Jonathan Frid obit

Jonathan Frid dies at 87; actor played key role on ‘Dark Shadows’

 

He was not on the list.

TORONTO (AP) - Jonathan Frid, a Canadian actor best known for playing Barnabas Collins in the 1960s original vampire soap opera "Dark Shadows", has died. He was 87.

Frid died of natural causes in hospital in his home town of Hamilton, Ontario this past Friday the 13th, said Jim Pierson, a spokesman for Dan Curtis Productions, the creator of "Dark Shadows."

Frid starred in the 1960s gothic-flavored soap opera. It was about odd, supernatural goings-on at a family estate in Maine. Frid's character was added in 1967.

Johnny Depp plays Barnabas Collins in a Tim Burton directed version of Dark Shadows due out next month. Frid has a cameo role in the new movie.

Frid is survived by a nephew, Donald Frid.

Jonathan Frid's career in drama began when he first "offered his soul" to the theater as a young boy at a preparatory school in Ontario, Canada. Following his graduation from McMaster University, he attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) in the UK and later earned a Master's Degree in Directing from the Yale School of Drama.

He was a leading actor in English and Canadian repertory and went on to work in many of the most celebrated regional theaters in the United States, including the Williamstown Theatre Festival, the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, and the American Shakespeare Festival under the direction of John Houseman, performing with Katharine Hepburn in "Much Ado About Nothing".

Frid appeared in major roles on-and-off Broadway, in such productions as "Roar Like A Dove", "Murder in the Cathedral" and "Wait Until Dark". However, it was his portrayal of a complex, conflicted vampire on ABC-TV's daytime drama series Dark Shadows (1966) (he also had a cameo role in the motion picture House of Dark Shadows (1970)) which garnered him his greatest fame in the United States. Other film credits included co-starring roles in The Devil's Daughter (1973) (with Shelley Winters) and Seizure (1974) (Oliver Stone's directorial debut).

In 1986, Frid joined the Broadway production of "Arsenic and Old Lace" (co-starring with Jean Stapleton). He won critical acclaim for his villainous turn as the homicidal nephew and spent ten months with the play's national tour. That same year, Frid founded his own production company, "Clunes Associates", to create and tour a series of one-man readers' theater shows across North America. Frid continued to perform his one-man shows, now under the banner of "Charity Associates", to raise money for a variety of charities. Combining the arts of his voice and his zest for entertaining", as one critic put it. In June 2000, he returned to the traditional professional stage in the play "Mass Appeal" at the Stirling Festival Theatre in Stirling, Ontario.

 

Family

Parents

Herbert Percival Frid

Isabella Fiora Frid

Trivia

Never married, believing the life of an actor was fraught with insecurities.

Served as a seaman in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II.

Died less than one month before the opening of "Dark Shadows" (2012), the theatrical film version of his acclaimed TV series. Frid has a cameo in the movie version. It was Frid's last acting role.

Retired: producing his own website and occasionally making appearances for charity

Made his first appearance at a Dark Shadows convention in over a decade, the well-attended Tarrytown, NY event centering around his return.

Working with former Dark Shadows (1966) costar Marie Wallace, Jonathan made his directorial debut in February 1993, with the play "Lion in Winter" at the Georgia College Theatre in Milledgeville, Georgia. Marie starred as Eleanor of Aquitaine.

Lived in Ancaster, Ontario, not far from his birthplace of Hamilton and McMaster University where he was educated. Attended Dark Shadows conventions each year, as long as his health lasted.

In the early 1990s, he moved to the town of Ancaster, Ontario, not far from his birthplace of Hamilton. In July 2008, he attended a Dark Shadows convention in Burbank.

Quotes

"I love to play horror for horror's sake. Inner horror...I mean I never thought I created fear with the fang business of "Barnabas". I always felt foolish doing that part of it. The horror part I like was 'the lie'" -- Jonathan Frid, on his Dark Shadows (1966) character.

 

Actor

Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter, Jonny Lee Miller, Jackie Earle Haley, Eva Green, Chloë Grace Moretz, Bella Heathcote, and Gulliver McGrath in Dark Shadows (2012)

Dark Shadows

6.2

Guest

2012

 

The Peter Austin Noto Show (2012)

The Peter Austin Noto Show

6.5

TV Series

Guest

2012

1 episode

 

Dark Shadows (2009)

Dark Shadows

Podcast Series

Barnabas Collins

2010

1 episode

 

Seizure (1974)

Seizure

4.7

Edmund Blackstone

1974

 

Shelley Winters, Robert Foxworth, and Belinda Montgomery in The Devil's Daughter (1973)

The Devil's Daughter

5.8

TV Movie

Mr. Howard

1973

 

Joel Crothers, Jonathan Frid, and Lara Parker in Dark Shadows (1966)

Dark Shadows

8.1

TV Series

Barnabas CollinsBramwell CollinsOpening Voiceover ...

1967–1971

595 episodes

 

Jonathan Frid in House of Dark Shadows (1970)

House of Dark Shadows

6.3

Barnabas Collins

1970

 

The Generation Gap

4.8

TV Series

Barnabas Collins

1969

1 episode

 

John Fraser, Louis Hayward, and Susan Oliver in The Picture of Dorian Gray (1961)

Golden Showcase

6.7

TV Series

Mercutio

1961

1 episode

 

Walter Matthau in Play of the Week (1959)

Play of the Week

7.1

TV Series

Richard Scroop, Archbishop of York

1960

1 episode

 

Thanks

Gabriel Fernández-Gil, Juan Pérez, David Díaz, Luis Rodrigo, FJ García, Iñaki Reyna, Alvar Gordejuela, and Jon Koldo Etxebarria in Special Collector's Edition (2010)

Special Collector's Edition

6.9

TV Series

in memory of

2012

1 episode

 

Self

Dark Shadows 30th Anniversary Tribute (1996)

Dark Shadows 30th Anniversary Tribute

7.5

SelfSelf - Barnabas Collins

1996

 

50 Years of Soaps: An All-Star Celebration

7.7

TV Special

Self

1994

 

Dark Shadows: Behind the Scenes (1991)

Dark Shadows: Behind the Scenes

8.6

Video

SelfSelf - Barnabas Collins

1991

 

Good Day New York (1988)

Good Day New York

4.4

TV Series

Self - Guest

1989

1 episode

 

Hour Magazine (1980)

Hour Magazine

7.3

TV Series

Self

1986

1 episode

 

Johnny Carson in The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962)

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

8.5

TV Series

Self - Guest

1969

1 episode

 

The Dennis Wholey Show (1969)

The Dennis Wholey Show

TV Series

Self

1969

1 episode

 

The Joey Bishop Show (1967)

The Joey Bishop Show

7.1

TV Series

Self

1969

1 episode

 

Della (1969)

Della

8.9

TV Series

Self

1969

1 episode

 

The Generation Gap

4.8

TV Series

Self - Contestant

1969

1 episode

 

Merv Griffin in The Merv Griffin Show (1962)

The Merv Griffin Show

6.6

TV Series

Self

1969

1 episode

 

Mike Douglas in The Mike Douglas Show (1961)

The Mike Douglas Show

7.0

TV Series

Self

1968

1 episode

 

Look Up and Live (1954)

Look Up and Live

5.7

TV Series

Self - Dr. Bildad

1960

1 episode

 

Archive Footage

Dark Shadows and Beyond - The Jonathan Frid Story (2021)

Dark Shadows and Beyond - The Jonathan Frid Story

8.3

Self (archive footage)

2021

 

Master of Dark Shadows (2019)

Master of Dark Shadows

7.7

SelfSelf - Barnabas Collins (archive footage)

2019

 

19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2013)

19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards

6.3

TV Special

Self - In Memoriam (archive footage)

2013

 

TCM Remembers 2012

Music Video

SelfSelf - actor (archive footage)

2012

 

Dark Shadows: The Vampire Curse (2009)

Dark Shadows: The Vampire Curse

8.2

Video

Barnabas Collins (archive footage)

2009

 

Dark Shadows on Location

8.5

Video

Self - Barnabas Collins (archive footage)

1999

 

Jonathan Frid, Lara Parker, and David Selby in Dark Shadows Bloopers (1993)

Dark Shadows Bloopers

7.9

Video

Self - Barnabas Collins (archive footage)

1993