Barry Morse
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Barry Morse (born June 10, 1918, Shoreditch) is an English actor best known for a number of his television roles. He became a Canadian citizen in 1953 and has since held dual citizenship in both countries.
Some of his best-known television roles include: 'Lt. Philip Gerard' on the 1960s series The Fugitive with David Janssen; 'Dr. Victor Bergman' in the 1975-1976 season of Space: 1999 with Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, and Zienia Merton; 'Mr. Parminter' in The Adventurer with Gene Barry; and "Alec 'The Tiger' Marlowe" in The Zoo Gang with Sir John Mills, Lilli Palmer, and Brian Keith. In 1986 he played the Ronald Reagan-esque U.S. President Johnny Cyclops in the satirical sitcom Whoops Apocalypse.
Morse also appeared in a number of television miniseries, including The Winds of War, War and Remembrance, The Martian Chronicles, Sadat, Frederick Forsyth's Icon, and others. He is also known for his one-man stage show, Merely Players, which explored the experiences of actors through history.
His acting career spans seven decades, and he has thousands of roles to his credit, including radio and TV work for the British Broadcasting Corporation, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and the American Broadcasting Company. In recent years, he has also become an advocate for senior citizens in his adopted homeland of Canada.
Born to a Cockney family, Morse was a 15-year old school dropout and errand boy when he won a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. At graduation he starred in the title role of Shakespeare's Henry V, presented as a Royal Command Performance for King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. This was followed with runs in London's West End and in theatrical productions throughout the United Kingdom, including a tour of The First Mrs. Fraser, with Dame Marie Tempest and A.E. Matthews.
After a short courtship, he married fellow actress Sydney Sturgess on March 26, 1939 during their work together in repertory theatre in Peterborough, England. Morse’s two children were born in 1945 (Melanie Morse) and 1947 (Hayward Morse). In 1951 the family relocated to Canada, working in radio and theatre, as well as acting in the premiere television broadcasts of CBC Television from Montreal.
Morse has performed on Broadway in Hide and Seek, Salad Days, and the lead of Frederick William Rolfe in Hadrian the Seventh. He directed the historic debut of Staircase starring Eli Wallach and Milo O'Shea, which stands as Broadway’s first depiction of homosexual men in a serious way.
He first presented a version of his one man show Merely Players in 1959, with the definitive version debuting in 1984 for a Canadian national tour. Morse is perhaps the only actor to have performed in every play of William Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw; two of the greatest playwrights in the English language. He served as Artistic Director of the Shaw Festival of Canada for the 1966 season.
In 2004, with his son Hayward Morse, he starred in the North American debut of Bernard and Bosie: A Most Unlikely Friendship by Anthony Wynn, performed at the University of Florida, Sarasota. This is a two-act stage drama based on the correspondence of playwright George Bernard Shaw, played by Barry, and Lord Alfred 'Bosie' Douglas (the intimate friend of Oscar Wilde), played by Hayward.
The following year, Morse appeared in the world premiere performance of the science fiction play Contact by Doug Grissom, co-starring Ryan Case and presented in Tampa, Florida.
Barry Morse has long supported a number of charitable organizations, including the Toronto-based Performing Arts Lodges of Canada, the Royal Theatrical Fund, the London Shakespeare Workout Prison Project, Actors’ Fund of Canada, The Samaritans, BookPALS, and Parkinsons disease treatment and research.
The Parkinsons disease cause in particular holds a special place in Barry’s heart as his wife of more than 60 years, actress Sydney Sturgess, had a 14-year long battle with the disease prior to her death in 1999.
His long-awaited theatrical memoir, Remember With Advantages - Chasing 'The Fugitive' and Other Stories from an Actor's Life, (written with Robert E. Wood and Anthony Wynn), details his life and career. The book also features a Foreword written by Academy Award-winning actor Martin Landau and is forthcoming from McFarland and Company publishers in late 2006.
