William Harrison Gunn (July 15, 1934 – April 5, 1989) was an American playwright, novelist, actor and film director. His 1973 cult classic

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, ap ...

Ganja and Hess ''Ganja & Hess'' is a 1973 American blaxploitation horror film written and directed by Bill Gunn and starring Marlene Clark and Duane Jones. The film follows the exploits of anthropologist Dr. Hess Green (Jones), who becomes a vampire after his ...

'' was chosen as one of ten best American films of the decade at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...

, 1973.Gunn, Bill (May 13, 1973), "To be a Black Artist'." ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', p. 121. In ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'', film critic

Richard Brody Richard Brody (born 1958) is an American film critic who has written for ''The New Yorker'' since 1999. Education Brody grew up in Roslyn, New York, and attended Princeton University, receiving a B.A. in comparative literature in 1980. He firs ...

described him as being "a visionary filmmaker left on the sidelines of the most ostensibly liberated period of American filmmaking."Brody, Richard (August 16, 2016)
"The Front Row: Ganja & Hess"
''New Yorker''. Condé Nast. Filmmaker

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...

had said that Gunn is "one of the most under-appreciated filmmakers of his time." Gunn's drama ''Johnnas'' won an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

in 1972.

Career

A native of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

, Gunn wrote more than 29 plays during his lifetime. He also authored two novels and wrote several produced screenplays. In 1950, Gunn studied acting with

Mira Rostova Mira Rostova (''née'' Rosovskaya; April 10, 1909 – January 28, 2009) was a Russian American actress turned acting teacher, best known for her own variation of method acting that she used in coaching Montgomery Clift. Her other students incl ...

in New York's East Village. In 1954, he played a role in the Broadway production of ''The Immoralist'' with

James Dean James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931September 30, 1955) was an American actor. He is remembered as a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment and social estrangement, as expressed in the title of his most celebrated film, '' Rebel Without a Caus ...

. Along with Dean, he joined a social circle that included

Montgomery Clift Edward Montgomery Clift (; October 17, 1920 – July 23, 1966) was an American actor. A four-time Academy Award nominee, he was known for his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men", according to ''The New York Times''. He is best remembered ...

Eartha Kitt Eartha Kitt (born Eartha Mae Keith; January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American singer and actress known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song " Santa ...

, and

Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academ ...

."Gunn, Bill." Mitchell, Verner D, and Cynthia Davis, eds. ''Encyclopedia of the Black Arts Movement.'' Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2019. p. 147-148. Gunn shared a house in

Nyack, New York Nyack () is a village located primarily in the town of Orangetown in Rockland County, New York, United States. Incorporated in 1872, it retains a very small western section in Clarkstown. It is a suburb of New York City lying approximately no ...

with

Sam Waymon Sam, SAM or variants may refer to: Places * Sam, Benin * Sam, Boulkiemdé, Burkina Faso * Sam, Bourzanga, Burkina Faso * Sam, Kongoussi, Burkina Faso * Sam, Iran * Sam, Teton County, Idaho, United States, a populated place People and fictiona ...

, brother of singer

Nina Simone Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), known professionally as Nina Simone (), was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blu ...

, who also wrote the musical score for ''Ganja and Hess''. Gunn's directorial debut would have been ''Stop!'' (1970), which was funded by Warner Bros. under the plan of being the second studio film directed by an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

. It was intended as a drama involving two couples becoming involved with each other within homosexual and interracial sexual contact alongside surreal undertones. The film was shelved by the studio before release, and the studio later claimed they did not have the print in their archives. A 35mm print was shown at a retrospective upon Gunn's death, and a VHS copy of the film exists (found by Jack Hoffmeister, co-star of the film). He was also an advocate and friend of filmmaker and writer

Kathleen Collins Kathleen Collins (March 18, 1942 – September 18, 1988) (also known as Kathleen Conwell, Kathleen Conwell Collins or Kathleen Collins Prettyman) was an African-American poet, playwright, writer, filmmaker, director, civil rights activist, and ...

, playing a role in her film '' Losing Ground''. He died aged 54 from

encephalitis Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include seizures, hallucinations ...

at a Nyack, New York hospital the day before his play ''The Forbidden City'' opened at the

Public Theater The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: An American L ...

in New York City. In 2021, an exhibition entitled "Till They Listen: Bill Gunn Directs America", dedicated to the work and legacy of Bill Gunn, was shown at the New York gallery

Artists Space Artists Space is a non-profit art gallery and arts organization first established at 155 Wooster Street in Soho, New York City. Founded in 1972 by Irving Sandler and Trudie Grace and funded by the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), Artist ...

. The program series was organized by Gunn's artistic collaborators and scholars including,

Hilton Als Hilton Als (born 1960) is an American writer and theater critic. He is a teaching professor at the University of California, Berkeley, an associate professor of writing at Columbia University and a staff writer and theater critic for ''The New Yo ...

, Jake Perlin, Sam Waymon, Nicholas Forster, Awoye Timpo, Chiz Schultz, and

Ishmael Reed Ishmael Scott Reed (born February 22, 1938) is an American poet, novelist, essayist, songwriter, composer, playwright, editor and publisher known for his satirical works challenging American political culture. Perhaps his best-known work is '' M ...

. In 2021, Timpo adapted Gunn's play ''Black Picture Show'' for film in the form of a staged reading.

Bibliography

Plays

* ''Marcus in the High Grass'' (1959) – produced by Theatre Guild. * ''Johnnas'' (1968) – produced in New York City at Chelsea Theatre. * ''

Black Picture Show ''Black Picture Show'' is a play written by Bill Gunn in 1975. Clive Barnes of the New York Times described it as having "brilliant writing". ''Black Picture Show'' was originally performed at the Vivian Beaumont Theater The Vivian Beaum ...

'' (1975) – produced in New York City at

Vivian Beaumont Theater The Vivian Beaumont Theater is a Broadway theater in the Lincoln Center complex at 150 West 65th Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Operated by the nonprofit Lincoln Center Theater (LCT), the Beaumont is the only Bro ...

. * ''Rhinestone'' (musical; based on novel ''Rhinestone Sharecropping'') (1982) – produced in New York City at Richard Allen Center. * ''The Forbidden City'' (1989) – produced in New York City at The Public Theater.

Screenplays

* ''Stop'' (1969), Warner. (never released) * (With

Ronald Ribman Ronald Burt Ribman (born May 28, 1932) is an American author, poet and playwright.Much of the information in this article comes from a submission by the subject himself and is archived on the OTRS system as ticke2008073010036244/ref> "As poet-pla ...

) '' The Angel Levine'' (1970) (adaptation of novel by

Bernard Malamud Bernard Malamud (April 26, 1914 – March 18, 1986) was an American novelist and short story writer. Along with Saul Bellow, Joseph Heller, and Philip Roth, he was one of the best known American Jewish authors of the 20th century. His baseba ...

), United Artists. * '' The Landlord'' (1970) (adaptation of novel by Kristin Hunter), United Artists. * ''

'' (1973), Kelly-Jordan Enterprises, re-edited and released under title ''Blood Couple'', Heritage Enterprises. * '' The Greatest'' (1977), Columbia. (uncredited)

Television screenplays

* ''Johnnas'' (1972), National Broadcasting Company (NBC). * ''The Alberta Hunter Story'' (1982), co-writer w. Chris Albertson-never completed – Southern Pictures (UK).

Novels

* ''All the Rest Have Died'' (1964), Delacorte (New York). * ''Rhinestone Sharecropping'' (1981), Reed, Cannon, , .

Filmography (as director)

Filmography (as actor)

References

External links

* * *
Bill Gunn Papers
–

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is a research library of the New York Public Library (NYPL) and an archive repository for information on people of African descent worldwide. Located at 515 Malcolm X Boulevard (Lenox Avenue) ...

, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
Original print donated to the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunn, Bill 1934 births 1989 deaths African-American male actors African-American film directors American experimental filmmakers American film directors African-American dramatists and playwrights Writers from Philadelphia 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers 20th-century African-American writers African-American male writers