Bill Gunn

• Name — Bill Gunn • Birth Name — William Harrison Gunn • Born — July 15, 1934 • Birthplace — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. • Died — 5 April 1989 • Place of death — Nyack, New York, U.S. • Occupation — Writer, director, actor

A native of Philadelphia, 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 in New York's East Village. In 1954, he played a role in the Broadway production of The Immoralist with James Dean. Along with Dean, he joined a social circle that included Montgomery Clift, Eartha Kitt, and Marlon Brando. Gunn shared a house in Nyack, New York with Sam Waymon, brother of singer Nina Simone, who also wrote the musical score for Ganja & 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. 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, playing a role in her film Losing Ground.

• Marcus in the High Grass (1959) – produced by Theatre Guild. • Johnnas (1968) – produced in New York City at Chelsea Theatre. • Black Picture Show (1975) – produced in New York City at Vivian Beaumont Theater. • Rhinestone (musical; based on the novel Rhinestone Sharecropping) (1982) – produced in New York City at Richard Allen Cultural Center. • The Forbidden City (1989) – produced in New York City at The Public Theater.

• Stop! (1969) (never released), Warner Bros. • The Angel Levine (1970) (with Ronald Ribman; adaptation of the novel by Bernard Malamud), United Artists. • The Landlord (1970) (adaptation of the 1966 novel by Kristin Hunter), United Artists. • Ganja and Hess (1973), Kelly-Jordan Enterprises, re-edited and released under title Blood Couple, Heritage Enterprises. • The Greatest (1977) (uncredited), original script, Columbia Pictures.

• Johnnas (1972), National Broadcasting Company (NBC). • The Alberta Hunter Story (1982) (co-written with Chris Albertson) (never completed), Southern Pictures (UK).

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

• Year — Film — Notes • 1970 — Stop! • 1973 — Ganja & Hess — A.K.A. Black Evil, Black Vampire (U.S. video title), Blackout: The Moment of Terror, Blood Couple (cut version), Double Possession and Vampires of Harlem • 1980 — Personal Problems

• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1957 — Look Up and Live — George — Episode: "No Man Is an Island" • 1961 — Route 66 — Hank Plummer — Episode: "Goodnight Sweet Blues" • Naked City — Al Norbert — Episode: "Which Is Joseph Creeley?" • 1962 — The Defenders — Frank Reilly — Episode: "The Tarnished Cross" • Stoney Burke — Toby / Bud Sutter — 2 episodes • 1963 — The Outer Limits — Lieutenant James P. Willowmore — Episode: "Nightmare" • 1964 — The Man from U.N.C.L.E. — Namana — Episode: "The Double Affair" • Dr. Kildare — Jesse Kamba, MD — Episode: "The Elusive Dik-Dik" • 1965 — The Fugitive — Avery — Episode: "Conspiracy of Silence" • 1986 — The Cosby Show — Homer — 2 episodes

Bill Gunn is recorded as actor, screenwriter, writer, playwright and director.