• Bob Gunton is an experienced American actor, most famous for his role in "The Shawshank Redemption"
• He served in the US Army from 1969-1971 and earned the Vietnam Service Medal and Bronze Star of Valor
• He has starred in many films and TV series, including "JFK" (1991), "Family Guy" (2011), and "24" (2001-2010)
• He is a folk singer and his net worth is estimated to be around $3 million
• He is an opponent of President Donald Trump, and often wears suits and light-colored clothing
Known for movies
Short Info
Date Of Birth | November 15, 1945 |
Spouse | Carey Pitts Gunton (m. 2006), Annie McGreevey (m. 1980–2006) |
Mark | Often plays political figures or military figures |
Fact | In the original Broadway production of Evita, he was the only cast member who spoke with a Spanish accent. |
Contents
Bob Gunton is an experienced American actor, who is most famous for his role of Warden Norton is the movie “The Shawshank Redemption”. Along with his film career, he developed his stage performing skills, and is also a folk singer. Let’s find out more about his current life, net worth and family.
Early life and family
Robert Patrick “Bob” Gunton Jr. was born on 15 November 1945, in Santa Monica, California USA, so under the sign of Scorpio, and holding American nationality. His mother’s name was Rose Marie Gunton (née Banovetz); his father’s name was Robert Patrick Gunton, Sr. – little is known about his parents, except that his father was a labor union executive, and both of Bob’s parents were very religious.
Bob doesn’t have any siblings; not much is known about his childhood, except that he spent his early years in California, being interested in various sports activities, such as soccer, basketball and baseball.
Educational background, army
Bob attended Mater Dei High School, located in Santa Ana, California, matriculating from there in 1963. After that he entered the Paulist Seminary St Peter’s College, located in Baltimore, Maryland, and later attended the University of California, Irvine. Bob was brought up as a devout Roman Catholic, and from his early youth he planned to become a priest, however, his plans were destined to change. Bob served in the US Army from 1969 to 1971, participating in military operations in Vietnam. For his successful service he earned the Vietnam Service Medal and a Bronze Star of Valor.
Career
Starting as a stage actor
Little is known about his activities in the times after his service in the US Army. Occasionally feeling that acting was something he was good at and interested in, Bob tried himself as a stage actor, appearing in such productions as “Evita” (1979), playing Juan Peron along with Patti LuPone, who played Evita Peron herself; “Sweeney Todd”, playing the title role in the first Broadway Revival of 1989 at the Circle in the Square Theatre; and also playing in “King of Hearts” and “Working”, both in 1978, and “Big River” (1984), in which he landed the role of the King.
For his successful stage performances, he was twice nominated for Tony Awards for his work in “Evita” and “Sweeney Todd”; he also won the Drama Desk Award in 1980 for his work in “Evita” and the Clarence Derwent Award as well as the Obie Award for his performance in Amlin Gray’s black comedy about Vietnam, “How I Got That Story”. In this production Bob was the only actor on the stage, performing for more than 20 characters of both sexes and of various ages, along with the sounds of gunfire, bombing runs, etc.
First steps in his screen acting career
Bob’s first work on the silver screen happened in 1981, when he landed the role of Sal Naftari in “Rollover”.
He accepted more offers from directors of various series and movies, and performed minor roles in such projects as “Static” (1985), “The Pick-up Artist” (1987), “Born on the Fourth of July” (1989) and “JFK” (1991), and could also have be seen in “The Public Eye” (1992), “Father Hood” (1993) and “Demolition Man” (1993). His most valuable role of all times has been the character of Warden Samuel Norton in “The Shawshank Redemption” (1994). The movie got seven Academy Awards nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Morgan Freeman) and “Best Adapted Screenplay”, but didn’t win any of them. However, after this appearance, Bob earned the line on authoritative, political or military characters.
His role in this movie also saw him featuring in the popular animated comedy series “Family Guy”, in which he voiced-over the prison warden in the episode “Cool Hand Peter” in 2011.
Further successful acting career
Bob continued appearing in series and films, mostly thrillers and dramas. He performed minor roles in “In Pursuit of Honor” (1995), “The Siege at Ruby Ridge” (1996), and “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” (1997), playing opposite Kevin Spacey and John Cusack. He also played in “The Perfect Storm” (2000), “I Heart Huckabees” (2004), “The Lazarus Project” (2008), “The Lincoln Lawyer” (2011), and in “Trouble with the Curve (2012), sharing the screen with Clint Eastwood, Justin Timberlake, John Goodman and Amy Adams.
It is worth mentioning that Bob had a chance to play four US Presidents: Nixon in “Elvis meets Nixon” (1997), Woodrow Wilson in “Iron Jawed Angels” (2004), Franklin D. Roosevelt in “World War Two: Behind Closed Doors”, a documentary movie of 2008, and Harry S. Truman in “Project Blue Book” (2019). He also played President Sebastián Piñera, the current President of Chile, in “The 33” (2015). His most recent film role is as Egon Spengler in “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” in 2021.
Appearing in TV series
Bob Gunton has also appeared in dozens of TV series, in both minor and major roles.
At the beginning of his acting career he started with such series as “Law & Order”, “Star Trek: The Next Generation”, “A Woman Named Jackie” and “Miami Vice”. Later, he landed the main roles of Junction Jack in “Greg the Bunny” (2002 – 2004), and Mayor Malcolm Smith in “Peacemakers” (2003). He also appeared in “Desperate Housewives” from 2004 to 2006, “Pepper Dennis” in 2006, and “Women’s Murder Club” in 2007. He was cast in the main role of Ethan Kanin in the popular series “24” (2001 – 2010) in 2007, and starred in the series ‘til 2010. His latest works in series are the role of Ed in “New Girl”, the character of Ranger’s grandfather in “Gortimer Gibbon’s Life on Normal Street”, and as Leland Owlsley in the main cast of “Daredevil” (2015). Most recently, he appeared in the aforementioned “Project Blue Book”, and “Elementary” also in 2019.
Personal life, wife Carey Pitts
Bob married his first wife, actress Annie McGreevey, in 1980. Born in July 1946, she could be seen in such movies and series as “Another World” (1964 – 1999), “Tales of the Unexpected” (1979 – 1988), “Law & Order” (1990 – 2010), “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (1999 – present). She also played minor roles in “Six Degrees” (2006 – 2008), “Anomaly” (2014) and “Bessie” (2017). During their marriage, Annie gave birth to their daughter, Olivia Gunton, but in 2006 the couple divorced, after which Bob married Carey Pitts the same year, and is still living with her, having no more kids. Nothing is known about his current wife, as Bob keeps her profile and all the details of his private life low-key.
Hobbies, favorite things and interesting facts
During his spare time Bob likes to do some singing, as he’s a mature folk singer and performer. Bob became the hero of the meme called “… Or am I being obtuse?”, as a lot of people use the screenshot of his “The Shawshank Redemption” character, Warden Norton, pointing on the brick wall with his finger, saying that phrase.
Social media presence
Bob Gunton is not very active on social media platforms, being consistent only on his Twitter account, however, he tweets and shares other people’s posts quite often, almost on a daily basis. One can see that he is a passionate opponent of ex-President Donald Trump, sharing a lot of news and articles on his low ratings, fails, etc.
https://twitter.com/bob_gunton/status/987910891914973184
Appearance, clothing style
Bob has short grey hair and blue eyes. He’s 6ft 1in (1.87m) tall and weighs around 187lbs (85kgs), but his vital statistics are unknown. As to his clothing style, he prefers classy looks, and often wears suits, shirts and trousers of light colors, such as grey, light-blue.
Net worth and salary
According to authoritative sources, Bob’s current net worth is estimated at close to $5 million, accumulated by working hard as a stage actor, and starring in numerous series and movies. As he’s still assigned to several series and continues to accept offers from Hollywood directors, his net worth is still likely growing.
General Info
Full Name | Bob Gunton |
Date Of Birth | November 15, 1945 |
Height | 1.85 m |
Profession | Voice Actor, Soldier |
Education | University of California, Irvine, Mater Dei High School |
Nationality | American |
Family
Spouse | Carey Pitts Gunton (m. 2006), Annie McGreevey (m. 1980–2006) |
Children | Olivia Gunton |
Parents | Rose Marie Banovetz, Robert Patrick Gunton, Sr. |
Accomplishments
Awards | Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical, Obie Award for Performance |
Nominations | Tony Award for Best Lead Actor in a Musical, Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical, Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play, Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical |
Movies | The Shawshank Redemption, Dead Silence, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, Patch Adams, Demolition Man, The Lincoln Lawyer, The Lazarus Project, The 33, The Glimmer Man, Argo, The Perfect Storm, Broken Arrow, Fracture, Born on the Fourth of July, Glory, Matewan, Get the Gringo, I Heart Huckabees, Iron ... |
TV Shows | 24, Greg the Bunny, Peacemakers, Wild Palms, Daredevil, Murder in the Heartland, Courthouse, Hothouse |
Social profile links
Source: IMDb, Wikipedia