Editing Jonathan Frakes (section)

==Career==
=== Early work ===
For a time in the late 1970s, Frakes worked for [[Marvel Comics]], appearing in costume as [[Captain America]] at conventions and other promotional events as well as for special appearances; he credits the experience in helping to hone his skills on interacting with fans on the ''Star Trek'' convention circuit.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2006/07/04/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-58/|publisher=[[Comics Should Be Good!]]|title=Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #58|date=July 4, 2006|author=Brian Cronin|access-date=December 4, 2006|archive-date=February 14, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080214222659/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2006/07/04/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-58/|url-status=dead}}</ref> After graduating from Harvard, Frakes moved to [[New York City]] and became a member of the [[Impossible Ragtime Theater]]. In that company, Frakes did his first off-Broadway acting in [[Eugene O'Neill]]'s ''[[The Hairy Ape]]'' directed by George Ferencz. His first Broadway appearance was in 1976 in the musical ''[[Shenandoah (musical)|Shenandoah]]''. Around the same time, he landed a role in the [[NBC]] [[soap opera]] ''[[The Doctors (1963 TV series)|The Doctors]]''.<ref name="TNGComp18"/> When his character, Vietnam veteran Tom Carroll, was dismissed from the show, Frakes, urged by his agent, moved to [[Los Angeles]], where he obtained guest spots in many of the top television series of the 1970s and 1980s, including ''[[The Waltons]]'', ''[[Eight Is Enough]]'', ''[[Hart to Hart]]'', ''[[Barnaby Jones]]'', ''[[The Dukes of Hazzard]]'', ''[[Matlock (1986 TV series)|Matlock]]'', ''[[Quincy, M.E.]]'', and ''[[Hill Street Blues]]''.

He played the part of [[Charles Lindbergh]] in a 1983 episode of ''[[Voyagers!]]'' titled "An Arrow Pointing East". In 1983, he had a role in the short-lived NBC prime time soap opera ''[[Bare Essence]]'' (which also starred his future wife Genie Francis), and a supporting role in the equally short-lived primetime soap ''[[Paper Dolls]]'' in 1984.<ref name="TNGComp18">{{cite book |last1=Nemecek |first1=Larry |editor1-first=Dave |editor1-last=Stern |title=The Star Trek The Next Generation Companion |year=1992 |publisher=[[Pocket Books]] |location=New York|isbn=0-671-79460-4 |page=[https://archive.org/details/startreknextgene00neme/page/18 18] |chapter=Rebirth |chapter-url-access=registration |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/startreknextgene00neme/page/18 }}</ref> He also had recurring roles in ''[[Falcon Crest]]''<ref name="TNGComp18"/> and the [[miniseries]] ''[[North and South (TV miniseries)|North and South]]''. Frakes appeared in the 1986 miniseries ''[[Dream West]]''.

=== ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'' (1987) ===
{{Further|Star Trek: The Next Generation}}
In 1987, Frakes was cast in the role of Commander William T. Riker on ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]''.<ref>{{cite news|author=Sylvia Lawler|newspaper=The Morning Call|title=Making history: "North and South's" Jonathan Frakes is crafting his future– History yields a good part for Jonathan Frakes|location=Allentown, PA|date=May 5, 1986|pages=D.01 |url=http://www.jf-fansite.de/interview08.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719050028/http://www.jf-fansite.de/interview08.htm|archive-date=July 19, 2011}}</ref> He was one of only two actors to appear in every episode (the other being Patrick Stewart). While appearing on the show, Frakes was allowed to sit in on casting sessions, concept meetings, production design, editing, and post-production, which gave him the preparation he needed to become a director.<ref name=VultJai>{{cite web |last=Marsh |first=Calum |title=Star Trek Legend Jonathan Frakes on Discovery, Movie Jail, and Life as an Actor's Director |url=https://www.vulture.com/2019/01/star-trek-jonathan-frakes-director-interview.html |website=[[Vulture (web site)|Vulture]] |access-date=26 May 2021 |date=January 24, 2019}}</ref> He directed eight episodes of the show<ref name="intl_Frak">{{Cite web |title=Frakes |work=Star Trek |access-date=January 30, 2020 |url= https://intl.startrek.com/database_article/frakes-cast}}</ref> and 21 episodes of the ''Star Trek'' universe.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=2021-04-09 |title=Star Trek: Every Actor Who Also Directed Episodes Or Movies|url=https://screenrant.com/star-trek-actor-directed-movies-episodes/|access-date=2021-05-11|website=ScreenRant |language=en-US}}</ref> After the TV series ended in 1994, Frakes reprised his role in the ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'' films, two of which (''[[Star Trek: First Contact]]'' and ''[[Star Trek: Insurrection]]'') he directed.<ref name="intl_Trek">{{Cite web |title=Trek Directors' School: Jonathan Frakes |work=Star Trek |date=August 18, 2019 |access-date=January 30, 2020 |url= https://intl.startrek.com/article/star-trek-directors-jonathan-frakes-interview}}</ref>

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 ''Star Trek'' regular to appear in six ''Star Trek'' series. He has also directed episodes in six of the series (''TNG'', ''DS9,'' ''VOY'', ''DIS'', ''PIC'', and ''SNW'').<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Vary |first=Adam B. |date=2023-07-25 |title=Jonathan Frakes Looks Back at His 'Star Trek' TV Directing Career, From 'Next Generation' to the 'Strange New Worlds'-'Lower Decks' Crossover |url=https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/jonathan-frakes-star-trek-director-strange-new-worlds-lower-decks-crossover-1235680140/ |access-date=2023-08-01 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref> Frakes is also one of six ''Star Trek'' actors (the other actors being [[Kate Mulgrew]], [[Michael Dorn]], [[George Takei]], [[Avery Brooks]] and [[Majel Barrett]]) to lend their voices to the video game ''Star Trek: Captain's Chair'', reprising his role as Riker when users visit the ''Enterprise''-E bridge featured in the game.

=== After ''Star Trek'' ===
[[File:Jonathan Frakes cropped1.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Frakes in 2005]]
Branching out from the ''Star Trek'' franchise, Frakes directed the 2002 family film ''[[Clockstoppers]]''. However, his next film, 2004's ''[[Thunderbirds (2004 film)|Thunderbirds]]'', was a [[box-office bomb]], which he has said single-handedly almost destroyed what had been a successful directing career: "[My] name was taken off the lists ... I went from 60 to zero. It was a wake-up for me. I had been so positive, and so blessed, and so fortunate."<ref name=VultJai/> It was several years before Frakes was given another opportunity to direct for television, and ''Thunderbirds'' remains his final theatrical directorial credit.

Much of Frakes's acting work after ''Star Trek'' has been [[animation]] [[voice acting]], most notably voicing the recurring role of David Xanatos in the animated series ''[[Gargoyles (TV series)|Gargoyles]]'', and he provided the voice of his own head in a jar in the ''[[Futurama]]'' episode "[[Where No Fan Has Gone Before]]". He had a small, uncredited role in the 1994 film ''[[Camp Nowhere]]''. Frakes also voiced [[Finn the Human]]'s adult version in the episodes "[[Puhoy]]" and "[[Dungeon Train]]" on ''[[Adventure Time]]''.

Frakes was an executive producer for the WB series ''[[Roswell (TV series)|Roswell]]'', directed several episodes, and guest-starred in three episodes. His relationship with ''Star Trek'' is downplayed in the [[List of Roswell episodes#Season 3 (2001–02)|season 3 episode]] "Secrets and Lies", in which the alien character [[Max Evans (Roswell)|Max]] auditions for a guest role as an alien for ''Star Trek: Enterprise''.

Frakes appeared on the 1994 [[Phish]] album ''[[Hoist (album)|Hoist]]'', playing [[trombone]] on the track titled "Riker's Mailbox". Frakes would occasionally perform on the trombone during his tenure as Commander Riker, drawing on his college marching band experience. He was also a member of "The Sunspots", a vocal backup group of ''Star Trek'' cast members that appeared on [[Brent Spiner]]'s 1991 album ''[[Ol' Yellow Eyes Is Back]]''.

Frakes hosted ''The Paranormal Borderline'', a short-lived television series on [[UPN]], which dealt with the paranormal and mysterious happenings and creatures.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rosenberg |first=Howard |title='Borderline' Reveals Some Spooky Stuff |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-03-12-ca-45910-story.html |access-date=28 May 2021 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=March 12, 1996}}</ref> In one episode, Frakes presented an interview of reporter Yolanda Gaskins with veteran astronaut [[Gordon Cooper]], where they discussed the possibility of aliens having visited Earth in the past.<ref>{{YouTube|dvPR8T1o3Dc}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.qtm.net/~geibdan/coop.html|title=UFO Folklore Center – Transcript of Interview|website=www.qtm.net|access-date=August 13, 2020|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205120237/http://qtm.net/~geibdan/coop.html|archive-date=February 5, 2009}}</ref> He hosted seasons 2 through 6 of ''[[Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction]],'' which also dealt with the paranormal world.

Frakes and Francis appeared together in ''[[Lois & Clark]]'' in the episode "Don't Tug on Superman's Cape" as a creepily too-good-to-be-true couple. He narrated the [[History (U.S. TV channel)|History Channel]]'s ''That's Impossible''.

In addition to ''Roswell'', Frakes has directed episodes of ''[[Leverage (American TV series)|Leverage]]'',<ref name="Press_Kit">{{cite web|url=http://news.turner.com/press_kits_file.cfm?presskit_id=193&pfile_id=932|title=Leverage Season 3 Episode Synopses|publisher=Turner Network|author=Turner Network|format=[[Microsoft Word]] document|access-date=May 7, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315053922/http://news.turner.com/press_kits_file.cfm?presskit_id=193&pfile_id=932|archive-date=March 15, 2014}}</ref> ''[[Castle (TV series)|Castle]]'', ''[[NCIS: Los Angeles]]'', ''[[Burn Notice]]'', ''[[Falling Skies]]'' and most recently Marvel's ''[[Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.]]'', ''[[Switched at Birth (TV series)|Switched at Birth]]'', ''[[Hit the Floor (TV series)|Hit the Floor]]'', ''[[The Librarians (2014 TV series)|The Librarians]]'', and ''[[The Orville]]''. So far, ''The Librarians'' has been one of the most positively rated and recommended work of his out of the previous, following the debut film ''The Librarian and the Quest for the Spear''.

Frakes works with the Workshops, the Waterfall Arts Center, and the Saltwater Film Society, all located in Maine, where he teaches classes on film direction. He has also previously taught directing and filmmaking courses at Rockport College, now called [[Maine Media College]].<ref name="encyclopedia"/><ref>{{cite news |last=Caldwell |first=Rob |title=When Jonathan Frakes, TNG's Riker, lived in Maine |url=https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/local/207/archives-jonathan-frakes-star-treks-riker-lives-in-maine/97-92a570a8-5d4e-4c0c-a8ca-6eabf32b43e7 |access-date=20 April 2021 |publisher=News Center Maine |date=2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Barnett |first1=Amy Louise |title=Profile of Jonathan Frakes, 54 |journal=Portland Monthly |date=October 2006 |pages=30–31 |url=https://digitalcommons.portlandlibrary.com/news_portmonthly/1169/ |access-date=20 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Jonathan Frakes Biography |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000408/bio |website=IMDB |access-date=20 April 2021}}</ref> He and Francis owned a home furnishings store in [[Belfast, Maine]], called ''The Cherished Home'', which closed in August 2012 due to her being too busy with her acting to spend adequate time at the store.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=480447481983740&id=106099989418493|title=Log In or Sign Up to View|website=www.facebook.com}}</ref>