David Joyner (actor)

Last updated

David Joyner
Born
David Eugene Joyner

(1963-07-04) July 4, 1963 (age 61)
Decatur, Illinois, U.S.
Occupation(s)Actor
therapist
Years active1991–present
Signature
David Joyner (signature).png

David Eugene Joyner (born July 4, 1963) is an American actor and therapist. He is best known for physically portraying Barney from 1991 to 2001 on the children's television series Barney & Friends and its predecessor Barney & the Backyard Gang . [1] Bob West, Duncan Brannan, and Tim Dever voiced the character. [2] Later on, Joyner played the title character of Hip Hop Harry . [3]

Contents

Early life

Joyner was born July 4, 1963, in Decatur, Illinois, to Roscoe and Mary Joyner. He attended MacArthur High School and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electronic engineering technology from the ITT Technical Institute in Indianapolis, Indiana. [4] [5] He worked as a software analyst for Texas Instruments for six years. [6]

Career

Joyner once stated that he had a dream the night before he auditioned to play the role of Barney. In the dream, Barney passed out and Joyner had to give him mouth to mouth resuscitation. And on the day of the audition, Joyner stopped at a red light and noticed a billboard above him for Southwest Airlines. It said "breathe life into your vacation." Joyner decided that "if I could breathe life into this character, I was going on vacation." [7]

Joyner originally auditioned for the role in 1991, replacing Barney's original costume actor, David Voss. [8] [6] Joyner was originally cast as the back-up performer, but took over the role after the actress originally chosen had difficulty staying in the costume for long periods of time. [9]

Joyner was originally cast to play Barney in two Barney & the Backyard Gang home videos, but continued to play Barney in the TV series Barney & Friends during the first six seasons, as well as in live performances. [9] After the fourth season episode "Let's Eat", he left to film Barney's Great Adventure and was replaced with Josh Martin and Maurice Scott for the rest of the season. Joyner returned to perform Barney in Barney in Outer Space in 1997. After he left the series, he also continued to play him for occasional appearances until 2005 with a brief return in 2008.

At that time, he was replaced with Carey Stinson, who had also performed the character for birthday parties in 1991 and public appearances starting in 1992. He also started to perform him in stage shows such as Barney Live in New York City in 1994.

Outside of acting, Joyner also works as a tantric massage therapist. [10] [11]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1993Barney's Magical Musical AdventureBarney (in-suit performer)Direct-to-video
1998 Barney in Outer Space
Barney's Great Adventure
2006I'll Be there with YouSheriff
2007All Lies on MeTin Man
2009The Adventures of UmbwekiVillage Leaper
2010KontrolledMr. Peterson

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1991 Barney & the Backyard Gang Barney (in-suit performer)2 episodes
1992–2001 Barney & Friends 104 episodes
2001 General Hospital Garland2 episodes
2002 The Wayne Brady Show Barney (in-suit performer)1 episode
2002–2003Today2 episodes
2003 What Should You Do? Steven JohnsonEpisode: "New York Bar Hostage Situation"
2004 That's So Raven The Teddy BearEpisode: "Four's a Crowd"
Crossing Jordan CSU TechUncredited
Episode: "Is That Plutonium in Your Pocket, or Are You Just Happy to See Me?"
2004–2006 ER Dialysis Tech3 episodes
2005 House Cardiac Surgeon #2Episode: "Control"
That '70s Show Jazz MusicianEpisode: "Long Away"
The Inside Good SamaritanEpisode: "Aidan"
2006 24 Agent JonesEpisode: "Day 5: 10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m."
2006–2008 Hip Hop Harry Hip Hop Harry (In-suit performer), Chef Rob26 episodes
Also producer
2007 Identity Himself1 episode
American's Next ProducerShelbyEpisode: "Late Night with Carson Daly"
2008 The Young and the Restless Keith Joyner6 episodes
2009 The Closer Uni #1Episode: "Strike Three"
2010 Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster Sinister ClownTelevision film
2012My ChoiceGodEpisode: "Pilot"
2013 Southland Detective FlynnEpisode: "Off Duty"
Wendell and Vinnie ErnestoEpisode: "Fathers of Fathers & Sons"
Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 Business Man #2Episode: "Monday June..."
Switched at Birth GavinEpisode: "Mother and Child Divided"
2014 Hart of Dixie Supervisor GreeneEpisode: "Back in the Saddle Again"
According to Him + HerReenactment13 episodes
2015 Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn Police OfficerEpisode: "Family Matters"
Cry Wolfe CarlEpisode: "Hot for Teacher"
Murder in the First Reporter #2Episode: "Oh, Mexico"
2016 Shameless TodEpisode: "The F Word"
Hip Hop Harry: Mini EpisodesHip Hop Harry (in-suit performer)
Angel from Hell Security ClerkEpisode: "Funsgiving"
Veep Congress ClerkEpisode: "Kissing Your Sister
2018 Just Add Magic VictorEpisode: "Just Add Fluffy"
Animal Kingdom Nelson 'Pilot'Episode: "Incoming"
2019 S.W.A.T. LeonEpisode: "Track"
Unknown EncounterJoshuaTelevision film
2022 I Love You, You Hate Me HimselfAdult docuseries

Web

YearTitleRoleNotes
2017Hip Hop Harry Toy ReviewHip Hop Harry (in-suit performer)
2019ABC HarryRecurring role

Theater

YearTitleRole
1994 Barney Live in New York City Barney (in-suit performer)

References

  1. ↑ Epstein, Leonora (August 26, 2013). "10 Things You Never Knew About The Man Who Played Barney". BuzzFeed . Archived from the original on July 17, 2014. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Bob West - IMDb". IMDb. Archived from the original on February 19, 2017. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
  3. ↑ Vorel, Jim (August 19, 2011). "Energetic David Joyner a natural TV talent as Barney, Hip Hop Harry". Herald & Review . Archived from the original on September 7, 2017. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  4. ↑ Vorel, Jim (August 19, 2011). "Energetic David Joyner a natural TV talent as Barney, Hip Hop Harry". Herald & Review. Archived from the original on September 7, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  5. ↑ Monifa, Akilah (July 4, 2017). "Black History 'Erryday': Happy Birthday David 'Barney' Joyner". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on August 29, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  6. 1 2 Snyder, Chris. "This man played Barney the dinosaur for 10 years — here's what it was like." Business Insider. June 2, 2017. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.com/meet-the-man-who-played-barney-the-purple-dinosaur-for-10-years-david-joyner-interview-2017-5 Archived January 24, 2018, at the Wayback Machine , January 24, 2018.
  7. ↑ Tech Insider (June 8, 2017). "What It's Like To Play Barney For 10 Years". YouTube. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  8. ↑ "On the set of Barney". ew.com. Archived from the original on January 26, 2018. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  9. 1 2 "UTG INTERVIEW: David Joyner, The Man Inside Barney". Under the Gun Review. Archived from the original on January 5, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  10. ↑ "The Actor Who Played Barney Is Now a Tantric Sex Therapist". January 24, 2018. Archived from the original on January 25, 2022. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
  11. ↑ "About Me | Tantra Harmony". Archived from the original on October 19, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
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