This prolific film and TV writer's work often reflected his Southern roots and salt-of-the earth American values. Barrett received his greatest recognition for "Shenandoah", the story of a Virginian family trying to stay out of the fighting during the Civil War. First presented as a 1965 feature film starring James Stewart, the story provided the basis for a Broadway musical starring John Cullum in 1974. Barrett won a Tony Award for the book of the latter. He began writing after a stint in the Marine Corps, selling his first teleplay, "The Awakening Land", a story of an independent pioneer
