Frank Barron came to Hollywood to write.
With a long career that ranged from writing “Woody Woodpecker” and “Popeye” cartoons to two stints as editor of The Hollywood Reporter and promoting top rock acts, he relished it all.
“Hollywood gave me a great life and I met wonderful people,” the Sherman Oaks man once said.
Barron, 98, died of natural causes Monday, Oct. 23, after a short stay at the Sepulveda VA Hospice Unit in North Hills.
Born and raised in Elizabeth N.J., Barron came to Southern California after World War II during which he was stationed in London and served in the Medical Corps. administration as a Master Sergeant. He also spent about a year in Japan running several Air Force base newspapers in the Tokyo area.
By then, he’d been a published writer since junior high school.
But Southern California provided the Army veteran a chance to branch out in the areas of radio, television, and print.
He wrote storylines for his pal Joe Barbera at Hanna-Barbera and put his sharp wit to use as a comedy writer for radio shows, including “Duffy’s Tavern” and “Fibber McGee & Molly.”
In the early days of television, he wrote for “The Jerry Colonna Show” and served as head writer for “The Pinky Lee Show.” He also wrote for the local NBC variety show “Komedy Kapers,” which he was set to direct – until, that is, Jerry Lewis stepped in “so he could get experience for his (Directors Guild of America) card,” Barron once said.
He added, “I never forgave him for that missed opportunity.”
Barron’s other credits include creating the 1959 western series “The Man From Blackhawk,” which followed an insurance investigator in the Old West and ran for a full season. He worked with Duke Ellington in 1959 on the stage show “Jump for Joy.”
In addition to developing show ideas for Norman Lear, he worked at The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard Publications and experienced “the most fun I ever had” promoting rock acts for Gibson & Stromberg PR.
And yet, he managed to settle down – at age 61.
Barron and Margie Platt were married at the home of Shirley Jones and Marty Ingels in 1980. Among his fondest friends were also Ken Burns and Bryan Cranston.
“He was such a remarkable man – journalist, comedy writer, and a true Hollywood character,” Margie Barron said.
A celebration of Barron’s life will be held for friends and family on what would have been his birthday, Feb. 5, at the historic El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood.
