Ivar left home at 19 to enrol in National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney, and graduated with a degree in performing arts (acting) in 1970.
Career
In addition to his on-screen work, Ivar has also had an illustrious theatre career, with his many roles in Shakespeare plays colouring his vocal work.
His ability to tell a story is supported by the many narrations he has recorded for SBS and the ABC.
He narrated the Hairy Maclary audiobook series released by ABC for Kids.
Personal life
Ivar has been married to Jenny Kants since 1970. They have four children, including his daughter Sarah Kants (born 1974), who is an actress.
Filmography
Films
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | The Understudy | - | TV movie |
| 1977 | Ballantyne's Mission | - | TV movie |
| 1978 | Puzzle | Detective Constable Gilbert | TV movie |
| 1979 | Dawn! | Len | Movie |
| 1979 | The Plumber | Max | TV movie |
| 1979 | Barnaby and Me | Boris | TV movie |
| 1982 | Brothers | Kevin Wild | Movie |
| 1983 | The Dean Case | - | TV movie |
| 1983 | Moving Out | Mr Clarke | Movie |
| 1984 | The Secret Discovery of Australia | Mendonca | TV movie |
| 1984 | Silver City | Julian | Movie |
| 1985 | The Naked Country | Sgt Neil Adams | Movie |
| 1985 | Jenny Kissed Me | Lindsay Fenton | Movie |
| 1986 | The Three Musketeers | D'Artagnan (voice) | TV movie |
| 1986 | Twelfth Night | Orsino | Movie |
| 1987 | Gallagher's Travels | Gallagher | Movie |
| 1989 | The Edge of Power | Peter Mueller | Movie |
| 1989 | Cassidy | Seger | TV movie |
| 1993 | You and Me and Uncle Bob | Mick | Movie |
| 1993 | My Cage | Edmuds Berzs | Movie |
| 1995 | Return to Sandakan | Narrator | Documentary |
| 2002 | Counterstrike | Crewman | TV movie |
| 2015 | F Meat | Fielding | Short film |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973-1976 | Certain Women | Michael Fraser | TV series |
| 1975 | Shannon's Mob | Tarovic | Episode: Without Incident |
| 1976 | Homicide | Luke | Episode: Leader of the Pack |
| 1976 | The Outsiders | Franz Benson | Episode: Change of Image |
| 1977 | Bluey | Roger Stevens | Episode: Lonely Ordeal |
| 1977 | The Restless Years | Ken Garrett | TV series |
| 1978 | Glenview High | Roger | 2 episodes: Birdcage, The Sect |
| 1979 | Chopper Squad | James | Episode: The Big Trip |
| 1979 | Doctor Down Under | Dr. Bailey | Episode: The Name of the Game |
| 1980-1981 | Menotti | Father Jack Menotti | TV series |
| 1980-1981 | Cop Shop | Sgt. Roger Sutherland, Richard Evan Walters | 4 episodes |
| 1981 | Bellamy | Ogden | Episode: The Bank You Can Trust |
| 1982 | Runaway Island | Hendrik | TV series |
| 1982, 1988, 1993 | A Country Practice | Tom Hartley, Ron Greenway, Jonathan Fletcher | 6 episodes |
| 1983 | Carson's Law | Steve Coutts | 2 episodes: The Bolshevik, Picking up the Pieces |
| 1984-1985 | Special Squad | Scalese | 2 episodes: Ghosts, Business as Usual |
| 1986 | Prime Time | - | TV series |
| 1987 | The Flying Doctors | Tony Symonds | 4 episodes |
| 1988 | Rafferty's Rules | Father Phelan | Episode: Confessions |
| 1988 | The Last Resort | - | TV series |
| 1988-1989 | Mission: Impossible | Von Schau, Father Thomas Vallis | 2 episodes: The Legacy, Command Performance |
| 1992 | Six Pack | Ben | Episode: Loveless |
| 1993 | G.P. | Morris Stevens | Episode: Drowning Not Waving |
| 1994 | Escape from Jupiter | Karl | TV mini series |
| 1994 | Neighbours | Dave Gottlieb | 18 episodes |
| 1994-1997 | Heartbreak High | Roberto Bordino | TV series |
| 1994, 2002 | Blue Heelers | Terry Kennedy, Simon Curtis | 3 episodes |
| 1998 | Murder Call | Hugo Riccadelli | Season 2, Episode 17: Blowing the Whistle |
| 1999 | Water Rats | Geoff Cooper | Episode: Dangerous Encounters |
| 2001 | All Saints | Dr. Richard Bird | 5 episodes |
| 2001-2002 | Beastmaster | Ramah, Slythius | 9 episodes |
| 2002 | The Lost World | Warbek the Druid | Episode: Warbek the Druid |
| 2002 | Farscape | Gaashah | Episode: A Perfect Murder |
| 2004-2006 | Home and Away | Barry Hyde | TV series |
| 2018 | Harrow | Michael Wagner | Episode: Lex Talionis |
Accolades
Kants was nominated for Best Actor at the 1984 AFI Awards for Silver City.
References
- 1979: 22–28 December TV Times
- "Without much ado it's Channel 2" (The Sun-Herald, page 47)
- Chatenever, Rick (24 October 1980). "No Leaks in This Story". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Santa Cruz Sentinel. p. 19 (article includes photograph of Ivar Kants). Retrieved 24 April 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
