Search movies and TV series
Acting
Justus D. Barnes (October 2, 1862 – February 6, 1946), named George Barnes in some sources, was an American stage and film actor. He is best known for his role in the 1903 silent short The Great Train Robbery, which the American Film Institute and many film historians and critics recognize as the production that first established the Western genre, setting a new "narrative standard" in the motion picture industry. Barnes was born in Little Falls, New York. He was a veteran stage actor before he made his screen debut in 1903 in The Great Train Robbery. In that film's memorable ending, Barnes points his pistol at the camera and slowly fires all six shots at the viewer. The Great Train Robbery became one of the most successful and best known commercial films of the early silent era. In July 1908, Barnes was hired as an actor in the stock company of the Edison Manufacturing Company, the film production company owned by Thomas Edison. In 1910, he signed on with the Thanhouser Company in New Rochelle, New York. Between 1910 and 1917, Justus appeared in more than seventy films for the Thanhouser, usually in the role of a villain. He played Ham Peggotty in David Copperfield, the earliest known film adaption of the 1850 novel by Charles Dickens. He also played supporting roles in Nicholas Nickleby (1912), Aurora Floyd (1912), and A Dog of Flanders (1914). In 1917, he was released from the Thanhouser Company due to the company's financial issues. Barnes made his final onscreen appearance for the Edison Studio in Cy Whittaker's Ward, in 1917. After retiring from acting, Barnes moved to Weedsport, New York, where he worked as a milkman. He later owned a cigar store. Barnes died on February 6, 1946, in Weedsport at the age of 83. He is buried in Weedsport Rural Cemetery, in Weedsport, New York.

Cy Whittaker's Ward
as Simmons

It Happened to Adele
as Vincent's Uncle
The Candy Girl
as Officer Quinn
Her Life and His
as Political Boss

Mr. Meeson's Will
as Mr. Meeson
Weary Walker's Woes
as Lawyer

From the River's Depths
as William Hewins - Dorothy's Father

The Marvelous Marathoner
as Ewing Webster
His Two Patients
as The Blacksmith

Old Jane of the Gaiety
The Country Girl
as The Squire, her Guardian
God's Witness
as Judge
The Heart of the Princess Marsari
as Paul's Wealthy Uncle
Love and Money
as American Suitor's Father
A Dog of Flanders
as The Rich Miller
A Debut in the Secret Service
as Abdul
Their Best Friend
as Jack's Father
The Dancer
as N.Z. Wood

Joseph in the Land of Egypt
Peggy's Invitation

Uncle's Namesakes
The Farmer's Daughters
as Father

When the Studio Burned
as Director
The Dove in the Eagle's Nest

Star of Bethlehem
as Mage Gaspar
The Voice of Conscience
as Doctor

When a Count Counted
as W.T. Wilson, Attorney at Law

Cousins
as Father on Farm

The Portrait of Lady Anne
as Lady Anne's Father in 1770

Nicholas Nickleby
as Uncle Ralph

David Copperfield
as Ham Peggotty (in part one)

A Circus Stowaway
as Ringmaster
Young Lord Stanley
as the girl's father

The Great Train Robbery
as Bandit Who Fires at Camera (uncredited)