Barry Gordon

2.1. Birth and family

Gordon was born on December 21, 1948, in Brookline, Massachusetts, United States. He is of Jewish heritage. His stepfather, Bob Manning, was a prominent crooner of popular love songs in the 1940s and 1950s, widely recognized for his rendition of Hoagy Carmichael's "The Nearness of You". Manning's musical background likely provided an early introduction to the entertainment world for young Gordon.

2.2. Education

After establishing a successful acting career, Gordon later returned to academia in his mid-30s. He attended California State University, Los Angeles, where he graduated summa cum laude with a major in political science. Further pursuing his legal education, he enrolled at Loyola Law School, earning his J.D. degree in 1991. This academic background later informed his roles in labor leadership and political commentary, as he subsequently began teaching courses in politics and the media at California State University, Los Angeles, starting in 2007.

3.1. Childhood acting and singing

Gordon began performing at the remarkable age of three. His television debut came on Ted Mack's Amateur Hour, where he secured second place for his rendition of Johnnie Ray's song "Cry". At six years old, Gordon recorded the popular holiday song "Nuttin' for Christmas" in 1955. This single became a significant success, reaching No. 6 on the pre-Hot 100 Billboard chart, making him the youngest performer to achieve such a feat at the time. The song sold over 1.00 M USD copies, earning him a gold disc. The following year, he released his second and final single, "Rock Around Mother Goose". In circa 1956, Bill Haley recorded a private demo called "Six Year Olds Can Rock and Roll", dedicating the beginning of the recording to Barry Gordon; this recording was later released in 1990.

As a child actor, Gordon appeared on numerous prominent television shows, including The Jackie Gleason Show, The Jack Benny Program, Richard Diamond, Private Detective, The Danny Thomas Show, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and Star Time with Benny Goodman. He was cast as Humberto in an episode of the sitcom Sally, starring Joan Caulfield, and played Chopper in the episode "Beaver's House Guest" (episode 119) of Leave It to Beaver. Gordon also guest-starred on the sitcoms The Ann Sothern Show and Dennis the Menace.

In 1962, at 13 years old, Gordon played the part of the childhood version of "Patient" in the film Pressure Point. The same year, he embarked on a Broadway career, starring as Nick in Herb Gardner's play A Thousand Clowns, a role that earned him a Tony Award nomination. He later reprised this role in the 1965 film adaptation, appearing alongside Jason Robards and Martin Balsam. Although the film gave him "introducing" billing, Gordon had already appeared in several films, most notably his actual film debut in 1956's The Girl Can't Help It, where he played a newspaper boy and famously uttered the line, "If that's a girl, I don't know what my sister is," after seeing Jayne Mansfield.

3.2. Adult acting roles

As a teenager, Gordon continued his acting career, starring alongside Sid Caesar and Vera Miles in the 1967 comedy-horror film The Spirit Is Willing. In the 1970s, he appeared in Fish, a spin-off of Barney Miller starring Abe Vigoda. From 1973 to 1974, he was a regular on The New Dick Van Dyke Show. Other notable roles during this period included playing a waiter in "Horror in the Heights," a 1974 episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker, and an appearance in an episode of The Practice in 1976.

3.3. Character acting roles

Throughout his career, Gordon became a familiar face as a character actor, appearing in numerous feature films and television series in various significant supporting capacities. In the final two seasons of the popular sitcom Archie Bunker's Place, he held the recurring role of Gary Rabinowitz, Archie's Jewish attorney and a romantic interest for Barbara Lee "Billie" Bunker, played by Denise Miller, with whom Gordon had previously co-starred in Fish.

He also had notable guest-starring roles on various television programs. On Barney Miller, he played an embezzler. On Fish, he appeared as a social worker. In the Star Trek universe, he took on roles such as Nava, a Ferengi businessman, in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Ardon Broht, an alien publisher, in Star Trek: Voyager. More recently, he appeared as the Rabbi in Larry David's critically acclaimed comedy series Curb Your Enthusiasm.

3.4. Voice acting work

Gordon has had an extensive and highly impactful career as a voice actor, lending his voice to a wide array of animated characters and productions. His most iconic voice roles are Donatello and Bebop in the original 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series. He reprised these roles in three seasons of Nickelodeon's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012-2017) and later for video games, including Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge, Nickelodeon Kart Racers 3: Slime Speedway, and Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2, marking his first ventures into video game voice acting.

Another significant voice role was Jake "Razor" Clawson in SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron (1993). Gordon's voice was also a prominent feature in numerous other animated series, particularly many Hanna-Barbera shows. These include Clamhead in Jabberjaw, additional voices in Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle, Captain Marvel Jr. in The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam!, bassist Clyde in Meatballs & Spaghetti, Inky in Pac-Man, Robert Simmons in Mighty Orbots, and various characters in Pole Position, The Jetsons, and The Smurfs.

His voice work also encompassed diverse characters such as the titular character in The Adventures of the American Rabbit, additional voices in Superman, Junior Wetworth in Snorks, Reggie Moonshroud in Gravedale High, characters in Space Cats, Englebert Newton in A Pup Named Scooby-Doo, Dr. Fossil in Darkwing Duck, and various roles in Tom & Jerry Kids and its spin-off Droopy, Master Detective. He also voiced Sheldrake, the Penguin's henchman, in Batman: The Animated Series, and contributed to Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, Timon & Pumbaa, Fantastic Max, and The Pirates of Dark Water. In addition to animated series, Gordon provided the voice of "Quicky" the Nesquik Bunny in Nestlé television commercials. In May 2009, he also voiced the Cocker Spaniel in the Webkinz Pet of the Month Music Video.

4.1. Legal and academic career

As detailed in his education, Gordon made a conscious decision in his mid-30s to return to school, culminating in a J.D. from Loyola Law School in 1991, following his graduation summa cum laude with a political science degree from California State University, Los Angeles. This academic journey prepared him for roles beyond entertainment. Since 2007, he has leveraged his legal and political knowledge to teach courses on politics and the media at California State University, Los Angeles, imparting his insights to a new generation of students.

4.2. Screen Actors Guild presidency

Barry Gordon served as the longest-serving president of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), holding the office for seven years, from 1988 to 1995. During his tenure, he was a dedicated labor activist, focusing on advancing the rights and welfare of actors. His leadership at SAG was marked by efforts to secure better working conditions, fair compensation, and protection for performers in the evolving entertainment industry, establishing a legacy of strong advocacy for his fellow artists.

4.3. Political and media career

Gordon's commitment to public discourse and progressive ideals extended into a career in politics and media. In 1998, he was the Democratic Party nominee for the United States Congress representing the Pasadena, California area. Despite his efforts, he was defeated by the Republican Party incumbent, James Rogan.

Following his congressional bid, Gordon turned his attention to political talk media. In 2004, when the local Air America Radio affiliate in Los Angeles temporarily ceased broadcasting, Gordon initiated a live, call-in progressive political talk show on Pasadena's public-access television cable TV channel 56. This show continued to be cablecast and webcast live, providing a platform for discussions on current affairs from a left-leaning viewpoint.

In 2005, he hosted a weekly radio talk show on KRLA in Los Angeles, California. From 2006 to early 2007, Gordon hosted Barry Gordon from Left Field, a weekly talk show broadcast throughout the San Bernardino/Riverside region of Southern California on KCAA Radio in Loma Linda, California. This program was notable for featuring nationally known guests, including senators, congressmen, bestselling authors, and various entertainment figures, and was accessible through live streams and podcast archives. In 2008, Gordon debuted his daily Internet talk show, Left Talk, on BlogTalkRadio, further solidifying his presence in the progressive media landscape.

6.1. Filmography

6.2. Television appearances

6.3. Discography

6.4. Video game appearances