Barry Primus

• Name — Barry Primus • Born — 16 February 1938 • Birthplace — New York City, New York, U.S. • Education — Bennington College • Occupation — * Actor • director • writer • Years Active — 1963–present • Spouse — Julie Arenal

While Primus is primarily an actor, he has also worked as a writer and director in films in which he has acted. For the first decade of his career, he was employed as a stage actor. He gained some experience on TV in shows like The Defenders, East Side/West Side and The Virginian. He then made his initial film appearance in the Manhattan-filmed The Brotherhood (1968). His other films include Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me (1971), Boxcar Bertha (1972), Autopsy (1975), Heartland (1979), The Rose (1979), Night Games (1980), Absence of Malice (1981), and Guilty by Suspicion (1991). He had a recurring role on the TV series Cagney and Lacey (1982 — 1988) as Christine Cagney (Sharon Gless)'s boyfriend, Sergeant Dory McKenna, whose drug problem compromises his performance as a fellow police officer. After working as second unit director on Mark Rydell's The Rose (1979), Primus increased his behind-the-camera activities; in 1992, he directed his first theatrical feature, the "inside" Hollywood comedy/drama Mistress. A member of the Actors Studio, Primus has taught acting and directing classes at the American Film Institute, Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, the UCLA campus, and at The Maine Media Workshops in Maine. He has taught acting at Loyola Marymount University and at Columbia University. Primus's recent film work includes Jackson, a film directed by J.F. Lawton. He had cameos in Righteous Kill with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, American Hustle, Grudge Match, and The Irishman.

Primus has been married to choreographer Julie Arenal for over 50 years.

Barry Primus television credits • Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1977 — The Streets of San Francisco — Inspector Dave Lambert — 1 Episode • 1981 — Les Uns et les Autres — TV miniseries • 1986 — The Equalizer — Walter Wesley — Episode: "Out of the Past" • Murder, She Wrote — Det. Sgt. Len Berger — Episode: "Menace, Anyone?" • 1993 — Law & Order — Gary Silver — Episode: "Extended Family" • The X-Files — Robert Dorlund — 1 episode • 1998 — The Practice — Porn Film Director Goodwin — 1 episode • 1999 — Black and White — Priest — TV movie • 2001 — James Dean — Nicholas Ray — TV movie • 2007 — Boston Legal — Professor Jeffrey Benoit — Episode: "The Object of My Affection" • 2011 — The Trivial Pursuits of Arthur Banks — George Epstein — 3 Episodes

Barry Primus worked in film production, film acting, film direction and film screenwriting.