Bob Gunton
(1945 - )There is an art to portraying villainy on the stage, screen or television. The script accounts for part of the role, but the actor must be convincing. If he is not, everything is lost. Some actors look evil and they have a bit of a head start, but those who look more or less non-descript can turn a good role into a great role by playing the deceptively evil villain. One actor who is a master of this art is Bob Gunton. For a lesson in how to portray a great villain, I highly recommend watching Bob Gunton’s role as the warden in the film “The Shawshank Redemption.” This is a master work! Yet Mr. Gunton is not a one dimensional actor as evidenced by taking a look at his other roles. He is equally adept at portraying amiable and decent people as well. A rather plain looking guy, he has dark brown hair, a very serious looking face of which the prominent feature is very intense brown eyes. He is of average height and build with a slightly flat sounding voice. Very little is known of this enigmatic actor. He was born Robert Patrick Gunton Jr. on November 15, 1945 in Santa Monica, California. He most likely grew up in California and at some point aspired to acting as a career. Like most serious aspiring actors he landed in New York in the early 1980s and eventually made his Broadway debut. He did well on Broadway nailing a Tony nomination for his work in a revival of “Sweeney Todd.” He also originated the role of Juan Peron in “Evita” on Broadway and appeared in the original cast of “Big River.” His film debut came in “Rollover” (1981) as Sal Naftari, his film debut. His other film credits include: “Static” (1985) as Frank; “Matewan” (1987) as C.E. Lively; John Hughes’ “The Pick-up Artist” (1987) as Portacarrero; “Cookie” (1989) as Richie Segretto; “Glory” (1989) with Matthew Broderick, as Gen. Harker; “Born on the Fourth of July” (1989) as First Doctor – Veteran’s Hospital; “JFK” (1991) as TV Newsman #3; “Missing Pieces” (1991) as Mr. Gabor; “Patriot Games” (1992) as Interviewer; “The Public Eye” (1992) as Older Agent; “Jennifer Eight” (1992) as Goodridge; “Father Hood” (1993) as Lazzaro; “Demolition Man” (1993) with Sylvester Stallone, as Chief George Earle; “The Shawshank Redemption” (1994) as Warden; “Dolores Claiborne” (1995) as Mr. Pease; “Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls” (1995) as Burton Quinn; “Broken Arrow” (1996) as Pritchett; “The Glimmer Man” (1996) as Frank Devereaux; “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” (1997) as Finley Largent; “Changing Habits” (1997) as Bishop Creighton; “Patch Adams” (1998) as Dean Walcott; “Bats” (1999) as Dr. Alexander McCabe; “The Perfect Storm” (2000) as Alexander McAnally III/Owner of Sailboat Mistral; “Scenes of the Crime” (2001) as Steven and “Dallas and Rusty” (2003) as Joe. He has appeared in many TV movies including: “Finnegan Begin Again” (1985); “Adam: His Song Continues” (1986); “Mission of the Shark” (1991); “Sinatra” (1992); “Roswell” (1994); “Elvis Meets Nixon” (1997); “Buffalo Soldiers” (1997); “61*” (2001) and “Judas and Jesus” (2001). He was a regular in the TV series: “Comedy Zone” (1985); “Hothouse” (1988) as Leonard Schrader; “A Woman Named Jackie” (1991) a mini-series, as Hugh Auchingloss; “Wild Palms” (1993) a mini-series, as Dr. Schenkl; “Courthouse” (1995) as Judge Sterling Conklin and “Greg the Bunny” (2002) as Junction Jack. He has guested on such TV series as: “The Equalizer”; “Miami Vice”; “Law & Order”; “L.A. Law”; “Star Trek: The Next Generation”; “Ally McBeal” and “Family Law.” He married actress Annie McGreevy in 1980 and they have a daughter Olivia. Bob Gunton is an actor who can take a small role and make it a “big” one. He is one of the top character actors working today.
From Great Character Actors, Page 9.
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