He was born on October 24, 1879, in
Brasher Falls, New York, the son of Albert Rolfe, founder of one of the first dance orchestras in the United States. At 8 years of age he played the
piccolo Although he filmed in California, Rolfe's productions were primarily made in and around
Fort Lee, New Jersey, and distributed through an agreement with
Louis B. Mayer's
Metro Pictures Corporation. Rolfe's company produced more than 50
silent films, several of which were collaborations with director/screenwriter
Oscar A. C. Lund, including the 1916 drama ''Dorian's Divorce'' starring
Lionel Barrymore. He acquired
Dyreda Art Film Company in 1915. His film company's last production was the 15-part
mystery serial,
The Master Mystery (1919), starring
Harry Houdini. Mounting financial difficulties resulted in
Rolfe Photoplays Inc. going out of business and before 1920 he was making a living producing and directing films for
Metro Pictures and other small independent production companies such as A. H. Fischer, Inc., for which he produced
Even as Eve and directed
Man and Woman, both released in 1920. Rolfe's last directorial effort was A. H. Fischer's
Miss 139 (1921), notable in that he managed to get a credible performance from star
Diana Allen, the less than talented but dazzlingly beautiful former
Ziegfeld Follies girl. She also starred in
Man and Woman. '' (1919) After leaving the film business, B.A. Rolfe quickly reestablished himself as a performing soloist, music instructor and vaudeville producer. He worked with
Vincent Lopez in 1924 and 1925. Inspired by
Paul Whiteman, by 1926 he had assembled his own New York City dance orchestra to perform at a
Broadway cabaret called the ''Palais D'Or''. Soon billed as "B.A. Rolfe (Trumpet Virtuoso) and his Palais D'Or Orchestra," by 1928 he was performing on radio and recording as "B.A. Rolfe and his Lucky Strike Orchestra" for
Edison Records. Rolfe was an exclusive Edison artist from 1926 through October, 1929, when Edison suspended its recording operation. Rolfe made electrical transcriptions in the early 1930s and made two Vitaphone shorts in 1934 and in 1935. In 1935–36, Rolfe was the leader of
The Goodrich Silvertown Orchestra. His radio broadcasts ran until the late 1930s during which time he and his orchestra played music with the sponsorship of
Believe It or Not! on
NBC. Rolfe also narrated the shows, providing an on-air description of a
Robert Ripley tale of wonder. With the onset of
World War II, Rolfe organized an all-female orchestra to perform patriotic songs. At the age of 76, he died of cancer in
Walpole, Massachusetts. ==Selected filmography==