- Born
- Died
- Birth nameByron Ellsworth Barr
- Height6′ 1″ (1.85 m)
- Gig Young was born Byron Barr to parents John and Emma Barr in Minnesota, and raised in Washington, DC, where he developed a passion for theatre while appearing in high school plays. After gaining some amateur experience, he applied for and received a scholarship to the acclaimed Southern California's Pasadena Community Playhouse. While acting in "Pancho", a south-of-the-border play by Lowell Barrington, he was spotted by a Warner Brothers talent scout, leading to his signing contracts with the studio. Still acting under his given name, Byron Barr, he played bits and extra roles. He experimented with varying screen names because there was already another actor with the same name (see Byron Barr). In 1942, in the picture The Gay Sisters (1942), he was given the role of a character whose name was Gig Young, which he liked well enough to finally adopt it as his permanent stage name. His intermittent roles and, therefore, income, required Young to supplement his income working at a gas station, but success in The Gay Sisters (1942) eventually allowed him the freedom to become a full-time actor. Although service in the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II interrupted his ascension, after discharge he quickly established himself as a reliable light leading man, usually the second male lead to stars who were established box office draws. A dramatic part in Come Fill the Cup (1951) resulted in his being nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar; a second Supporting Actor nomination followed seven years later for his comedic performance in Teacher's Pet (1958). A prolific television career later complemented his film work. In 1969, his surprisingly seedy portrayal of a dance-marathon emcee in They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969) finally brought him that Supporting Actor Oscar. A succession of marriages, including one to actress Elizabeth Montgomery, failed. In 1978, only three weeks after marrying German actress Kim Schmidt, Young apparently shot her to death in their New York City apartment and then turned the gun on himself. The precise motivation for the sad and grisly murder-suicide remains unclear. Young was not quite 65, his bride, 31.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Jim Beaver <jumblejim@prodigy.net>
- SpousesKim Schmidt(September 27, 1978 - October 19, 1978) (her death)Elaine Young(September 18, 1963 - November 23, 1966) (divorced, 1 child)Elizabeth Montgomery(December 28, 1956 - January 1963) (divorced)Sophie Rosenstein(December 29, 1950 - November 11, 1952) (her death)Sheila Stapler(August 2, 1940 - August 18, 1949) (divorced)
- Children
- ParentsJohn BarrEmma Barr
- Cast in Blazing Saddles (1974) as the Waco Kid. Replaced by Mel Brooks with Gene Wilder shortly after filming began because the alcoholic Young was suffering from delirium tremens on the set.
- His will, which covered a $200,000 estate, left his Academy Award to his agent, Martin Baum, and Baum's wife. The wording of the will called it "the Oscar that I won because of Martin's help". New York City police found the statuette beside the bodies of Young and his wife.
- Young is considered the ultimate victim of the Oscar curse, so-called because many Academy Award winners have seen their careers decline or reach a dead-end after winning the ultimate accolade from their peers. According to his fourth wife Elaine Young, "What he was aching for, as he walked up to collect his Oscar, was a role in his own movie, one that they could finally call a Gig Young movie." Young was shattered when that opportunity did not materialize. "For Gig, the Oscar was literally the kiss of death, the end of the line", according to Elaine.
- Was originally cast as the voice of Charles Townsend for the TV Series Charlie's Angels (1976), but was too drunk to record his lines and was replaced at the last minute by John Forsythe.
- While it was common knowledge that Gig had an alcohol problem, some of his best roles were as heavy drinkers, such as in Come Fill the Cup (1951), They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969) and as Ray Whitehead on the TV series Gibbsville (1976).
- My specialties are corpses, unconscious people and people snoring in spectacular epics.
- [To Louella Parsons, after receiving his first Academy Award nomination for Come Fill the Cup (1951)]: So many people who have been nominated for an Oscar have had bad luck afterwards.
- [on his role as the dance-marathon barker in They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969)]: (The role was) a lifeline for a drowning man, a last chance to show (my) talent as a serious actor.
- [summing up his professional career] 30 years and 55 pictures - not more than five that were any good, or any good for me. I've picked the best from the lousy parts they offered me.
- Comedy is harder to do than drama, since comedy roles involve the offbeat, not merely the basic emotions. I like to play both comedy and drama.
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