Deeply moving, heart wrenching, and inspiring, Raymond J. Barry offers readers insights into what it takes to survive a violent upbringing, to excel in sports, to be swept away by theater, and to barely earn a living while trying to make it as an artist and an actor for 20 years; before finally garnering significant recognition beginning in the 1980s, in such films as Year of the Dragon, Born on the Fourth of July, Dead Man Walking, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Made in Chinatown and on television series including X-Files, The 100, Gotham and Justified.

"Self-doubt was often the fountainhead of numerous mishaps along the way," Barry confess-es. "Pride was a large factor in my refusal to surrender, like a rhino charging a truck again and again, not realizing the truck is made of impenetrable steel. Becoming an actor involves 'free will' to choose a profession and fully embrace the struggle that lies ahead; all the profession's hazards, its entire package of part time jobs, numerous fail-ures, fear, self-doubt along with moments of absolute joy, blended with spo-radic and finally consistent success."

The essays in this collection were written over decades. They offer a feeling of unfolding without a plot, but the plot of course is the life of Raymond J. Barry, and this memoir reads like the pages of his private diary.

Never A Viable Alternative is more than the memoir of an award-winning actor. Here, Barry digs deep into the human condition and provides us all with a "Master Class" on what it takes to be a successful working actor and a solid human being.

Raymond J. Barry (born March 14, 1939) is an American film, television, and stage actor, painter, sculptor, and playwright who has performed in over 130 film and television roles and thousands of theater productions the world over.