Gig Young

Gig Young is one of those actors whose range only becomes obvious in hindsight. Born Byron Barr in St. Cloud, Minnesota, he spent decades playing the urbane, light-hearted sophisticate, the charming friend in the corner of the frame. Then came They Shoot Horses, Don't They? in 1969, where he shed every ounce of that levity for a hollow, predatory emcee and won the Supporting Actor Oscar. That pivot tells me he had far more depth than his typecasting allowed. Knowing the darkness in his real life, ending tragically in 1978, makes that performance land even harder. The gap between his public ease and private pain gives his best work a chilling authenticity.

Name (English)

Gig Young

Name (Japanese)

ギグ・ヤング

Reading

ぎぐ・やんぐ

Born

November 4, 1913 – October 19, 1978

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Scorpio / Ox

Origin

St. Cloud, Minnesota, United States

Occupation

actor / screenwriter / stage actor / television actor / film actor

High school

McKinley Technology High School

Awards & achievements

• 1970 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
• star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

• Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gig%20Young
• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%AE%E3%82%B0%E3%83%BB%E3%83%A4%E3%83%B3%E3%82%B0
• Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q344758

Tags

• Minnesota
• actor
• screenwriter
• stage actor

Last updated

2026-06-17

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.