Barry Newman, 'Vanishing Point' Star, Dead at 92

By Allison Schonter

Barry Newman, the Emmy-nominated actor who starred in the 1971 film Vanishing Point, has died. Newman passed away of natural causes at NewYork-Presbyterian Columbia University Irving Medical Center on Thursday, May 11, his wife, Angela, told The Hollywood Reporter. He was 92.
 
Born in Boston on November 7, 1938, Newman attended Boston Latin School before going on to attend Brandeis University. During his education. After graduating, he was drafted into the US Army. During his service, he played both the clarinet and saxophone in the army band and also studied acting with Lee Strasberg. After serving, Newman moved to New York, where he made his Broadway debut playing a jazz musician in the Herman Wouk comedy Nature's Way in 1957. The role was followed a year later by an appearance in Maybe Tuesday, written by Mel Tolkin and Lucille Kallen, with Alice Ghostley. He went on to transition to the small screen in the '60s, Newman playing assistant director Sheik Orsini opposite Steve Lawrence in the musical adaptation of Budd Schulberg's What Makes Sammy Run? while also starring on the CBS daytime drama The Edge of Night.

Newman was perhaps best known, however, for his role in 1971's Vanishing Point. In the beloved action thriller, Newman played former race car driver Kowalski, a man tasked with transporting a car from Denver to San Francisco. The film was directed by Richard C. Sarafian. The actor was also known for his role as the eponymous lawyer in the NBC series Petrocelli, which ran for two seasons, from September 1974 through March 1976.
 
Newman's other credits include The Lawyer, Fear Is the Key, The Salzburg Connection, King Crab, City on Fire,  L.A. Law, Murder, She Wrote, The Fall Guy, and The O.C. Most recently, he appeared in films including the Sylvester Stallone-starring Daylight (1996), Bowfinger (1999), Steven Soderbergh's The Limey (1999), and 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002). Newman stepped back from acting in 2009 after he was diagnosed with vocal-cord cancer. Per THR, he recovered and reunited with writer-director Furie to star in the independent film Finding Hannah (2022).
 
Newman is survived by his wife, Angela. In a statement, Newman's wife remembered him as "a rock for so many people, whose spirit he lifted and allowed to be free. He was truly a light for so many, with an incredible, hilarious sense of humor that lit everything and everyone up."

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