David Carroll (30 July 1950 – 11 March 1992), sometimes billed as David James Carroll, was an American actor whose last, and best remembered, role was that of Baron Felix von Gaigern in Grand Hotel: The Musical.
Carroll was born in Rockville Centre, New York, grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut, and graduated from Dartmouth College, where he was an active member of the Dartmouth Players. While at Dartmouth Carroll had star roles in several college musicals and in community theater.
He was nominated for two Tony Awards as Best Actor in a Musical: in 1988 for Chess and again in 1990 for Grand Hotel. Carroll also received three Drama Desk Awards nominations as an Outstanding Actor in a Musical: La bohème (1984) he costarred with Linda Ronstadt, Chess (1988), and Grand Hotel (1990). The Original Broadway Cast recording of Chess received a 1988 Grammy Award nomination for Best Musical Cast Show album. On the big screen, he had a brief scene with John Ritter in the movie Hero at Large.
Suffering from AIDS, he died of a pulmonary embolism in the restroom of the New York City BMG/RCA studio while attempting to record the cast album for Grand Hotel. The album had been delayed for years because of rights issues and legal disputes over the score. For the cast recording Brent Barrett ultimately performed the role of the Baron, but Carroll was featured on a bonus track: singing the Baron’s solo number “Love Can’t Happen”, recorded during his cabaret performance at Steve McGraw’s on 14 February 1991 with Wally Harper at the piano.
His long-time partner, Robert W. Homma, died on April 18, 2006.
Broadway
Off-Broadway
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Musical Chairs | Himself | TV Series, 1 episode |
| 1976 | Ball Four | Bill Westlake | TV Series, 5 episodes |
| 1979 | Paris | Donald Perth | episode: “Pawn” |
| 1979 | The Rockford Files | Randy Smith | episode: “Love Is the Word” |
| 1979 | CHiPs | Chuck | TV Series, 1 episode |
| 1980 | Knots Landing | David Crane | episode: “Let Me Count the Ways” |
| 1980 | Hero at Large | Actor on Bus | |
| 1980 | To Race the Wind | Jerry Baker | TV movie |
| 1980 | The Seduction of Miss Leona | Borgland | TV movie |
| 1980 | The Promise of Love | Chuck Wakemore | TV movie |
| 1981 | The Secret War of Jackie’s Girls | David | TV movie |
| 1981 | Splendor in the Grass | Johnny Masterson | TV movie, (final film role) |
