Barbara Barrie died in her Manhattan home with medical assistance following her terminal cancer battle Wednesday. The Tony and Academy Award-nominated actress was 95.
Her daughter, Jane Harnick, confirmed her death to the New York Times.
Barrie’s career spanned across television to film to theater. She received a Tony Award nomination in 1970 for her performance in the original Stephen Sondheim production of “Company.” She later received an Oscar nomination in 1979 for her performance in “Breaking Away,” as an Indiana teenager’s supportive mother with dreams of her own.
Her other accolades included a best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival in 1964 for one of her early films “One Potato, Two Potato.” She also received an Emmy nomination in 1981 when she reprised her “Breaking Away” role for the television series based on the film.
On television, she starred as the wife to the titular detective “Barney Miller,” played by Hal Linden. Barrie appeared on the sitcom from 1975 to 1978. She also appeared on “Suddenly Susan” as Brooke Shields’ grandmother.
Barrie was born in Chicago in 1931. Her family later moved to Texas, where she attended Del Mar College. She transferred to the University of Texas. When she graduated, she thought she would only work on the stage.
The actress made her Broadway debut in 1955 in “The Wooden Dish.” Her other stage credits include “The Beaux Stratagem,” “Happily Never After,” “The Crucible” and “The Miracle Worker.”
Her first film credit was in “The Caretakers” as Edna. Some of her other films include “The Bell Jar,” “Private Benjamin,” where she played Goldie Hawn’s mother, and “Judy Merlin,” where she played Edie Falco’s mom.
In addition to her daughter, she is survived by her son, Aaron Harnick, and three granddaughters.
In 1994, Barrie was diagnosed with rectal cancer. The actress announced in 2014 that she had idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a degenerative disease.
Outside of her acting chops, Barrie authored four books, all published in the 90s. She wrote “Adam Zigzag” and “Lone Star” for young readers. “Second Act” and “Don’t Die of Embarrassment” were memoirs about her life after cancer and her colostomy. She wanted to remove the stigma around rectal cancer with her books and raise awareness for the illness.
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