Biography
Barry Avrich’s father told his only son at the age of eight: “I don’t care what you do with your life, but make sure you never blend in.” Barry never looked back and for the rest of his life, never blended in for a minute. As he grew up, Barry had the opportunity to watch his father use a his own Hollywood style of salesmanship in his business allowing Barry a front row education included the art of the pitch and the role showmanship plays in building a business. Through the power of the arts, business and the media, Barry created an unparalleled connection with people around the world, building two parallel careers in marketing and filmmaking, authoring three books and earned the role of being a leading arts philanthropist by hosting and producing dozens of galas for the arts and building the world’s first “in-house” state of the art cinema at SickKids Hospital in Toronto. At the age of 18, after leaving Montreal to attend university in Toronto, Barry went to a rock concert and saw a massive group of boisterous fans waiting at the stage door for David Bowie. He loved the energy and excitement and realized that if he could harness that power for marketing new products, he might be on to something. He created a company called RENT-A-FAN CLUB that utilized out-of-work actors to simulate fan club excitement for sales with custom-made fan clubs. The company was an instant success. Barry found himself in the spotlight and in demand for hundreds of international media interviews. He was even hired by McDonald’s CEO George Cohon to create all-day sizzle for a group of visiting Japanese McDonald franchisees.
After graduating university, Barry began his career at a small advertising agency that had several entertainment clients such as Mirvish Productions and what followed was a veteran career that included marketing everything from the Rolling Stones to The Raptors, and Lord of The Rings to mutual funds. |
His fascinating life has given him the distinct opportunity to entertain, educate and help so many diverse groups of people.
As a marketing professional, producer and philanthropist, his recipe is simple: 4 hours of sleep and an unyielding passion for what he does. Barry was born on May 9, 1963 in Montreal, Quebec. His pioneering business tactic of combining art and commerce – ”Madison Avenue meets Hollywood and Vine” as he would call it, was instilled at an early age. His family home was filled with Broadway music, jazz legends and trips to the movies. His parents fed his voracious thirst for show business by exposing him to theatre. They attended the Stratford Festival every summer and Broadway in the fall. To his delight, his education paid off in dividends as had the pleasure of serving simultaneously as a Director on the boards of The Stratford Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and The Canadian Opera Company. His marketing work on a dozen Broadway hits and movie blockbusters is “beyond thrilling” for him as his father encouraged him to go beyond the pixie dust and the footlights to try to understand how the business of entertainment worked. |
Simultaneously, Barry began his film career with a provocative short movie. After watching a breakthrough indie film called Blood Simple by the emerging Coen Brothers, he decided to send his script to the film’s star and legendary character actor, M. Emmet Walsh. Barry had written a dark comedy called The Madness of Method and he invited Walsh to come to Toronto and shoot the film for 72 hours straight. Walsh shockingly accepted and brought along his friend, Richard Kind, the star of Mad About You, to be his costar. Barry’s savings at that time amounted to $6,500. He had planned to travel to Europe that summer with friends but decided to risk the money in a business his uncle had said was a crap shoot. But he heard his father’s voice pushing him to the light. It was his directorial debut and he was shaking as he gave the seasoned actors their direction. Barry found his stride and the film won a gold medal for best short film at the Bilbao Film Festival in Spain. That same year, Barry would sell the film himself to 10 different television networks, making a huge profit on a hard-to-sell short film.
Two amazing careers and an opportunity to give back has yielded a life that prevented any threat of blending in.
Two amazing careers and an opportunity to give back has yielded a life that prevented any threat of blending in.