Barbara Colby
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Barbara Colby (July 2, 1940 – July 24, 1975) was an American television actress.
Born in New York City, Colby began her acting career in theatre, and made her Broadway debut in The Devils in 1965. Her first important television role was in an episode of the television series Columbo, titled Murder by the Book in 1971. Over the next few years she continued to appear in theatre, and played supporting roles in some made-for-television movies, as well as guest appearances in such television series as The Odd Couple, McMillan and Wife, Medical Center, Kung Fu and Gunsmoke.
She impressed the producers of The Mary Tyler Moore Show with a guest appearance as a wise-cracking prostitute and was invited to reprise her role in a later episode. She appeared again on Broadway in a revival of A Doll's House in early 1975. After the production closed she returned to Los Angeles to appear as one of the recurring cast members in the Mary Tyler Moore Show spin-off series, Phyllis, and filmed three episodes.
Colby and a colleague, the actor James Kiernan, were shot to death in Venice, California while walking to their car, following an acting class. Colby, aged 35, was killed instantly, however Kiernan was able to describe the shooting to police before he also died. He said that he did not recognise the men who shot them, and that the shooting had occurred without warning and without an obvious reason.[citation needed] Police noted that no attempt had been made to rob Colby or Kiernan, and concluded that it was a random shooting.[citation needed] The killers were never identified.
