Spanish postcard by Raker, no. 1086.
Spanish postcard, no. 341-V, 1966.
Lustful in Peyton Place
Barry S. Coe was born Barry Clark Heacock in Santa Monica, California, in 1934. His father, Francis Elmer Heacock, worked as a publicist for Warner Brothers in Los Angeles, but died in a car accident in 1940. His mother, Jean Elizabeth Shea, then married Joseph Spalding Coe in 1940, and he was renamed Joseph Spalding Coe.
When Coe attended the University of Southern California, he was discovered by a 20th Century Fox talent scout during a trip with his fraternity to Palm Springs in the mid-1950s. 20th Century Fox signed him. Coe's early film roles included uncredited appearances in House of Bamboo (Samuel Fuller, 1955) with Robert Ryan, and How to Be Very, Very Popular (Nunnally Johnson, 1955).
His first credited parts were in On the Threshold of Space (Robert D. Webb, 1956), and D-Day the Sixth of June (Henry Koster, 1956). He had a small role in Elvis Presley's Love Me Tender (Robert D. Webb, 1956). On TV, he was in adaptations of The Late George Apley and Deep Water for The 20th Century Fox Hour.
Barry Coe's first really notable role was playing the lustful Rodney Harrington in Peyton Place (Mark Robson, 1957), based on the best-selling Grace Metalious 1956 novel of the same name. This was followed by a supporting part in Thundering Jets (Helmut Dantine, 1958). He then went back to Fox for The Bravados (Henry King, 1958) with Gregory Peck, and A Private's Affair (Raoul Walsh, 1959).
He played Carroll Baker's more age-appropriate boyfriend in But Not for Me (Walter Lang, 1959) at Paramount. Coe had supporting roles in One Foot in Hell (James B. Clark, 1960) with Alan Ladd and The Wizard of Baghdad (George Sherman, 1961). In 1960, he received a Golden Globe for the Most Promising Newcomer - Male, along with James Shigeta, Troy Donahue, and George Hamilton.
Spanish postcard by Ediciones Raker, Barcelona, no. 328. Photo: 20th Century Fox. Barry Coe in Peyton Place (Mark Robson, 1957). The Spanish title was Los Placeres del Infierno.
Spanish postcard by Rotan, no. 6640. Photo: 20th Century Fox. Barry Coe in Follow the Sun (1961–1962).
The fourth Cartwright brother of Bonanza
In 1961, Barry Coe and Brett Halsey played magazine writers Paul Templin and Ben Gregory on the ABC TV series Follow the Sun (1961-1962). The program was set in Honolulu, Hawaii, and the writers often ventured into private detective work. Despite some memorable episodes, Follow the Sun was cancelled after 29 segments. After Follow the Sun folded, Coe appeared in a supporting role in Fox's The 300 Spartans (Rudolph Maté, 1962).
In 1962, he guest-starred on the first episode of the fourth season of Bonanza. He portrayed Clay Stafford, who reveals himself to be the 'fourth' Cartwright, a half-brother to Little Joe (Michael Landon) via their mother Marie. Although stepfather Ben Cartwright (Lorne Greene) and Joe take Clay at his word, the other Cartwright brothers, Hoss (Dan Blocker) and Adam (Pernell Roberts), are sceptical and intend to investigate Clay's claim.
The episode, The First Born, could have introduced Coe as a new cast member. The producers had hired Coe as a potential replacement for Pernell Roberts, but Michael Landon saw Coe, who was roughly the same age, as a rival and ensured that Coe’s appearance remained a one-off guest role. Over the course of the 1960s, Coe's career began to stall noticeably, and he had to content himself with guest appearances in television series and minor film roles. Coe guest-starred on Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and appeared as a communications aide in Fantastic Voyage (Richard Fleischer, 1966), as Walt Kilby in The Cat (Ellis Kadison, 1966) and The Seven Minutes (Russ Meyer, 1971).
He made a comeback in the early 1970s with a role in the short-lived NBC television series Bracken's World (1969–1970) and in the Horror films One Minute Before Death (Rogelio A. González, 1972) with Wanda Hendrix and Doctor Death: Seeker of Souls (Eddie Saeta, 1973). He later played a reporter in MacArthur (Joseph Sargent, 1977), starring Gregory Peck. His last film role was as diving instructor Tom Andrews in Jaws 2 (Jeannot Szwarc, 1978). On television, he had a brief stint as Dr. Rex Pierce in the soap opera General Hospital (1974). His other television appearances include Mission: Impossible and The Moneychangers.
From the late 1970s into the early 1980s, Coe was Mr. Goodwrench in the television commercials for GM Goodwrench, General Motors’ chain of national auto part/repair stores. Until his death, Coe was married to the former Jorunn Kristiansen (born 1940), a Norwegian beauty queen in the 1950s who later became a painter. They had three children. He had a side business in nutritional supplements—Adventures in Nutrition. He lived in the Los Angeles neighbourhood of Brentwood for several years. Coe died in 2019 from myelodysplastic syndrome at the age of 84 in Palm Desert, California.
Spanish card by Foto-Ficha obsequio "Romantica" 2a serie. Photo: 20th Century Fox.
Spanish postcard by Archivo Bermejo, no. C 82, 1963. Photo: 20th Century Fox. Photo: 20th Century Fox. AS publicity still for The 300 Spartans (Rudolph Maté, 1962).
Sources: Brian J. Walker (Brian's Drive-In Theatre), Wikipedia (English and German) and IMDb.
