Watch Gibson Gowland Videos

Gibson Gowland (4 January 1877 Spennymoor, Durham, England, UK – 9 September 1951 London, England, UK) was an English film actor. Early sources had his birth place place as Newcastle. He started work as a sailor and later became mate of a ship. For several years from the age of 25 he went to South Africa where he hunted for big game, prospected for diamonds and also organised a theatrical company in Johannesburg, and acted in it. He also prospected in Canada where he made his debut on the legitimate stage. Gowland came to the United States from England, by way of Canada, in 1913 where he... MORE

Gibson Gowland (4 January 1877 Spennymoor, Durham, England, UK – 9 September 1951 London, England, UK) was an English film actor. Early sources had his birth place place as Newcastle. He started work as a sailor and later became mate of a ship. For several years from the age of 25 he went to South Africa where he hunted for big game, prospected for diamonds and also organised a theatrical company in Johannesburg, and acted in it. He also prospected in Canada where he made his debut on the legitimate stage. Gowland came to the United States from England, by way of Canada, in 1913 where he met Beatrice Bird, also from England, whom he married. They moved to Hollywood, working as bit players. In 1914 he acted in D. W. Griffith's : Birth of a Nation, followed by Intolerance. In 1916, his son, actor and photographer Peter Gowland, was born. Often cast as a villain, his only starring role (out of 63 films) was in Greed (1924), directed by Erich von Stroheim, based on the Frank Norris novel McTeague, and costarring ZaSu Pitts. The film has since become a classic, despite its having been cut to one-fifth its original length for commercial release by MGM. Gowland portrayed the protagonist, LESS