Frank Muller
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| Frank Muller | |
 Frank Muller |
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| Born | May 5, 1951 (age 55) Netherlands |
| Spouse(s) | Erika Muller |
Frank Muller is a stage and television actor, but is most famous as an audiobook narrator. He is regarded by many fans and critics to be the greatest American audiobook narrator of the 20th century. On November 5th, 2001, Muller suffered severe head trauma as well as multiple fractures from a motorcycle accident in California.
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[edit] Early life
Muller was born in the Netherlands, the oldest of five children. His family emigrated to the US when he was five.
[edit] Career
Muller is a classically trained actor who began his career working on stage and doing commercials. He spent many years on the New York stage, working at the Riverside Shakespeare Company, the Roundabout Theater, and the New York Shakespeare Festival and others. He also garnered some small parts on television in such shows as "Law And Order", "Life Goes On", "Harry and the Hendersons", and "All My Children".[1]
It is as an audiobook narrator, however, that he is most famous. In 1979, Henry Trentman founded Recorded Books[2] and hired Muller as a narrator. The company began by publishing public domain audiobooks such as Call of the Wild and A Tale of Two Cities but later expanded into copyrighted works as audiobooks began to grow in popularity. Muller soon became the narrator of choice for such authors as Stephen King, John le Carre, John Grisham, Elmore Leonard and many others.
Muller won the 2003 Audie Award for Best Male Narrator for his reading of Elmore Leonard's TISHOMINGO BLUES.
[edit] Motorcycle Accident
On November 5, 2001, while riding his motorcycle in Los Angeles Muller sideswiped a center concrete construction divider. He was thrown from the bike and landed on his head and chest. Although he was wearing a helmet, he suffered severe head trauma and was later diagnosed with diffuse axonal injury.
Muller was taken Antelope Valley Medical Center in Lancaster, California where he went into cardiac arrest three times.
Muller had seven surgeries and was in a coma for over a month. He has not been able to work since his accident.
In 2002, Stephen King, who had also experienced a life-threatening auto accident, organized a benefit for Muller with Pat Conroy, John Grisham, and Peter Straub. King went on to help found the Wavedancer Foundation an organization dedicated to helping disabled performers, writers, and members of the production community[3].
[edit] Personal Life
Muller is married to Erika Muller and has two children, Diana and Morgan. In 2003, the Mullers moved to a house outside Raleigh, North Carolina that was modified specifically for Frank's therapeutic and rehabilitative needs.
