Barry Dennen

Barry Dennen
Born February 22, 1938
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Occupation Actor, singer, writer
Years active 1968–present

Barry Dennen (born February 22, 1938) is an American actor, singer, and writer.

Life and career

Dennen was born in Chicago, Illinois. In New York City from 1960 to 1963, he had a relationship with Barbra Streisand. They lived together for a year, during which time he helped her develop the nightclub act that began her successful career as a singer and actress.

He moved to London for fifteen years and in 1968 landed the starring role of the master of ceremonies in the London version of Cabaret. In 1970, he played Pontius Pilate on the album of Jesus Christ Superstar, and he played the same role in the Broadway production (1971). In the same year, he played Mendel in Norman Jewison's film of Fiddler on the Roof. According to Dennen's website, he suggested to Jewison that he direct a film version of Superstar. Jewison did so, and Dennen played Pilate again (1973).

He was the voice actor who portrayed the Chamberlain SkekSil in The Dark Crystal. He has also done voice work on such cartoons as DuckTales, Batman: The Animated Series, The Pirates of Dark Water, Animaniacs, Avatar: The Last Airbender and Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Since that time Dennen has had a variety of small parts on American television shows and films, including: Batman; Superman III; The Kentucky Fried Movie; The Shining; Galtar and the Golden Lance; Tales from the Darkside, Titanic, Trading Places and Justice League: Throne of Atlantis. He played auto dealer Irwin Lapsey in Shock Treatment, the sequel to The Rocky Horror Picture Show. He has also done voices for many video games, including Fatman in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Master Li in Jade Empire, Police Chief Bogen in Grim Fandango, Mimir in the recent video game Too Human, Dean Domino in Fallout: New Vegas expansion "Dead Money", The Dark One in The Mark of Kri, the Kang Xi Emperor in Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties, and Chaos Knight, Phantom Lancer, and Rubick in Dota 2.

He wrote the screenplay for an episode of Amazing Stories titled "The Secret Cinema" (1985) and cowrote an episode of The Comic Strip Presents... titled "Demonella" (1993). His autobiographical book, My Life With Barbra: A Love Story (1997), deals with their relationship and with his gradual realization that he was gay.[1]

References

  1. Dennen, Barry (1997), My Life with Barbra: A Love Story, Prometheus Books, ISBN 1-57392-160-2

External links