Moses Gunn (October 2, 1929 – December 16, 1993)[1] was an American actor of stage and screen. An Obie Award-winning stage player, he is an alumnus of the Negro Ensemble Company.[2] His 1962 off-Broadway debut was in Jean Genet's The Blacks,[2] and his Broadway debut was in A Hand is on the Gate, an evening of African-American poetry. He was nominated for the 1976 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his performance in The Poison Tree,[3] and he also played Othello on Broadway in 1970. For his screen performances, Gunn is best known for his roles as Clotho in WUSA (1970), Bumpy Jonas in Shaft (1971) and Joe Kagan on Little House on the Prairie (1977–1981).
Gunn was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He was the son of Mary and George Gunn, a laborer, and was one of seven siblings. After his mother died, his family separated. Moses left home and rode the railroad at just 12 years old. He returned to St. Louis and attended school while living at the home of Jewel Richie, his English teacher.
Gunn won a second Obie for his work in the NEC produced First Breeze of Summer, which moved to Broadway.[6][5] His acclaimed performance as Othello at the Stratford, Connecticut Shakespeare Festival moved to Broadway in 1970.
Other Broadway plays in which Gunn performed were: A Hand is on the Gate, Twelfth Night, I Have a Dream, and The Poison Tree. He received a 1976 Tony Award nomination for Best Actor for The Poison Tree.[3] In 1977, he narrated the film Black Presence in the Era of the American Revolution, produced by US Information Agency.
In 1991, he toured in a production of Athol Fugard's "My Children! My Africa!" the role of Mr. M, which included a run at Baltimore's Center Stage Theater.[7]
Gunn married Gwendolyn Mumma Landes in 1966, becoming stepfather to her daughter Kirsten Sarah Landes. In 1970, they had a son, Justin, who became a musician and composer in the Copenhagen-based band, The Reverend Shine Snake Oil Co.
