Born in Fort Wayne Indiana, Julia Barr began acting at age 13, acting, singing and dancing in virtually every local production between the Fort Wayne Community Theater, Civic Theater, Wagon Wheel Playhouse and Enchanted Hills Playhouse.

Ms. Barr attended Purdue University, where she starred in such productions as Our Town, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Lover, The Killing of Sister George and Endgame. In Buffalo, NY’s Studio Arena Theatre, she starred in Scapino, and A Girl in My Soup with Van Johnson. Ms. Barr moved to NY City and, after a brief role in Ryan’s Hope as Rennie Szabo, joined the cast of All My Children as Brooke English in June 1976. Except for a 15-month break when she toured with Katharine Hepburn and Dorothy Loudon in the national touring company of West Side Waltz, she has played the role continuously ever since.

Julia Barr has seven Emmy Award nominations (1980, 1981, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, and 1998), and she won the trophy in 1990 and 1998 for Outstanding Supporting Actress. In 1990, she also won a Soap Opera Digest Award for Best Supporting Actress.

As is her character, Broke English, Ms. Barr is concerned with the problems of homeless women. She was the spokesperson for "The Company of Women," a national merchandise catalog whose proceeds help fund The Rockland Family Shelter. Ms. Barr was also a volunteer for The Coalition For the Homeless' First Step program, an innovative job-readiness program for homeless women which helps them build new lives by preparing them to enter the work force; and creates a support network that assists with their transition from homelessness to economic independence. In April 1996, Ms. Barr was honored at the program's annual gala with their Women Mean Business special award.

Ms. Barr, whose birthday is Feb. 8, has been married for many years to oral surgeon Dr. Richard Hirshlag, and they have a daughter, Allison Jane. They live in New Jersey with a variety of dogs, cats and parakeets.