Jonathan Frid..."Barnabas Collins"
11 years 11 months ago #1
by riada
Nor but in sleep findeth a cure for care.
Incertainty that once gave scope to dream
Of laughing enterprise and glory untold,
Is now a blackness that no stars redeem.
Jonathan Frid..."Barnabas Collins" was created by riada
John Herbert Frid (December 2, 1924 – April 13 or 14, 2012; sources differ) was a Canadian theater, television, and film actor, best known for having played the role of vampire Barnabas Collins on the gothic television soap opera Dark Shadows, which ran from 1966 to 1971.
He also starred as Barnabas Collins in the movie House of Dark Shadows. Frid had made plans to move to the U.S. West Coast pursue a career as an acting teacher when he won the role that ultimately made him a household name. As Frid explained on his Web site, he had barely entered his apartment as the phone call from his agent came informing him that he had won the role of Barnabas Collins. He agreed to accept it after being told it was a short-term one that would provide him with extra cash while he prepared to move. As the character's popularity soared, Frid scrapped those plans.
Frid starred in Dial M for Murder while the television series was still appearing. After Dark Shadows ended, he starred as Thomas Becket in Murder in the Cathedral, and in Wait Until Dark. Frid had previously played the role of a psychiatrist on the CBS Television soap opera As the World Turns.
In 1973, Frid appeared in the TV movie The Devil's Daughter starring Shelley Winters, and the following year starred in Oliver Stone's directorial debut, Seizure (aka Queen of Evil). He took time off from acting and returned to Canada, reviving his stage career in 1978.
Frid began performing readings at Dark Shadows fan conventions in the 1980s, and while developing ideas for what would be three critically acclaimed one-man shows, Frid took on the role of Jonathan Brewster in the Broadway revival of Arsenic and Old Lace. The play went on a national tour that broke box office records, which gave Frid the opportunity to appear on radio and talk shows to tell about his theater shows and long stage career.
n 1994, having spent 40 years based in New York City, Frid retired and returned to Canada. He continued to do one-man shows for charities in both Canada and the United States. In 2000, he starred in the play Mass Appeal which enjoyed a successful, limited run in Hamilton and at the Stirling Festival Theatre in Stirling, Ontario.
Frid attended Dark Shadows conventions in New York in August 2007, Burbank, California, in July 2008, and Elizabeth, New Jersey, in August 2009. In 2010, he returned to the role of Barnabas for the first time in 39 years in a Dark Shadows audio drama, The Night Whispers. Along with former Dark Shadows castmates Lara Parker, David Selby and Kathryn Leigh Scott, Frid spent three days at Pinewood Studios in June 2011 filming a cameo appearance for the 2012 Tim Burton Dark Shadows film, which became his final film appearance.
After suffering a fall, Frid died on April 13 or April 14, 2012,at Juravinski Hospital in Hamilton, Ontario. He was 87.
He also starred as Barnabas Collins in the movie House of Dark Shadows. Frid had made plans to move to the U.S. West Coast pursue a career as an acting teacher when he won the role that ultimately made him a household name. As Frid explained on his Web site, he had barely entered his apartment as the phone call from his agent came informing him that he had won the role of Barnabas Collins. He agreed to accept it after being told it was a short-term one that would provide him with extra cash while he prepared to move. As the character's popularity soared, Frid scrapped those plans.
Frid starred in Dial M for Murder while the television series was still appearing. After Dark Shadows ended, he starred as Thomas Becket in Murder in the Cathedral, and in Wait Until Dark. Frid had previously played the role of a psychiatrist on the CBS Television soap opera As the World Turns.
In 1973, Frid appeared in the TV movie The Devil's Daughter starring Shelley Winters, and the following year starred in Oliver Stone's directorial debut, Seizure (aka Queen of Evil). He took time off from acting and returned to Canada, reviving his stage career in 1978.
Frid began performing readings at Dark Shadows fan conventions in the 1980s, and while developing ideas for what would be three critically acclaimed one-man shows, Frid took on the role of Jonathan Brewster in the Broadway revival of Arsenic and Old Lace. The play went on a national tour that broke box office records, which gave Frid the opportunity to appear on radio and talk shows to tell about his theater shows and long stage career.
n 1994, having spent 40 years based in New York City, Frid retired and returned to Canada. He continued to do one-man shows for charities in both Canada and the United States. In 2000, he starred in the play Mass Appeal which enjoyed a successful, limited run in Hamilton and at the Stirling Festival Theatre in Stirling, Ontario.
Frid attended Dark Shadows conventions in New York in August 2007, Burbank, California, in July 2008, and Elizabeth, New Jersey, in August 2009. In 2010, he returned to the role of Barnabas for the first time in 39 years in a Dark Shadows audio drama, The Night Whispers. Along with former Dark Shadows castmates Lara Parker, David Selby and Kathryn Leigh Scott, Frid spent three days at Pinewood Studios in June 2011 filming a cameo appearance for the 2012 Tim Burton Dark Shadows film, which became his final film appearance.
After suffering a fall, Frid died on April 13 or April 14, 2012,at Juravinski Hospital in Hamilton, Ontario. He was 87.
Nor but in sleep findeth a cure for care.
Incertainty that once gave scope to dream
Of laughing enterprise and glory untold,
Is now a blackness that no stars redeem.
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