- Born
- Died
- Height5′ 8″ (1.73 m)
- Born in Goldthwaite, Texas, Barton Yarborough ran away from home as a youngster to join vaudeville. In the 1920s, he got involved in radio, and 1932 began a long run as Cliff Barbour on the hugely famous drama One Man's Family, which he continued until his death. Other outstanding radio roles came along the way, such as 1938 Doc Long in I Love a Mystery (1945), but his most significant success would have been as Sgt. Ben Romero in The Human Bomb (1951) in 1949. Both of these also moved to TV, and Yarborough appeared in 3 I Love Mystery movies between 1945 and 1946 and the TV version of The Human Bomb (1951) in 1951. But, sadly, he was only able to film two episodes; the day after filming the second, Barton fell ill and died four days later. Though Yarborough appeared in several films, his radio work contains his most memorable roles.- IMDb mini biography by: Gary (yarborough) Portillo (corrected by U.N. Owen)
- SpousesBarbara Jo Allen(? - 1931) (divorced, 1 child)Janet Warren(? - December 19, 1951) (his death)
- Southern accent on radio
- Joe Friday's first partner in "Dragnet"
- In the first episode after Barton Yarborough's death "The Big Sorrow", the radio episode begins with a brief dedication to him by Jack Webb. The episode fittingly ends with Joe Friday mistakenly calling his new partner "Ben".
- The only "Dragnet" partner taller than Joe Friday
- In the 1940s, appeared in "Hawk Larabee" radio show with another future "Dragnet" co-star, Barney Phillips
- According to a 1982 radio interview with actor Vic Perrin--who played in numerous radio and TV episodes of Dragnet--Yarborough was stricken with the flu immediately after filming the second episode of the TV Dragnet, dying four days later.
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