Israeli Fiddler on the Roof star Chaim Topol lived double life as a Mossad agent his family reveals
Fiddler on the Roof star Chaim Topol was actually a Mossad agent who went on daring missions around the world, his family has revealed weeks after his death.
The Israeli actor, who died last month aged 87, was living a secret double life of “adventure and courage” between stints on stage.
Although he gained fame for his portrayal of Tevye in Shalom Aleichem’s stage musical and later in the 1971 film adaptation, his offstage life was even more extraordinary.
His family says he used his London home as a base to welcome Mossad spies sent from Israel, with whom he conspired to use his VIP status to access sensitive locations.
The trips mostly targeted the embassies, airports and airlines of Israel’s Arab enemies, as revealed by his widow Galia, and children Adi and Omer in an interview with the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
Omer told the publication, “I’m not quite sure what the correct definition is for the missions and duties he performed. But what is clear is that Dad was involved in covert missions on behalf of the Mossad.
The Israeli actor, who died last month aged 87 and was widely known by his surname Topol, lived a secret double life of “adventure and courage” between long stints on stage.
The trips mostly targeted the embassies, airports and airlines of Israel’s Arab enemies, as revealed by his widow Galia (pictured with Topol)
For a long time, Topol was among Israel’s most decorated actors. Among his roles, he starred as James Bond’s foil-turned-ally Milos Columbo in For Your Eyes Only alongside Roger Moore.
In 2015, Topol was celebrated for his contributions to film and culture with the Israel Prize for lifetime achievement, his country’s most prestigious award.
His status in those years was that of an international star and he could come and go as he pleased. He had the ability to deliver documents and take photos without anyone questioning anything.
“But he wasn’t James Bond or anything!”
The family claims that much of his work was performed when he moved to London in the 1970s for a period of Fiddler on the Roof on the West End.
He would regularly visit the Israeli embassy where he would meet his friend, Mossad officer Peter Zvi Malkin. The family said Mr. Malkin would visit their home by sneaking in through the backyard.
Topol’ was a kind of cover for it [Malkin’s] operations,” Galia said. “He would come to London and live with us when needed.”
One of the most astonishing stories of Topol’s double life was a mission that involved bugging the embassy of an Arab country in a secret European capital.
Topol and Malkin rented an apartment next to the embassy to drill holes in the shared wall and install listening devices, the family revealed.
But the mission was successful only thanks to Topol’s acting skills.
The apartment was dressed up as a dentist’s office, and when security from the Arab embassy came to check on the drilling noise next door, Topol lay down on the dentist’s chair.
Topol’s henchman, Zvi Zamir, who later became the head of the Mossad, quickly assumed the role of dentist while Topol acted as patient, and the guards soon left, after being convinced by the pair.
According to the family, Zamir regularly visited their home in London.
They claim that the day before the Yom Kippur War broke out in 1973, Zamir arrived at the family home to tell them about the upcoming war.
After the war, Topol joined the intelligence unit of the Israel Defense Forces, where he worked to build relationships with foreign journalists and covered peace talks between Israel and Egypt.
The family claims much of his work was performed when he moved to London in the 1970s for a period of Fiddler on the Roof on the West End (pictured Topol and Galia)
Film producer Norman Jewison (left), film actress Norma Crane and Topol (right) at the premiere of ‘Fiddler on the Roof’
Topol was portrayed opposite Ali MacGraw in June 1981 in the ABC miniseries The Winds of Wa
During this time he got to know Egyptian generals and other prominent security figures. When the First Lebanon War began in 1982, he was sent to Beirut to meet with foreign agents and journalists to gather information about missing Israeli soldiers.
A recipient of two Golden Globe awards and nominated for both an Academy Award and a Tony Award, Topol has long been among Israel’s most decorated actors.
Among his roles, he starred as James Bond’s ally Milos Columbo in For Your Eyes Only alongside Roger Moore.
More recently, in 2015, he was celebrated for his contributions to film and culture with the Israel Prize for lifetime achievement, his country’s most prestigious award.