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Barry Gordon (born 21 December 1948; age 75) is the American actor and voice-over artist who played Nava in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine first season episode "The Nagus" and Ardon Broht in the Star Trek: Voyager seventh season episode "Author, Author".

As an actor, Gordon acquired success in the 1960s for his Tony Award-nominated performance in the Broadway play A Thousand Clowns and for starring in the play's subsequent feature film adaptation. As a voice actor, he is perhaps best known for voicing Donatello and Bebop in the popular animated television series Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and for voicing the Quik/Nesquik bunny in commercials for Nestlé Quik (currently Nesquik).

Gordon is the longest-serving President of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), having held the office for seven years (1988-1995). Fellow Deep Space Nine guest star William Schallert previously served as SAG president from 1979 through 1981 and currently serves as a SAG Health Plan Trustee like William Schallert. Joseph Ruskin and Kitty Swink also both served on the Screen Actors Guild Executive Board of Directors and then became Trustees at the Screen Actors Guild Pension and Health Plan. Gordon is also a former Democratic Party candidate for the US Congress, campaigning in the 1998 congressional election as part of California's 27th congressional district and coming within three points of unseating Republican Party incumbent James Rogan.

Early career[]

Gordon broke into show business as a child, scoring a hit as the singer of the 1950s holiday favorite, "Nuthin' for Christmas," becoming the youngest person to have a Top 10 hit. Throughout the 1950s and 60s, he appeared on a variety of television programs, including Leave It to Beaver (starring Tony Dow), Alfred Hitchcock Presents (directed by Norman Lloyd), Thriller (with Lilyan Chauvin and Theo Marcuse), The Jack Benny Program and Love, American Style.

From April 1962 through April 1963, Gordon portrayed Nick Burns in the original Broadway production of A Thousand Clowns, which ran for 428 performances. Gordon was nominated for the 1963 Tony Award as Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in A Thousand Clowns and reprised his role in the Academy Award-nominated 1965 feature film adaptation, also starring William Daniels.

Other film and television credits[]

Gordon's other film credits have included The Girl Can't Help It (1956), Jerry Lewis' Cinderfella (1960, co-starring Judith Anderson), Pressure Point (1962, with Clegg Hoyt and George Murdock), The Spirit Is Willing (1967), and Love at First Bite (1979, featuring Robert Ellenstein and Michael Pataki). His more recent films include Body Slam (1986) and The Object of Beauty (1991).

Throughout the 1970s, Gordon guest-starred on such series as Mannix (with Stanley Adams, James Greene, and William Sargent), Kolchak: The Night Stalker (with Eric Server, Abraham Sofaer and Paul Sorensen), and Police Woman (directed by Alexander Singer). From 1981 through 1983, Gordon appeared in the recurring role of Jewish accountant Gary Rabinowitz on Archie Bunker's Place.

In addition to Deep Space Nine and Voyager, other recent shows on which Gordon has appeared include L.A. Law (starring Corbin Bernsen and Larry Drake, in episodes featuring Nicholas Cascone, Jenette Goldstein, Anne Haney, Gregg Henry, Tina Lifford, and Susanna Thompson), Arliss (with Ellen Albertini Dow and George D. Wallace), NYPD Blue (working with Gordon Clapp, Sharon Lawrence, Sherman Augustus, Barbara Bosson, Alicia Coppola, Bertila Damas, Lisa LoCicero, and Jeff and Jerry Rector), ER (with Michelle C. Bonilla and Sean McGowan), Becker (starring Terry Farrell), and Dragnet (with David Andrews, Charles Esten, and Saul Rubinek). His most recent TV role is that of a rabbi in two episodes of the HBO series Curb Your Enthusiasm – one with Paul Dooley, and another with Wallace Langham and Robert Pine.

Voice-over roles[]

In the 1980s, Gordon began working as a voice actor, primarily for animated television shows. Perhaps his most notable voice-over roles are those of Donatello and Bebop on the long-running Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Another Star Trek alum voicing on this series was James Avery, who voiced the Turtles' nemesis, The Shredder.

Other shows for which Gordon has lent his voice include The Mighty Orbots, Jabberjaw, The Kid Superpower Hour with Shazam!, The Snorks, Darkwing Duck, Batman, and SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron (the latter alongside Brock Peters). Gordon is also the voice of the Quik Bunny (later the Nesquik Bunny) in the many commercials for Nestlé Quik (later Nesquik) brand milk flavoring.

Talk show host[]

In 2004, Gordon started a live, call-in progressive political talk show on Pasadena, California's cable access channel 56. The show continues to be cablecast and webcast live, with Flash video available on demand. In 2005, Gordon hosted a weekly talk show heard on KRLA Radio in Los Angeles, California.

From 2006 through 2007, Gordon hosted a weekly radio show called on KCAA Radio in Loma Linda, California, called Barry Gordon From Left Field. He also hosted the local public access television show NewsRap, which aired in Pasadena, California, and was streamed on the internet.

Gordon currently hosts the daily Internet talk show, Left Talk with Barry Gordon, on BlogTalkRadio, which debuted in 2008.

External links[]

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