Mike has recently sent in this great still of Patrick Barr (1908-1985) as King Richard I in Walt Disney's live-action movie the Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952).
Like Hubert Gregg who played Prince John, Barr resurrected his role as Richard the Lionheart in two episodes of the classic TV series the Adventures of Robin Hood. In a unique cross-over between the silver screen and television he appeared once again as King Richard, this time alongside Richard Greene in two episodes; Secret Mission (1956) and Richard the Lion-Heart (1956) .
Patrick (or Pat, as he was sometimes called) was born in Akola, India on 13th February 1908 and had his first brush with the legendary outlaw when he first appeared on the silver screen in 1932 as a torturer in the black and white short, The Merry Men of Sherwood.
During the 1930’s Patrick was very often cast as dependable, trustworthy characters and after six years of military service during WWII he continued to bring those qualities to his roles in a very long career in film and television. His early notable movies included The Case of the Frightened Lady (1940), The Blue Lagoon (1949), The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) and The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952).
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In 1950 Patrick had appeared as the Earl of Northumberland in a television production of Richard II and it was in this medium that his popularity was mainly to grow, although he did continue to perform in some celebrated films. He appeared once again alongside Richard Todd in the classic war film, The Dambusters (1955), Saint Joan (1957), Next To Time (1960), The Longest Day (1962), Billy Liar (1963) The First Great Train Robbery (1979) and Octopussy in (1983).
His later television appearances included four episodes of Dr Who, three performances as Lord Boyne in The Secret of Boyne Castle for the Wonderful World of Disney in 1969 and three episodes of Telford’s Change in 1979.
Pat died aged 77 in Wandsworth, London on 29th August 1985.
To read more about Patrick Barr please click here. There are also 84 stills and images from Disney's Story of Robin Hood in the Picture Gallery and more information on the real Richard the Lionheart here.
2 comments:
Special thanks to Mike for sending in the still.
I wonder how many actors re-created a character for a TV series after appearing on the silver screen in the same role? Especially from the same story!
Patrick Barr seemed to be around on 50s TV a great deal I seem to remember. Reckon he did at least one Francis Durbridge mystery serial - which were very popular - possibly The Teckman Biography. Another actor who was always around in those days of TV was Tony Britten. I rather liked Patrick Barr and I imagine also he was a regular stage actor - as they all seemed to be.
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