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Byron Barr
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Byron Barr (August 18, 1917 – November 3, 1966), sometimes billed as Byron S. Barr, was an American actor. He appeared in 19 films from 1944 to 1951.
Key Information
Barr perhaps is best known for his role as Nino Zachetti in Double Indemnity, his first appearance. He also had a role in films like Love Letters, Pitfall, Down Dakota Way, They Made Me a Killer, and The File on Thelma Jordon. His only lead role came in the 1946 B-movie Tokyo Rose. Barr retired from acting in 1951. He died on November 3, 1966, in Sacramento County, California, of unknown causes at age 49.
Filmography
[edit]- Double Indemnity (1944) — Nino Zachetti
- Practically Yours (1944) — Navigator (uncredited)
- The Affairs of Susan (1945) — Chick
- Love Letters (1945) — Derek Quinton
- Follow That Woman (1945) — John Evans
- Tokyo Rose (1946) — Pete Sherman
- They Made Me a Killer (1946) — Steve Reynolds
- Our Hearts Were Growing Up (1946) — Roger (uncredited)
- Big Town (1946) — Vance Crane
- Two Years Before the Mast (1946) — Friend (uncredited)
- Seven Were Saved (1947) — Lt. Martin Pinkert
- Public Prosecutor (1948, TV series) — Glenn Thursby
- The Main Street Kid (1948) — Bud Wheeling
- Pitfall (1948) — Bill Smiley
- Down Dakota Way (1949) — Steve Paxton
- The File on Thelma Jordon (1950) — McCary
- Paid in Full (1950) — Man at Bar (uncredited)
- Tarnished (1950) — Joe Pettigrew
- Appointment with Danger (1950) — Policeman (uncredited)
- Covered Wagon Raid (1950) — Roy Chandler (final film role)
External links
[edit]- Byron Barr at IMDb
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Byron Barr
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Biography
Early life
Byron Barr was born on August 18, 1917, in Corning, Iowa, USA.[1][5] Details about his family background remain limited in historical records, with no publicly documented information on his parents or siblings. He grew up in the rural Midwestern town of Corning during the early 20th century, a period marked by agricultural life and small-town communities in Iowa. Little is known regarding specific childhood influences or his initial exposure to acting, as such accounts are not available in verified sources.Death
After retiring from acting in 1951, Byron Barr settled in the Los Angeles area of California. He later relocated to Carmichael in Sacramento County.[7] Barr died on November 3, 1966, at the age of 49, in Sacramento County, California.[1] The cause of his death is unknown. He was interred at Saint Mary's Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum in Sacramento.[8]Acting career
Debut and breakthrough roles
Byron Barr entered the film industry with a credited role as Nino Zachetti, a young insurance company employee, in Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity (1944), a seminal film noir adaptation of James M. Cain's novella that exemplified the genre's themes of moral ambiguity and fatal attraction.[9] This appearance marked Barr's feature film debut, occurring amid Hollywood's wartime production surge, where studios emphasized suspenseful narratives to engage audiences.[9] Though brief, the role showcased his ability to portray earnest, everyday characters caught in darker plots, setting a pattern for his initial career trajectory. Barr followed with minor supporting parts that expanded his visibility in diverse genres. In Mitchell Leisen's romantic comedy Practically Yours (1944), he played an uncredited navigator, contributing to the film's lighthearted wartime escapism involving mistaken identities and media hype.[10] The next year, he took on the credited role of Derek Quinton, a family friend entangled in emotional intrigue, in William Dieterle's Love Letters (1945), a psychological drama exploring amnesia and deception starring Jennifer Jones and Joseph Cotten.[11] These early assignments highlighted Barr's versatility in ensemble casts, often as sympathetic allies or bystanders in stories blending romance with underlying tension. Barr achieved his breakthrough with the lead role of Pete Sherman, an escaped American POW plotting against a propaganda broadcaster, in Lew Landers' Tokyo Rose (1946), a low-budget wartime thriller produced by Pine-Thomas Productions as post-war anti-Japanese sentiment lingered.[12] As an unknown actor at the time, Barr was cast in this rare starring opportunity to portray a determined hero navigating espionage and revenge, making it his most prominent performance and only major lead.[12] The film, released in February 1946, capitalized on real-life "Tokyo Rose" lore to deliver patriotic thrills, though it received mixed reviews for its formulaic script. During the World War II era, Barr became typecast in film noir and war-related genres, reflecting Hollywood's emphasis on shadowy intrigue and heroic resilience amid global conflict. His debut in Double Indemnity immersed him in noir's cynical underworld, while Tokyo Rose aligned him with propaganda-driven war narratives that promoted American fortitude; subsequent supporting roles in similar productions, such as the noir-tinged Pitfall (1948), reinforced this niche before opportunities waned post-war.[13]Later roles and retirement
Following his breakthrough in the mid-1940s, Byron Barr transitioned to supporting roles in post-war films, often portraying authority figures or secondary characters in thrillers and dramas. In the 1947 Republic Pictures production Seven Were Saved, he played Lt. Martin Pinkert, a naval officer involved in a survival story aboard a Japanese submarine.[14] The following year, Barr appeared as Bill Smiley, an embezzler whose actions drive the plot in the film noir Pitfall, directed by Andre DeToth and starring Dick Powell and Lizabeth Scott.[15] Barr's work in the late 1940s increasingly featured him in B-movies and Westerns, reflecting a shift toward smaller parts amid Hollywood's competitive landscape. He portrayed Steve Paxton, a young outlaw, in the 1949 Roy Rogers vehicle Down Dakota Way, a Republic Western involving cattle rustling and frontier justice.[16] In 1950, in Robert Siodmak's noir The File on Thelma Jordon, Barr had a minor role as McCary, supporting the central drama of murder and courtroom intrigue with stars Barbara Stanwyck and Wendell Corey.[17] Barr's final credited roles came in 1950, including Joe Pettigrew in the drama Tarnished, where he supported leads Arthur Franz and Dorothy Patrick in a story of family secrets and moral dilemmas.[18] He also appeared as a police lieutenant in Lewis Allen's crime thriller Appointment with Danger, featuring Alan Ladd and Phyllis Calvert, though the part was uncredited in some listings.[19] His last film role was as Roy Chandler in the Western Covered Wagon Raid. These appearances marked the end of Barr's film career, as he retired from acting in 1951 at the age of 34, after accumulating 19 film credits over seven years.Filmography
1940s films
Byron Barr appeared in several films during the 1940s, primarily in supporting roles, often credited under his birth name before adopting the stage name Gig Young later in his career.| Year | Title | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1944 | Double Indemnity | Nino Zachetti | Credited |
| 1944 | Practically Yours | Navigator | Uncredited[20] |
| 1945 | The Affairs of Susan | Chick | Credited |
| 1945 | Follow That Woman | John Evans | Credited |
| 1945 | Love Letters | Derek Quinton | Credited |
| 1946 | They Made Me a Killer | Steve Reynolds | Credited |
| 1946 | Tokyo Rose | Pete Sherman | Credited |
| 1947 | Seven Were Saved | Lt. Martin Pinkert | Credited |
| 1947 | Guilty Assignment (also known as Big Town) | Vance Crane | Credited |
| 1948 | The Main Street Kid | Bud Wheeling | Credited[21] |
| 1948 | Pitfall | Bill Smiley | Credited |
| 1949 | Down Dakota Way | Steve Paxton | Credited |
1950s films
Byron Barr's on-screen work in the 1950s consisted of five roles, all released between early 1950 and mid-1951, following a more prolific output in the preceding decade.[22] These appearances represented the conclusion of his approximately 19-film career under the name Byron Barr.[23]| Year | Title | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Paid in Full | Man at Bar | Uncredited [24] |
| 1950 | Tarnished | Joe Pettigrew | Credited [25] |
| 1950 | The File on Thelma Jordon | McCary | Credited [26] |
| 1950 | Covered Wagon Raid | Roy Chandler | Credited |
| 1951 | Appointment with Danger | Policeman | Uncredited [27] |