BarBara Luna

BarBara Luna (as spelled on her official site) was born in Manhattan. BarBara's mother was from Budapest, Hungary and her maternal grandfather was from Italy. BarBara's father was born in Manila Philippines and her paternal grandmother was from Spain. With this background, Luna was cast in a variety of Hispanic and ethnic roles.[1]

BarBara was introduced to Broadway shows early in life. She was tapped by Rodgers and Hammerstein to play Ngana, the daughter of Emile de Becque, the French plantation owner played by Ezio Pinza in the original Broadway production of South Pacific, in which she helped sing the show's opening song, Dites-Moi. She next appeared in The King and I as one of the Siamese children, advancing to the more important role of "Royal Dancer" by the time the show closed on Broadway. Not wishing to drop out of school to go on the road, she auditioned for and won the understudy role of Lotus Blossom in Teahouse of the August Moon. A few months later, after graduating from high school, she was given the starring role of Lotus Blossom in Teahouse and toured with the show's company for three years.

Director Mervyn LeRoy saw her performance as Lotus Blossom in Los Angeles and cast her to play Camille, the blind girl who was Frank Sinatra's love interest in The Devil at 4 O'Clock.[2] This led to roles in other films including Meli in Firecreek, as Amparo in Ship of Fools, as Cat in The Concrete Jungle, and as Makia in Five Weeks in a Balloon.

Opportunities in television came as well. Luna has appeared in some 500 television series, including Walt Disney's Zorro, where she was a recurring character in the "Joaquin" arc as Theresa, the Tamale Peddler, the role of Rikki Stevens in the 1958 Perry Mason episode, "The Case of the Sardonic Sergeant", The Wild Wild West as Gatita, The Big Valley as Miranda (1968), Gunsmoke as Chavela (in "He Learned About Women" Episode 21 Season 7), Overland Trail as Estrelita (in episode "Mission to Mexico"), Bonanza as Cayetena Losaro, The Outer Limits as Gaby Christian, The Invaders as Lisa, Hawaiian Eye in three episodes: "The Koa Man" as Susan Chang, "Sword of the Samurai" as Michiko and "Payoff" as Tia Kuno, Hawaii Five-O in two episodes "A Thousand Pardons, You're Dead" as Yoko Collins and "A Lion in the Streets" as Elena Kamoku, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century as Koori, Dallas as Carmen Esperanza, Charlie's Angels as Cynthia Weaver and two guest starring roles on the original Mission: Impossible, as well as a guest starring role in the 1980s remake of that series.

One of her better-known roles was Lt. Marlena Moreau in the "Mirror, Mirror" episode of Star Trek: The Original Series (1967) – a role she still commemorates as a guest of Star Trek conventions worldwide. She has also had roles in the television soap operas Search for Tomorrow and One Life to Live. As Maria Roberts on One Life to Live, her character was involved in the kidnapping of baby Jessica Buchannan, a plot device which was revisited years after Maria's accidental death after being caught by Tina trying to kill Vicky. The actress also appeared as Marnya on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. episode "The Man from THRUSH Affair".

Between film commitments, Luna remained active in musicals. She appeared as Anita in five companies of West Side Story, including a revival at Lincoln Center in New York City. Her last Broadway show was A Chorus Line in the role of Diana Morales (in the "New" New York cast in 1976). This performance led to the preparation of a cabaret act for her. Its opening night, at Freddie's in New York City, drew rave reviews and led to engagements at the Concord Hotel in the Catskills and at clubs in Atlantic City and Los Angeles.[3]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to BarBara Luna.

• Official website
• BarBara Luna on IMDb
• BarBara Luna at the Internet Broadway Database
• BarBara Luna at AllMovie
• Interview with BarBara Luna – The Spectrum, March, 2016.