Philip Jerome Quinn Barry (June 18, 1896 - December 3, 1949) was an American playwright. Though most known for his comedies about manners, he also wrote serious dramas, often on religious themes. His 1927 play John is about the Baptist, and Barry himself described his 1938 allegory Here Come the Clowns as a study of "the battle with evil," in which his hero, Clancy, "at last finds God in the will of man." Many of Barry's plays were adapted for television in the 1950s. His most famous work is The Philadelphia Story (1939), which was made into a popular 1940 film starring Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, and James Stewart. Hepburn, a close friend of Barry, starred in the play on Broadway, bought the movie rights (with the help of her ex-boyfriend Howard Hughes), and successfully restarted her previously flagging Hollywood career with the film version. Philip Barry was born in Rochester, New York and died in New York City, aged 53, of undisclosed causes.
Plays
- A Punch for Judy, 1921
- You and I, 1923
- The Youngest, 1924
- In a Garden, 1925.
- Paris Bound, 1927
- John, 1927
- Holiday, 1928
- Cock Robin (with Elmer Rice), 1928
- Hotel Universe, 1930
- Tomorrow and Tomorrow, 1931
- The Animal Kingdom, 1932
- The Joyous Season, 1934
- Bright Star, 1935
- Spring Dance, 1936
- Here Come the Clowns, 1938
- The Philadelphia Story, 1939
- Liberty Jones, 1941
- Without Love, 1942
- Foolish Notion, 1945
- Second Threshold, 1951, completed by Robert Sherwood
External links
- Philip Barry Papers: Collection Description. Georgetown University. Retrieved on 2007-02-08.
- Philip Barry at the Internet Movie Database
- Phillip Barry on the Internet Broadway Database
