Barry Corbin is one of those good old boys you always hear about but don’t see that often, with the only difference being that he’s been seen a tremendous amount of times throughout his career and has been seen alongside some of the greatest names in cinema and TV. The fact that he started out simply in Lubbock, Texas isn’t much of point of amazement, it’s that he had plans to leave his home of so many years for New York the first chance he got. You could say that he fell in love with a dream the same way that so many younger actors have throughout their lives. He started out simply enough by going to Texas Tech University and starring in various theater plays, creating a reputation that managed to follow him and lead the way towards a career that would eventually see him turn in many a role as a character actor a lot of times and a huge supporting actor in others. His services to the industry have been more invaluable than many people might realize largely because he’s the guy that’s either the hardcase or the guy that you don’t think about that much in the movie until you realize he’s one of the more beneficial characters there.
WarGames
Do you want to play a game? This could be one reason hackers started getting a bad name early on, but then again seeing as how it was beyond the realm of belief for many people it’s also likely that it was just a fantastical movie that people grew up thinking was a worst-case scenario kind of thing. But imagine being the guy in charge of the place when the alarms start blaring and the screen lights up like a bank of Christmas lights, denoting the launch of missiles that could be headed straight to the US at any moment. And to think it was all a simulation that went awry, an AI that thought the game was a real call to arms. This is one reason why technology, which is highly beneficial, is also extremely dangerous in the wrong hands.
Who’s Harry Crumb?
This was one of the few John Candy movies that didn’t attract a lot of attention but in truth it was pretty funny. Barry plays the rich father of a young woman that’s kidnapped and will pay anything to get her back. When Harry’s boss, the same man that abducted the girl, brings Harry in, counting on the fact that he’ll screw up the case, he doesn’t count on the dumb luck that Harry seems to have when it comes to solving cases and in the end is captured and sent to jail after Harry finds the missing girl. It’s a very slapstick-heavy movie that was kind of overlooked by many people but it’s definitely worth the watch thanks to the great cast and the story that kind of bumbles along.
Barry is a guy that tells it like it is and doesn’t prevaricate all that often, if ever. He’s had a long and very successful career but he still lives in a one-bedroom home and is always ready to get up and go to the next gig. He’s kind of like the working-man’s actor that doesn’t bank so much on fame and fortune and does what he can to live a simple life. Despite wanting to leave Lubbock so badly when he was younger he’s moved back to his home and admits that while it’s a tough place to live at times it’s where he feels like he belongs and is glad to call it home. Just listening to this man talk doesn’t bring up the idea that he’s been a renowned film star for so long or has amassed the kind of fortune that a lot of us will never see. It’s akin to sitting down to talk with a favorite grandparent, or mentor, or just someone that you’d love to kick back and have a cup of coffee or a nice cold beer with. He’s that kind of guy, the simple, easygoing type that doesn’t stand on ceremony about everything and just wants a simple life.
And just so everyone gets the point, he’s not slowing down. Barry has no intention of retiring at this point since he’s in it until the end it sounds like. Morbid as it might sound it almost seems as though he’ll be on set until he just can’t go anymore and his body calls it quits. That almost sounds like the way he’d like to go, being on the job or being ready to go when the time comes. There’s something very admirable about that to be honest since a lot of us would probably rather be somewhere we consider comfortable and away from work. Barry is the working man of Hollywood, or at least one of a handful.
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