Jonathan Frakes

About this actor

Jonathan Scott Frakes (born August 19, 1952) is an American actor, author and director, best known for his portrayal of Commander William T. Riker in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and as David Xanatos in the animated television series Gargoyles. Moving on to directing in recent years, Frakes directed and also starred in Star Trek: First Contact as well as Star Trek: Insurrection. He is also the author of a book called The Abductors: Conspiracy. Frakes was born in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania. He grew up in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the state. He is a 1970 graduate of Bethlehem's Liberty High School, where he ran track and played with the famous Liberty High School Grenadier Band. Frakes received a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Theater Arts at Penn State University in the early 1970s, where he was a member of the Thespians. He continued his studies at Harvard University for two summers and spent several seasons performing at the Loeb Drama...