Born of Norwegian parents in Minneapolis, the son of a clergyman and a teacher, Rolf Erik Ylvisaker was attracted to the theatre at an early age, and at fourteen was playing dramatic roles on the local radio station. One of the most active and versatile players in the New York radio world, he once set a record for appearing on forty-odd different shows in one week.Not only the acting husband of Sally in Song of the South, but also in real life as well. Erik Rolf and Ruth Warrick were married April 15, 1938, and were divorced circa 1946. They had two children, Karen Elizabeth Rolf (born March 13, 1941) and Jon Erik Warrick Ylvisaker Rolf (a.k.a. Jon McNamara), born 1942. Their marriage and children were unknown to the public at the time.Rolf appeared in roughly 18 films from 1942 to 1950, beginning with Atlantic Convoy (1942) as Gunther and ending with Davy Crockett, Indian Scout (1950) as Mr. Simms. He died in 1957 at the age of 45.