Dance of the Vampires (1967) as Professor Abronsius
Doctor Zhivago (1965) as Petya
Tom Jones (1963) as Partridge
Short Info
Died
January 31, 1973, New York City, New York, United States
Spouse
Aileen Nugent
Fact
Born in Dublin, Jack MacGowran worked as an insurance assessor for eight years before becoming an actor with the Abbey Theatre. He made his film debut in John Ford's The Quiet Man (1952). He was also a noted stage actor specialising in works by Sean O'Casey and Samuel Beckett. He appeared in "Waiting For Godot" at the Royal Court Theatre London, and with the Royal Shakespeare Company in "Endgame" at the Aldwych Theatre. He released an LP record, "MacGowran Speaks Beckett", to coincide with Samuel Beckett's 60th birthday. While Jack MacGowran was making Dance of the Vampires (1967), it was suggested by Roman Polanski and Gérard Brach, who wrote the original story for Wonderwall (1968), that he play the part of Professor Collins.
Jack MacGowran was an Irish character actor of stage and screen. He was born in Dublin, Ireland, on October 13, 1918, to Edward and Winifred (nee Byrne) MacGowran. His father was a civil servant and his mother was a homemaker. He had two brothers, Edward and Maurice. He was educated at St. Vincent’s C.B.S. in Glasnevin and at the National University of Ireland, where he studied English and Irish. He began his career as a journalist with the Irish Press, but soon turned to acting.
He made his stage debut in 1941 in a production of Sean O’Casey’s The Plough and the Stars. He went on to appear in many other O’Casey plays, as well as works by Samuel Beckett, Brendan Behan, and Sean O’Faolain. He also appeared in several films, including The Quiet Man (1952), The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965), and The Exorcist (1973).
He married actress Siobhan McKenna in 1954. They had three children: Siobhan, Aonghus, and Cathal. McKenna died in 1986.
MacGowran died of a heart attack in New York City on January 31, 1973, at the age of 54.
General Info
Full Name
Jack MacGowran
Died
January 31, 1973, New York City, New York, United States
Profession
Actor
Nationality
Irish
Family
Spouse
Aileen Nugent
Children
Tara MacGowran
Accomplishments
Awards
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Performance, Obie Award for Best Performance By An Actor
Movies
The Exorcist, The Fearless Vampire Killers, Cul-de-sac, The Quiet Man, Age of Consent, Doctor Zhivago, Wonderwall, How I Won the War, Start the Revolution Without Me, Darby O'Gill and the Little People, Tom Jones, The Giant Behemoth, Lord Jim, Young Cassidy, King Lear, The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go...
[on working with Roman Polanski]: Both "Cul-de-Sac" and "Dance Of The Vampires" suffered from awkward translations of the original French scripts. After we had struggled on for a while, Roman said, "Throw away the script and say what you want to say." In my opening scene in "Cul-de-Sac", where I am marooned in the flooded car, I originally had a speech half-a-page long - completely unnecessary. I cut it completely and spoke one line only, off my own bat.
Facts
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Fact
1
He was awarded the 1972 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for Distinguished Performance for the play, "The Works of Beckett," at the Mark Taper Forum Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
Won the 1970-1971 Obie for Best Performance By an Actor in the off-Broadway play "Beckett".
4
Born in Dublin, Jack MacGowran worked as an insurance assessor for eight years before becoming an actor with the Abbey Theatre. He made his film debut in John Ford's The Quiet Man (1952). He was also a noted stage actor specialising in works by Sean O'Casey and Samuel Beckett. He appeared in "Waiting For Godot" at the Royal Court Theatre London, and with the Royal Shakespeare Company in "Endgame" at the Aldwych Theatre. He released an LP record, "MacGowran Speaks Beckett", to coincide with Samuel Beckett's 60th birthday. While Jack MacGowran was making Dance of the Vampires (1967), it was suggested by Roman Polanski and Gérard Brach, who wrote the original story for Wonderwall (1968), that he play the part of Professor Collins.
5
Shortly after completing his role in The Exorcist (1973), he died in New York (He was appearing as Fluther in "The Plough and the Stars" with Siobhan McKenna at the time.