Dan Barton (born Daniel George Berman; September 20, 1921 – December 13, 2009) was an American actor.
Personal life
Barton was the son of Matthew and Sonia (née Koenigsberg) Berman.[1] He was the cousin of Star Trek actor Walter Koenig. He graduated from Lake View High School and the school of speech at Northwestern University.[2] At age 12,[1] he began his lifelong acting career starting out in radio, averaging 15 shows a week as a child actor.[3]
He served in the Army Special Services Entertainment Unit[4] during World War II acting with Alex Nicol and Mickey Rooney. While stationed in Paris he edited a humor magazine. After returning to the States he was cast as Stefanowski in the stage play Mr. Roberts where he met actor Cliff Robertson who became his lifelong friend.[5][verification needed]
While on tour, Barton met actress Anne Barton (née Henderson), whom he later wed.[4] They married between a matinee and evening performance. They had two children, musician Steve Barton from the band Translator and actress Susan Berman. In 2005, he married Gyl Roland, the daughter of actors Gilbert Roland and Constance Bennett.
Career
In the late 1940s, Barton appeared on stage in a production of Mister Roberts[3] alongside Cliff Robertson, Lee Van Cleef, John Forsythe and Brian Keith.[5]
He had a long career in television from the 1950s through the 1980s, playing in a variety of different shows including Playhouse 90. He was cast as Jim Ellis, a schoolmaster in the episode "Incident at Indian Springs", of Cheyenne.
In his later years, Barton was highly in demand as a voice-over talent. He narrated documentaries, worked in commercials and provided the voices for many characters in video games. He also spent several years recording books for the blind for The Braille Institute. He was the spokesman for Northrup Aviation for twelve years and did voice-over work for companies such as Coca-Cola, Kelloggs, Microsoft and Nike. Barton also was the voice in many political campaign commercials, including prominent Republicans Arnold Schwarzenegger and Elizabeth Dole, despite his own position as a lifelong Democrat.[5]
Death
On December 13, 2009, Barton died in Sherman Oaks, California,[7][4] at the age of 88 from heart failure and kidney disease.[5]
^Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 230. ISBN978-0-7864-6477-7.
