Stephen Fayad Barkett 1/1/1950 - 3/3/2023

Stephen Fayad Barkett, at the young age of 73, went to be with the Lord on March 3, 2023 in Reno, Nevada. Steve was born on January 1, 1950, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He was a movie director, actor, producer, writer, editor, effects supervisor, film collector and historian. He loved the older movies, especially the movies made at the birth of Hollywood's film making, from the first silent Méliès films, when the movies were still on film and stored in film canisters. He would study every detail of how these movies were made. At a young age, he had his own projector room where he would share the 35 mm projected films for his friends and eventually local events. He worked for a film distributor that would collect and distribute films all around the world. During that time, he would search all over the world for rare films thought to be nonexistent due to age etc. He found several films and brought them back into the distribution. Steve began his acting career playing the lead in Ray Bradbury's Night Caller (1973). Steve knew his way around a movie set and in post-production. He began his Hollywood career when Danny Thomas, a family friend, allowed him onto the sets of his studio where many television productions were being filmed. This gave Steve the opportunity to learn all aspects of film and television production. From that experience, Steve went on to complete two of his own (copyrighted) movies, with their own individual and original composed and recorded music scores, The Aftermath (1982) and Empire of the Dark (1991). He moved out of Hollywood but maintained a connection with his Hollywood friends to work on special effects and postproduction on their films. He can also be seen in front of the camera on various roles that needed to be filled in these movies, such as Roger Corman's Dinosaur Island (1994). Some of the friends whom Steve worked with were Lawrence Tierney, Steve Latshaw, Fred Olen Ray, Forest Ackerman and many more. One of his best friends is Stan Livingston, who was also a partner in their film production company. Steve enjoyed working with and getting to know the actors from the "old Hollywood" era. Steve's movie, The Aftermath (1982) is in the Library of Congress. He has been interviewed on several podcasts, interviews for screenings, and for several books, such as World Gone Wild, a book on post-apocalyptic movies. In 1998, he received the Society of Fantastic Films (SOFFIA) lifetime achievement award in Manchester England. He worked in Europe and the Middle East as an Executive Producer for radio and television production companies. His family and friends will miss his discussions of the Golden Age of Hollywood movies, the actors (especially those he knew), his generosity, sincere love and heart, genuine faith, and presence. Steve didn't take all these things with him, the memories of Steve will always be with those who have had the privilege to have known, loved and be loved by him. Steve is survived by his wife Denise Gibson, step-daughter Rachel Gibson, his children, Laura McQuay and Christopher Barkett, as well as, six grandchildren. Please make any donations, in memory of Steve, to Danny Thomas' St. Jude's Foundation.