Barry Corbin

Leonard Barrie Corbin (born October 16, 1940) is an American actor.^[1] He is best known for his starring role as Maurice Minnifield on the television series Northern Exposure (1990–1995), which earned him two consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations.

His other notable credits include the films Urban Cowboy (1980), Stir Crazy (1980), WarGames (1983), and No Country for Old Men (2007), as well as the television series Dallas (1979–1984), Lonesome Dove (1989), One Tree Hill (2003–2009), The Closer (2007–2012), The Ranch (2016–2020), Yellowstone (2021), and Tulsa King (2022).

Corbin's mother gave him his middle name in honor of author Sir James M. Barrie.^[2] He played football briefly in eighth grade, but soon moved to the arts, including acting and ballet classes.^[2] He graduated from Monterey High School in Lubbock, Texas. Corbin studied theater arts at Texas Tech University in Lubbock.^[3]

At 21, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps, served two years, and then returned to Texas Tech.^[4]

Corbin began his career in the 1960s as a Shakespearean actor, but today is more likely to be seen in the role of the sheriff, military leader, or some other authority figure, though on occasion, he has portrayed murderous villains. To moviegoers, he is well remembered as General Beringer in WarGames, John Travolta's uncle Bob Davis in Urban Cowboy, Clint Eastwood's costar in Any Which Way You Can, and Roscoe Brown, July Johnson's bumbling deputy in the acclaimed Western Lonesome Dove.

From 1979 until 1984, Corbin appeared in several episodes of Dallas as Sheriff Fenton Washburn. In 1983, he co-starred in the television miniseries The Thorn Birds. Corbin played Mary Carson's stockman Pete, who teaches the Clearys' sons how to shear sheep on their aunt's gigantic Australian sheep station, Drogheda. Also in 1983, Corbin played Merit Sawyer in the television series Boone, cancelled after 10 episodes. Corbin's role was as a stern father to the young actor Tom Byrd, who played Boone Sawyer, an aspiring singer. Corbin played Franz Grebner, Chief of Investigation for Fort Bragg, in the television miniseries Fatal Vision.^[5]

From 1990 to 1995, Corbin portrayed former astronaut and local business leader Maurice Minnifield on Northern Exposure, for which he received an Emmy Award nomination.^[6]

In 1994, Corbin narrated the acclaimed TV documentary MoonShot, telling the story of the 1960s space race from the first-person viewpoint of Mercury Seven astronaut Deke Slayton. From 2007 to 2012, Corbin appeared in the recurring role of Clay Johnson, father of Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson on The Closer.

Corbin played the role of General Carville in consecutive video games developed by Westwood Studios: in 1998, Red Alert: Retaliation; in 2000, Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2; and in 2001, Command & Conquer: Yuri's Revenge.

In 2003, Corbin co-starred with Northern Exposure castmate John Cullum in "Blackwater Elegy", a short film written by Matthew Porter and co-directed by Porter and Joe O'Brien.

From 2003 to 2009, Corbin played Whitey Durham, the basketball coach for the Tree Hill Ravens on the drama series One Tree Hill.^[7] He also had a role in 2007's No Country for Old Men.

Corbin lost most of his hair in the 1990s due to alopecia areata. Since then, he has played various roles with a shaved head, wearing a cowboy hat, or occasionally wearing a full toupee.

Corbin is the signature voice of radio station KPLX in Fort Worth, Texas, and has also voiced trailers and promotions for CMT and various other country radio stations.^[8] In 2014, he became the spokesman for the Texas Veterans Land Board. He also played a role in the Netflix series The Ranch.

In 2020, Corbin had a recurring guest role as Everett Acker in Better Call Saul.

Corbin has won many cutting-horse competitions.^[2] Much of his spare time is spent riding horses and tending to cattle on his small ranch near Fort Worth. He has volunteered his time to charity for many years, including rodeos and being spokesman for the National Alopecia Areata Foundation.^[2] In 2006, he participated in the Lubbock centennial.^[9]

In September 2011, Corbin was given a lifetime achievement award by the Estes Park Film Festival in Estes Park, Colorado.^[10] The Texas Film Hall of Fame inducted Corbin into its membership on March 8, 2012.^[2] In 2014, he was inducted into the National Multicultural Western Heritage Museum.^[11]

• Official website
• Barry Corbin at IMDb 
• Barry Corbin at the TCM Movie Database

• Barry Corbin papers at Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library, Texas Tech University