Barbara Barrie, Oscar-Nominated ‘Breaking Away’ and ‘Private Benjamin’ Star, Dies at 95

The character actress death was "medically assisted" following a terminal cancer diagnosis.

Barbara Barrie, a character actress best known for playing boisterous moms in “Breaking Away” and “Private Benjamin,” has died. She was 95.

Barrie’s daughter, Jane Harnick, told the New York Times that her mother had terminal cancer and said her death was “medically assisted.”

Barrie was an inveterate scene stealer who was a frequent presence on stage and screen. On Broadway, she appeared in the original cast of Stephen Sondheim’s “Company,” a revolutionary musical that examined relationships and commitment. Barrie earned a Tony Award nomination for her role in the 1970 production. Other Broadway credits included Neil Simon’s hit “California Suite.”

For her film work, Barrie won the best actress prize at the 1964 Cannes Film Festival for “One Potato, Two Potato,” an interracial romance, in which her character confronts prejudice while falling in love with a Black man. But it was “Breaking Away,” and her work as the blue-collar mother of a cycling enthusiast, that put Barrie on the map. She was nominated for best supporting sctress for the 1979 coming-of-age classic, then reprised the part in a 1980 TV series based on “Breaking Away,” earning an Emmy nomination.

Barrie also was known to audiences for her turn on the 1970s detective sitcom “Barney Miller,” portraying the wife of the title character. Other credits included the films “Judy Berlin,” “The Bell Jar,” and Disney’s “Hercules,” as well as appearances on “Law & Order” and “Suddenly Susan.”

Barrie was a published author. She wrote children’s books, as well as “Second Act” and “Don’t Die of Embarrassment,” which examined her battle with colorectal cancer.