Max Grodénchik

"Grodénchik" redirects here. For the New York City Council member, see Barry Grodenchik.

Max Grodénchik (born November 12, 1952), also known as Michael Grodénchik, is an American stage, film, and television actor, best known for his role as Rom, a recurring character on the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Max Grodénchik
Grodénchik in 2009
Born	(1952-11-12) November 12, 1952 (age 72) New York City, U.S.
Other names	Michael Grodénchik
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1975–present
Relatives	Barry Grodenchik (brother)

Biography

Born to a Jewish family^[1] in New York City, Grodénchik worked in theater during the 1980s as Michael Grodénchik, where his performances received notice. Of his 1980 performance in John O'Keefe's All Night Long, Sarasota Herald-Tribune art reviewer Marcia Corbino wrote that Grodénchik was an intriguing actor who had "an enchanting, mobile comic face on which aberrant emotions flicker, spread, retreat, retrench and explode with a single instant."^[2]

Television

Grodénchik (right) with Star Trek: Deep Space Nine co-star Armin Shimerman (left)

Grodénchik is best known for his portrayal of the character Rom in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.^[3][4] He had previously auditioned for the role of Rom's brother Quark, but the role was given to Armin Shimerman. Grodénchik was instead hired to play the "Pit Boss" in charge of the gambling at Quark's Bar in the pilot episode, and his role gradually expanded from there.^[5] Shimerman and Grodénchik appeared on opposite teams on the short-lived British science fiction game show Space Cadets in 1997.

Grodénchik played baseball in high school, and considered a career in professional baseball before deciding to become an actor. In the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Take Me Out to the Holosuite", Grodénchik's character Rom is the clumsiest player on his team; during filming of the episode, the naturally right-handed Grodénchik played left-handed, as it was the only way he could convincingly play baseball poorly.

Grodénchik played Sovak and Par Lenor in Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes "Captain's Holiday" and "The Perfect Mate", respectively. He is famous for being an expert on the Rules of Acquisition and can quote them by memory. He played Gint, the writer of those rules and the first Grand Nagus, in a dream sequence involving Quark.

In spring 2007, Grodénchik attended the annual Vulcan Spock Days ceremony.

Voice work

In summer 2018, Grodénchik reprised the roles of Rom and Sovak in Star Trek Online's Deep Space Nine-themed expansion pack Victory Is Life.^[6]

Personal life and family

Grodénchik lives with his wife and daughter in Austria, in the small hamlet of Nußbach in the county Kirchdorf an der Krems.^[7][8]

Grodénchik's brother Barry Grodenchik is a former New York State Assemblyman^[9] and Deputy Borough President of Queens.^[10]

Episodes in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

"Emissary" "A Man Alone" "The Nagus" "Vortex" "The Homecoming" "Rules of Acquisition" "Necessary Evil" "The House of Quark" "Heart of Stone" "Prophet Motive" "Through the Looking Glass" "Little Green Men" "Our Man Bashir" "Bar Association" "Body Parts" "The Assignment" "The Ascent"

"Facets" "Doctor Bashir, I Presume?" "Ferengi Love Songs" "Call to Arms" "Behind the Lines" "Favor the Bold" "Sacrifice of Angels" "You Are Cordially Invited..." "The Magnificent Ferengi" "Profit and Lace" "Take Me Out to the Holosuite" "Treachery, Faith, and the Great River" "The Siege of AR-558" "It's Only a Paper Moon" "The Emperor's New Cloak" "The Dogs of War" "Family Business"

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1981	Chu Chu and the Philly Flash	Frankie
1982	Out	Arnold / Boy
1989	Night Court	Norman Snite	Episode: "The Cop and The Lady" (Airdate: October 18 1989)
1990-1992	Star Trek: The Next Generation	Sovak	Episode: "Captain's Holiday" (Airdate: April 2, 1990)
		Par Lenor	Episode: "The Perfect Mate" (Airdate: April 27, 1992)
1991	Barton Fink	Clapper boy
1991	The Rocketeer	Wilmer, Wounded Robber
1991	The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw	Bailiff	TV Movie
1992	Sister Act	Ernie
1993	Rising Sun	Club Manager
1993	Doorways	Roth	TV Movie
1993-1999	Star Trek: Deep Space Nine	Rom	34 episodes
1995	Apollo 13	FIDO Gold
1995	Here Come the Munsters	Norman Hyde	TV Movie
1995	Rumpelstiltskin	Rumpelstiltskin
1998	Star Trek: Insurrection	Trill Ensign	scenes deleted
2000	The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle	Horse Spy
2003	ER	Street Vendor	Episode 9:18 Finders Keepers
2003	Bruce Almighty	Control Room Operator
2007	King of California	Leonid
2011	CSI	Pawnbroker	Season 11, Episode 21: Cello and Goodbye
2018	Glossary of Broken Dreams	Biological Male
2019	Strawberry Moments	Filmstar
2020	Unbelievable!!!!!	Paramedic Yacky
2021	Masking Threshold	Officer 2
2023	Star Trek: Lower Decks	Rom (voice)	[11]
2024	Hacking at Leaves	Uncle Sam

References

1. Gershom, Yonassan (March 13, 2013). Jewish Themes in Star Trek. Lulu.com. ISBN 9781458397683.
2. Corbino, Marcia (July 9, 1980). "West Coast Drama". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Google Archive. p. 7C. Retrieved 23 July 2010.
3. Fleming, Andrew (June 29, 2010). "City receives kudos from deep space". Royal City Record. royalcityrecord.com. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. Retrieved 24 July 2010.
4. Terry J. Erdmann, Paula M. Block (2008). Star Trek 101 (illustrated ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 117. ISBN 978-0-7434-9723-7.
5. Kevin Dilmore (1999-03-23). "Spotlight: Max Grodenchik". StarTrek.com. Archived from the original on 2004-10-29. getting to know and work with Armin Shimerman has been one of the highlights of my life.
6. Pascale, Anthony (24 May 2018). "Interview: Max Grodénchik On Growing As A Ferengi And Bringing Rom To 'Star Trek Online: Victory Is Life'". TrekMovie.com. SciFanatic Network. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
7. "Der Außerirdische aus der Bronx", an interview with M. Grodénchik by Peter Menasse, published in NU (#69), page 12
8. "11 Things to Know About Max Grodenchik". StarTrek.com. November 12, 2016.
9. Joseph, George (May 9, 2003). "Assemblyman tells community 'doors are always open'". India Abroad. highbeam.com. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2010.
10. Rafter, Domenick (January 7, 2010). "Barry Back At Boro Hall". Queens Tribune. queenstribune.com. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2010.
11. Robertson, Iain. "Early Review: 'Star Trek: Lower Decks' Season 4 Levels Up But Keeps The Laughs". TrekMovie.com. Retrieved 2023-09-01.

External links

• Max Grodénchik at IMDb 
• Biography on StarTrek.com
• Chat transcript at the Wayback Machine (archived August 5, 2003)
• "Der Außerirdische aus der Bronx": interview with Max Grodénchik in the Austrian Jewish Culture magazine NU with information about his personal backstory (in German)