Barry Van Dyke (born July 31, 1951) is an American actor who appeared in Season One's A Mommy for Morky playing the part of Dan Phillips, Mindy's Ex (and wannabe again) Fiancé.
Biography[]
Barry Van Dyke was born in Atlanta, Georgia, the second son of actor and entertainer Dick Van Dyke (born 1925) and Margie Willett (1926–2008).and nephew of Jerry Van Dyke. He is best known to audiences as Lieutenant Detective Steve Sloan, a homicide detective and the son of Dr. Mark Sloan (played by Dick Van Dyke) on Diagnosis: Murder.
In 1974, he married Mary Carey; the couple have four children: Carey (born February 25, 1976), Shane (born August 28, 1979), Wes (born October 22, 1984), and Taryn (born June 1, 1986)
Career[]
Van Dyke's television debut was as Florian, a violin-toting nine-year-old in "The Talented Neighborhood" episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show alongside older brother Christian. Later, he worked as a gofer on his father's television series, The New Dick Van Dyke Show, which debuted in 1971 and aired until 1974. While working on that show, he secured a part as an extra.
During the 70's and 80's Barry appeared in many television shows, including an appearance in Tabitha (the show Pam Dawber wanted but was passed over for), the Gemini Man, Wonder Woman, Eight is Enough, Remington Steele, The Love Boat, Magnum, P.I., The Dukes of Hazzard. The A-Team, Gun Shy, Murder, She Wrote, Mork & Mindy, and The Redd Foxx Show. Also during that period he landed starring roles in Galactica 1980 as Lieutenant Dillon, and as Ace Combat Pilot and former M.I.A. soldier St. John Hawke in the final season of Airwolf,
He worked with his father again in the short-lived series The Van Dyke Show (which was canceled after six episodes in 1988) and then the long-running series Diagnosis: Murder, which aired from 1993 to 2001 In both series, he had major roles. He also wrote and directed several episodes of Diagnosis: Murder. After Diagnosis: Murder ended, Barry appeared in the Murder 101 television films, again alongside his father.
Behind The Scenes[]
Though Barry only made one appearance on the show as Dan (probably understandably given his character and Mindy broke up for a second time), his appearance is an interesting one, given the Van Dyke influence on Mork & Mindy. Not only are the characters of Rob & Laura (Petrie) referenced more than once through the show, Rob Petrie being the the character Barry's father Dick Van Dyke played, but the Dick Van Dyke show itself played a role in both the formation of Mork & Mindy and in how Mork came to be on Happy Days in the first place.
Jerry Parris, a long time cast member of the Dick Van Dyke show, who often doubled up as director on the show, was the man behind the camera for a classic episode of the Dick Van Dyke show, 'It May Look Like a Walnut' where Dick Van Dyke's character dreams of an invasion of thumb stealing, walnut loving (in a pod person sense) aliens, taking over the world lead by another comedian (Danny Thomas) playing an alien. When the idea of pitching an alien into the relative sanity of the 1950s set Happy Days, it was Jerry Parris, who suggested the 'dream' method used in the Dick Van Dyke Show, to explain away Mork's appearance, and also Parris who directed the episode, giving Robin Williams free reign, thereby igniting the character of Mork and Robin Williams' career. [1]