Edd Byrnes Net Worth

✎ About Edd Byrnes

Who is it?: Actor, Soundtrack

Birth Day: July 30, 1933

Birth Place: New York City, New York, United States

Birth Sign: Leo

Occupation: Actor

Years active: 1956–1999

Spouse(s): Asa Maynor (m. 1962–1971) (divorced) one child

Children: Logan Byrnes

Edd Byrnes Net Worth

Edd Byrnes was born on July 30, 1933 in New York City, New York, United States, is Actor, Soundtrack. Born Edward Byrne Breitenberger in New York City on July 30, 1933, Edd Byrnes shared an impoverished and unhappy childhood with brother Vincent and sister Jo-Ann. Their mother worked hard at various jobs to keep the family together because her alcoholic husband was often absent from the scene. When Edd was 13 his father was found dead in a basement. Edd then dropped his last name in favor of "Byrnes", based on the name of his maternal grandfather, a New York City fireman. Edd found escape from family problems at the movies and at the gym, where he developed an athletic body. At age 17 he was approached by a man who offered to take free "physique" photos of him. According to Edd's 1996 autobiography, "Kookie No More", this led to a few years of "hustling" older, well-to-do men, despite the fact that Edd was heterosexual. One of these men acted as Edd's mentor, introducing him to fashion and culture and encouraging his hopes for an acting career.After doing some summer-stock work and a few bit parts on TV, Edd drove to California in 1955, arriving in Los Angeles on the day James Dean died in a car crash. He managed to get a few minor parts in films and then won a role in a new TV series called 77 Sunset Strip (1958), which premiered in September of 1958. Efrem Zimbalist Jr. and Roger Smith starred as private eyes but Edd, playing a hip-talking parking-lot attendant named "Kookie", won the most attention. Viewers quoted his dialog, ("Baby, you're the ginchiest!"), and young males imitated the way he wielded his ever-present comb. His fan mail soon reached an astonishing 15,000 letters a week and his single with Connie Stevens, "Kookie, Kookie, Lend Me Your Comb", became a top-5 hit. Edd chafed, however, at the restrictions in his Warner Brothers contract, which forced him to turn down roles in Ocean's Eleven (1960), North to Alaska (1960) and Rio Bravo (1959). He walked off the "77 Sunset Strip" set and in the ensuing months began to drink heavily and visit a psychiatrist, who administered drugs to him. His contract dispute was eventually settled, though not much to his advantage, and when he returned to "77 Sunset Strip" his role was upgraded from "sidekick" to "partner" and he wore a suit and tie. Audience reaction was not good, ratings dropped, and the show was canceled. The hip-talking, hair-combing image clung to him, however, and Edd felt he lost the lead in PT 109 (1963) because President John F. Kennedy didn't want to be played by "Kookie." A few more movies and TV appearances followed, but his career had passed its peak before he turned 30.In 1962 he married long-time girlfriend Asa Maynor. Their son, Logan, was born on September 13, 1965. Edd and Asa's marriage ended in divorce in 1971, partially because of his reliance on drugs and alcohol. In 1982 he succeeded in going "clean and sober." He never remarried, remains proud of his son, and has come to terms with his role as television's first teen idol.
Edd Byrnes is a member of Actor

💰Edd Byrnes Net worth: $1 Million

Some Edd Byrnes images

Famous Quotes:

We previewed this show, and because Edd Byrnes was such a hit, we decided that Kookie and his comb had to be in our series. So this week, we'll just forget that in the pilot he went off to prison to be executed.

— From the pre-credit sequence for the episode "Lovely Lady, Pity Me"

Biography/Timeline

1956

In 1956 Byrnes got a non paying job in a summer stock theatre company in Connecticut, the Litchfield Community Playhouse. He began appearing in plays put on by the company as an actor. He tried Broadway without luck but managed to get some jobs in TV, starting with an episode of Crossroads in 1956. He could be seen in episodes of the shows Wire Service and Navy Log.

1957

He tested for a role in Bernadine and Until They Sail but did not get it. A contemporary report described him as "a Tab Hunter type." However he did guest star on an episode of Cheyenne made by Warner Bros. They liked Byrnes' work and signed him to a long term contract in May 1957.

1958

The show aired in October 1958 and was so popular Warners decided to turn it into a TV series 77 Sunset Strip. Byrnes' character became an immediate national teen sensation, prompting the producers to make Byrnes a regular cast member. They transformed Kookie from a hitman into a parking valet at a nearby restaurant who helped as a private investigator. Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., explained the situation to the audience:

1959

Byrnes walked off the show in the second season, demanding a bigger part and higher pay. In November 1959 Warners put him on suspension. They eventually offered $750 a week but he refused. In April 1960 they came to terms and Byrne went back to work.

1960

Owing to restrictions in his Warner Brothers television contract, Byrnes was forced to turn down film roles in Ocean's Eleven (1960), Rio Bravo (1959), North to Alaska (1960), and The Longest Day (1962). He tested for the role of John F. Kennedy in PT 109, but President Kennedy preferred Cliff Robertson.

1962

Instead he guest starred on Lawman. Byrnes made a cameo as Kookie in Surfside Six and Hawaiian Eye, a 77 Sunset Strip spin off. He bought a story for Warners Make Mine Vanilla but it was not made. He threatened to punch a Photographer who was trying to take a photo of him getting a marriage licence. He did some summer stock in 1962 with his wife.

1963

In August 1963 Byrnes bought up the remaining ten months of his contract with Warner Bros and left Sunset Strip. "No more hipster image for me," said Byrnes. "From now on I'd like to establish myself as a movie star."

1964

Back in the US he made a pilot for a TV series, Kissin Cousins, based on the Elvis Presley film Kissin' Cousins (1964) with Byrnes to play the lieutenant played by Presley in the film. It did not go to series. Byrne starred in a beach party movie financed by Corman, Beach Ball (1965). He was in episodes of Mister Roberts, Honey West, and Theatre of Stars and did Picnic, Bus Stop, Sunday in New York, Sweet Bird of Youth and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof on stage in stock.

1966

The Shadow of Kookie hung over him. "People think that's the only role you can play," he said in 1966. "Producers and Directors still think of me as the kid I played on the Strip. I've been offered other series but they've still wanted to cast me as the same kid."

1967

Byrnes returned to Europe for several spaghetti westerns, including the 1967 films Renegade Riders, Any Gun Can Play and Red Blood, Yellow Gold. In 1969 he said he made more money in the preceding year than in his entire time on Warner Bros.

1969

Back in the US he worked mostly in TV: episodes of Mannix, Love, American Style, The Virginian, Adam 12, and The Pathfinders. He was also in the TV movies The Silent Gun (1969) and The Gift of Terror.

1973

Byrne was in the "Duo-Vision" horror film Wicked, Wicked in 1973, and as a TV interviewer in the David Essex film Stardust (1974).

1974

In 1974, Byrnes hosted the pilots of Wheel of Fortune but he was replaced by Chuck Woolery.

1978

Byrnes played the role of the Dick Clark-like dance-show host Vince Fontaine, host of National Bandstand, in the 1978 movie Grease.

1981

The success of the film led to Byrne being cast in the lead of a TV series $weepstake$ but it only lasted nine episodes. He went back to guest starring in shows like CHiPs, B.J. and the Bear, House Calls, Charlie's Angels, Vega$, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Quincy M.E., The Master, Simon & Simon and Crazy Like a Fox. He had a small role in the Erin Moran film Twirl (1981) and the lead in Erotic Images (1983) with Britt Ekland.

1987

Byrnes also appeared in Mankillers (1987), Back to the Beach (1987), Party Line (1988) and Troop Beverly Hills (1989).

1998

One of his final roles was Shake, Rattle and Roll: An American Love Story (1998).

2005

As a tribute to his enduring Celebrity and his iconic "Kookie" character, Byrnes has ranked #5 in TV Guide's list of "TV's 25 Greatest Teen Idols" (23 January 2005 issue). He wrote an autobiography in 1996 entitled Kookie No More.

2014

Byrnes appeared during the Memphis Film Festival in June 2014, in which he was reunited with his former Yellowstone Kelly co-star Clint Walker.

2016

Byrnes' son by Asa Maynor is Logan Byrnes, a television news anchor for Fox-11 News in Los Angeles, California. Previous to 2016, he was at Fox Connecticut since 2008.

Tags:

1933 births Living people American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Los Angeles Male actors from New York City Male Spaghetti Western actors 20th-century American male actors Warner Bros. contract players