Einar Haraldsson From Iceland to Hollywood
First impressions of the business.
Einar was for many years the secretary of the Icelandic division at the International Policemen’s Friendship Association.
“In connection with that job, I had the opportunity to travel around the world to see how police authorities work. For example, I went to Georgia, Germany, Italy and Spain.
“In the early 1980s, Einar received an invitation to come and spend six weeks in Los Angeles, to get to know the police officers and the working environment at the LAPD, He went to film with them on calls and it was quite different from calls in Iceland.
Most of the police officers that Einar met were also working as bodyguards for the various movie stars who lived in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles. “Through them I got to meet a lot of them, like Clint Eastwood and Elton John which was a really interesting experience.
“This was Einar’s first encounter with the film industry and acting. He heard from more than one person that he could very well be at home in the acting profession.
“When you quit the cops, you should be an actor. ” They said I had a sense of humor and a good stage presence. I 10 just laughed at this idea.
Einar owes a lot to Sandra Bullock.
Einar Haraldsson’s story is like an exciting movie with an unexpected twist. He went to the police academy at the age of 19, worked in the investigative police in Iceland, later became Sandra Bullock’s bodyguard and is currently working as a film actor. Although he started chasing his acting dream late, having reached retirement age, he has no time to stop today.
19 years old to the Police Academy.
Einar was born in 1955 and grew up in a large group of siblings in Reykjavík. And like so many little boys, he found police work extremely exciting. When he was six years old, he announced to his parents that he was going to either be a cop or a firefighter.
He ended up choosing the previous job title.
“At that time, in 1974, there was a 20-year age limit for the police academy and I was still 19, but they accepted me. And in 1976 I started working for the police.
“The working environment of police officers was obviously different in the 1970s than it is today. Murders and brutal violent crimes were rare. One time we received a call about a boat that had capsized in the harbor.
We found it upside down and saved seven people, but heard a knocking in the hull; the people were stuck down. We can’t find them. Eventually a rescue team arrived and found five dead. It was terrible. They were still alive when we first arrived.
“Einar and his former colleagues meet regularly and agree that they would not want to work as police officers today because of how much society has changed. “What motivated me to continue in the police work was to protect and help people.
And I really enjoyed myself in the police at the time, I was able to work well with people and was involved in diverse projects,” says Einar.