Harry Baird

Born 12th May, 1931. Georgetown, British Guyana

Died 13th February, 2005. London, UK

There’s a pretty decent little biography of Harry Baird on the IMDB, quote:

Cast in a number of racially-motivated British films during the 1950s and 1960s, actor Harry Baird was born in Georgetown, Guyana (then called British Guiana) on May 12, 1931 and received his education both in Canada and England. Famed director Carol Reed gave Harry his film break in 1954 at age 23 when he cast the actor in the smallish role of a black boxer named Jamaica in A Kid for Two Farthings (1955), a tale that dealt with the tense ethnic struggles of London’s East End. A year later Harry made a minor stage bow in the musical “”Kismet”” at the Stoll theatre in London. Although he continued sporadically before live audiences, including a role in Jean Genet’s “”The Blacks”” in 1961, his stronger focus would be in the cinema and on TV where he often took to stunt work just to keep himself in front of the lens. His first lead on TV was as Rhodes Reason’s bearer, Atimbu, in the lowbudget “”White Hunter”” (1958 ) adventure series. Moviegoers first took notice of Harry, however, with his stirring portrayal of a young black brutalized by the police in the film Sapphire (1959), a role that helped him continue into the next decade. Extremely good-looking and physically fit, he rarely managed to attain leads, primarily due to the lack of parts at the time for men of his race. He did find regular supporting roles on TV, however, including the series “”Danger Man”” (1964) and the science-fiction program “”UFO”” (1970). In the 1970s Harry was diagnosed with glaucoma. He was forced to retire as the impairment worsened and he eventually went completely blind. He remained upbeat and positive in later years as he adapted to his handicap and took classes on film history among other interests. He was married and divorced and survived by a stepdaughter when he died of cancer at age 73 in London on February 13, 2005.

Harry was one of the higher profle black actors working in Italy in the 70s. He had a couple of big parts in peplums, popped up in The Italian Job, starred in a handful of spaghetti westerns (including a memorable turn in Four of the Apocalypse) and also had a regular role in Space 1999 (as did Alibe Parsons). He was a very good actor, had an imposing screen presence and was a prominent figure on the filmmaking scene in Italy during its golden years.

• A Kid for Two Farthings (1955) …Jamaica
• Sapphire (1959) …Johnnie Fiddle
• Killers of Kilimanjaro (1959) …Boraga
• Taur, il re della forza bruta (1960) aka Taur the Mighty
• Tarzan the Magnificent (1960) …Warrior Leader
• Flame in the Streets (1961) …Billy
• Offbeat (1961) …Gill Hall
• The Mark (1961) …Cole
• The Road to Hong Kong (1962) …Nubian at Lamasary
• Station Six-Sahara (1962) …Sailor
• Goliath e la schiava ribelle (1963) aka Goliath and the Rebel Slave (USA) …Slave
• Gladiatrici, Le (1963) aka Thor and the Amazon Women (USA) …Ubaratutu
• The Small World of Sammy Lee (1963) …Buddy Shine
• Verrätertor, Das (1964) aka Traitor’s Gate …Mate on Tramp Steamer
• He Who Rides a Tiger (1965) …Stan
• The Whisperers (1967) …Earl
• The Story of a Three-Day Pass (1968 ) …Turner
• The Touchables (1968 ) …Lillywhite
• The Italian Job (1969) …Big William
• The Oblong Box (1969) …N’Galo
• Castle Keep (1969) …Dancing Soldier
• Cool It Carol! (1970) …Benny Gray
• 1000 Convicts and a Woman (1971) …Carl
• Colt in mano del diavolo, Un (1972) aka Colt in the Hand of the Devil
• Trinita e Sartana figli di… (1972) aka Trinity and Sartana Are Coming …Sartana
• Campa carogna… la taglia cresce (1973) aka Those Dirty Dogs …Washington Smith
• Quattro dell’apocalisse, I (1975) aka Four of the Apocalypse …Bud

TV Credits

• “Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Presents – Executioner (1956)
• The Green Pastures (1957) (TV)
• White Hunter (1958 ) TV Series …Atimbu
• The Big Knife (1959) (TV)
• Hurricane (1961) (TV) …Butch
• “The Wednesday Play, A Little Temptation (1965) TV Episode …Dan Adebayo
• The Trial and Torture of Sir John Rampayne (1965) (TV) …Manao
• Danger Man (1964/65) TV Series …Carlos
• UFO (1970/71) TV Series …Lt. Mark Bradley
• The Count of Monte-Cristo (1975) (TV) …Ali