Bob Gunton

Robert Patrick "Bob" Gunton, Jr. (born November 15, 1945) is an American actor. He is known for playing strict, authoritarian characters, with his best known roles as Warden Samuel Norton in the 1994 prison film The Shawshank Redemption, Chief George Earle in 1993's Demolition Man, Dr. Walcott, the domineering dean of Virginia Medical School in Patch Adams, and President Juan Peron in the original Broadway production of Evita, for which he received a Tony Award nomination. He also appears in the Daredevil TV series as Leland Owlsley. Early life and education Gunton was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of Rose Marie (née Banovetz) and Robert Patrick Gunton, Sr., a labor union executive. He attended Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California, the Paulist Seminary St Peter's College, in Baltimore, Maryland, and the University of California, Irvine. At one point, he had planned to become a Catholic priest. Gunton served in the United States Army (1969–71), earning a Bronze Star for valor and the Vietnam Service Medal. Career Gunton played the role of Juan Peron in the original Broadway production of Evita, earning a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his performance. He later starred in the title role of a 1989 Broadway revival of Sweeney Todd and received a second Tony nomination for his portrayal. Additional Broadway credits include Working, King of Hearts, The Music Women, How I Got That Story, and Big River. Gunton portrayed President Richard Nixon in a recreation of the Watergate tapes incident for Nightline. He also played President Woodrow Wilson in the film Iron Jawed Angels. Gunton is also known for his guest starring role as Capt. Benjamin Maxwell in the well-received 1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Wounded". Gunton played Warden Samuel Norton, the head of Shawshank State Prison and the primary antagonist in The Shawshank Redemption opposite Tim Robbins. Gunton also guest starred in the first season of Desperate Housewives, the sixth season of 24, where he portrayed United States Secretary of Defense Ethan Kanin. He signed on as series regular afterward and reprised the role of Kanin but now as the Chief of Staff to the new president, Allison Taylor, in the show's seventh season as well as the two hour television prequel film, 24: Redemption. He returned again for the eighth season but this time as the President's Secretary of State. Gunton portrays Leland Owlsley in the 2015 TV series Daredevil.