TMC
03-01-2023, 03:42 AM
https://popculturereferences.com/five-great-moses-gunn-guest-appearances/
In a feature spotlighting character actors who routinely do strong guest appearances on TV series, Brian spotlights five fine TV performances by Moses Gunn (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moses_Gunn).
Today, we look at five great guest appearances by Moses Gunn.
This is “Following a Star,” (https://popculturereferences.com/category/following-a-star/) a new feature where I spotlight five great guest spots by an actor who frequently did/does guest spots on TV series in their careers. It doesn’t mean that they’ve NEVER been regulars on shows, but obviously I’m not looking to spotlight people who are best known for their regular TV roles (like no Jason Alexander or Florence Henderson, for instance).
Since this is Black History Month, I’ll specifically spotlight Black character actors this month.
Moses Gunn lived more than most of us before he was even 30 years old. He was part of one of the last generations where “riding the rails” as a 12 year old was actually somewhat feasible (Robert Mitchum also rode the rails as a youth), which Gunn did after his mother died. He eventually returned home and lived with his English teacher, who helped the young man continue to attend school. He graduated from Tennessee State University and then got a graduate degree from University of Kansas. After teaching for a while at Grambling University, he decided to move to New York to pursue a career in acting. He made his Off-Broadway debut in 1962, and was soon a prominent stage actor, doing Shakespeare in the Park (where he won an Obie for Titus Andronicus) and becoming a founding member of the Negro Ensemble Company (where he won another Obie for his work on the play, First Breeze of Summer). Gunn was nominated for a Tony for Best Actor in a Play for The Poison Tree in 1976. Gunn also began to work in films, like the Shaft films, and Ragtime. He appeared in many television shows between the 1970s and his passing in the early 1990s.
Good Times (Carl Dixon)
https://popculturereferences.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/moses-gunn-good-times.jpg
On the fourth season of Good Times, Gunn (https://goodtimes.fandom.com/wiki/Moses_Gunn#:~:text=Moses%20Gunn%20(born%20on%20October,episode%20%22A%20Stormy%20Relationship%22%2C) had a prominent recurring guest spot as Carl Dixon (https://goodtimes.fandom.com/wiki/Carl_Dixon), first a shop owner who employs Michael (and inadvertently inspires Michael to become an atheist), and then Florida Evans’ love interest in the wake of her husband, James’ death (John Amos was fired from the show after Season 3). When Esther Rolle left the show after Season 4, they wrote her out by having her marry Dixon and the two moved away. When Rolle returned for Season 6, Dixon was only briefly mentioned to say that he died off screen (Rolle would only return if she wasn’t married to Dixon anymore). Gunn’s Dixon was a compelling character.
In a feature spotlighting character actors who routinely do strong guest appearances on TV series, Brian spotlights five fine TV performances by Moses Gunn (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moses_Gunn).
Today, we look at five great guest appearances by Moses Gunn.
This is “Following a Star,” (https://popculturereferences.com/category/following-a-star/) a new feature where I spotlight five great guest spots by an actor who frequently did/does guest spots on TV series in their careers. It doesn’t mean that they’ve NEVER been regulars on shows, but obviously I’m not looking to spotlight people who are best known for their regular TV roles (like no Jason Alexander or Florence Henderson, for instance).
Since this is Black History Month, I’ll specifically spotlight Black character actors this month.
Moses Gunn lived more than most of us before he was even 30 years old. He was part of one of the last generations where “riding the rails” as a 12 year old was actually somewhat feasible (Robert Mitchum also rode the rails as a youth), which Gunn did after his mother died. He eventually returned home and lived with his English teacher, who helped the young man continue to attend school. He graduated from Tennessee State University and then got a graduate degree from University of Kansas. After teaching for a while at Grambling University, he decided to move to New York to pursue a career in acting. He made his Off-Broadway debut in 1962, and was soon a prominent stage actor, doing Shakespeare in the Park (where he won an Obie for Titus Andronicus) and becoming a founding member of the Negro Ensemble Company (where he won another Obie for his work on the play, First Breeze of Summer). Gunn was nominated for a Tony for Best Actor in a Play for The Poison Tree in 1976. Gunn also began to work in films, like the Shaft films, and Ragtime. He appeared in many television shows between the 1970s and his passing in the early 1990s.
Good Times (Carl Dixon)
https://popculturereferences.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/moses-gunn-good-times.jpg
On the fourth season of Good Times, Gunn (https://goodtimes.fandom.com/wiki/Moses_Gunn#:~:text=Moses%20Gunn%20(born%20on%20October,episode%20%22A%20Stormy%20Relationship%22%2C) had a prominent recurring guest spot as Carl Dixon (https://goodtimes.fandom.com/wiki/Carl_Dixon), first a shop owner who employs Michael (and inadvertently inspires Michael to become an atheist), and then Florida Evans’ love interest in the wake of her husband, James’ death (John Amos was fired from the show after Season 3). When Esther Rolle left the show after Season 4, they wrote her out by having her marry Dixon and the two moved away. When Rolle returned for Season 6, Dixon was only briefly mentioned to say that he died off screen (Rolle would only return if she wasn’t married to Dixon anymore). Gunn’s Dixon was a compelling character.