Jonathan Frid

Jonathan Frid was a Canadian actor born December 2 1924 in Hamilton Ontario and died April 14 2012 in the same city He gained fame for portraying vampire Barnabas Collins in the television series Dark Shadows which aired from 1967 to 1971 significantly increasing the shows viewership Frids acting career began in 1946 with stage roles including Shakespearean performances and extended to film notably House of Dark Shadows in 1970 Born John Herbert Frid he graduated from McMaster University in 1948 and later earned a Master of Fine Arts from Yale University in 1957 His early career included Canadian television and theater with a breakout role in Dark Shadows He also appeared in films like The Devils Daughter in 1973 and had a cameo in Dark Shadows in 2012 On stage he performed in Arsenic and Old Lace from 1986 to 1987 Frid retired to Ancaster Ontario in 1994 though he continued occasional work such as directing The Lion in Winter in 1993 and appearing at Dark Shadows fan festivals from 2007 to 2011 He died of pneumonia complications at 87 leaving his estate to the Hamilton Community Foundation His portrayal of Barnabas Collins influenced modern vampire genres seen in series like True Blood Source Adapted from Wikipedia Jonathan Frid