While Gig Young’s personal life was difficult and tragic, his many comedic roles are highlights, including four films with Doris Day. (While Doris Day never played at the theatre, she did perform with Les Brown at the Trocadero Ballroom, so we consider her an alum!)
Gig Young was born Byron Elsworth Barr in St. Cloud, Minnesota, on November 4, 1913, and raised in Washington, D.C. He discovered acting in school plays and later won a scholarship to the Pasadena Playhouse. There a Warner Brothers talent scout spotted him, and he began a screen career that spanned nearly four decades. After a Coast Guard stint in the Pacific during World War II, he became one of Hollywood’s most likable second leads, known for light-hearted sophistication and impeccable comic timing. He worked alongside stars including Clark Gable, Cary Grant, John Wayne, and James Cagney.
In the summer of 1973, Young brought that polish to the Historic Elitch Theatre stage in Under the Yum-Yum Tree, a role he had originated on Broadway in 1960–61, where the play ran for 173 performances. The play’s witty, worldly comedy suited his gifts. Denver audiences saw a seasoned professional playing a part he knew inside and out, only a few years after the high point of his film career. Young’s visit joined Elitch’s long tradition of bringing established screen and stage stars to the Gardens for a summer season.
Young’s screen career reached its peak when he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (1969), playing Rocky, the weary, morally compromised dance-marathon emcee. The role also earned him a Golden Globe. It capped a run of acclaimed work that included two earlier Oscar nominations, for Come Fill the Cup (1951) and Teacher’s Pet (1958), and a popular television turn as a charming con man in The Rogues.
Sadly, Young’s personal life was marked by deep struggle. Long-battling alcoholism cost him several significant roles in his later years and took a toll on his relationships. His life ended tragically on October 19, 1978, just three weeks after his fifth marriage, when he shot and killed his wife, Kim Schmidt, before taking his own life in their Manhattan apartment. He was 64. The motive was never determined. Young was buried under his birth name, Byron E. Barr, in Waynesville, North Carolina. His legacy is a complicated one — a genuinely gifted actor whose artistry on stages like Elitch’s, and on screens large and small, left a lasting mark on American entertainment.
Seasons at the Theatre
- 1973
Productions/Roles:
- 1973 – Under the Yum-Yum Tree (Hogan)
Notable Roles, Awards, and Other Work:
- Academy Award, Best Supporting Actor (Won): They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (1969), as dance-marathon emcee Rocky. This also earned him a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture and a BAFTA nomination.
- Academy Award nominations, Best Supporting Actor: Come Fill the Cup (1951), a dramatic turn as a recovering alcoholic opposite James Cagney, and Teacher’s Pet (1958), opposite Clark Gable and Doris Day.
- Four films with Doris Day: including Young at Heart (1955), Teacher’s Pet (1958), The Tunnel of Love (1958), and That Touch of Mink (1962), the last also starring Cary Grant.
- Broadway: Oh Men! Oh Women! (1953–54): a hit comedy that ran 382 performances and showed his gift for stage comedy.
- Broadway: Under the Yum-Yum Tree (1960–61): originated the role of Hogan, later brought to Elitch (173 performances).
- Broadway: There’s a Girl in My Soup (1967–68): a hit British comedy that ran 322 performances.
- Television: The Rogues (NBC, 1964–65): starred as con man Tony Fleming, one of his own favorite roles.
- Television: The Twilight Zone, “Walking Distance” (1959): a memorable lead performance in a classic episode.
- Emmy nomination, Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: The Neon Ceiling (1971).
Elitch Theatre Connections:
- Young appeared in the 1963 film, For Love or Money, with Elitch Alumna Mitzi Gaynor and Julie Newmar. Young portrayed Sonny Smith, Gaynor played Kate Brasher, and Newmar played Bonnie Brasher. All three were credited cast members in this romantic comedy.
- Rear Window (1954) — Grace Kelly (HET 1951) and Raymond Burr (HET 1944). Kelly portrayed Lisa Fremont and Burr portrayed Lars Thorwald. Gig Young provides the uncredited voice of Gunnison, the newspaper editor on the telephone who speaks with photojournalist L.B. “Jeff” Jefferies (James Stewart).
Wikipedia Link:
