Gil Gerard did just that within his film career, when he was cast to liven the once classic comic strip / radio show that entertained the imaginations of generations when he took the part as Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979).
Acting is by no means is an easy street, neither sure, nor a clear path to fame. For Gil Gerard born January 23, 1943 in Little Rock, Arkansas, it was a distant dream and one of risk and choice. His father was a salesman, his mother a college instructor and he managed to attend the University of Central Arkansas pursuing science.
Unfortunately, he dropped out but managed to land a good solid job, as an industrial chemist and even became a regional manager. Obviously not content with the job he was pushed to pursue a master’s degree by the company with the promise of a vice presidency. He found that he had to make a change. Never really having the degree credentials for his current position he quit and moved to New York.
Talk about a career change – this was it. At the age of 26 he was In New York driving a cab while taking acting lessons at the American Music and Drama Academy. As one of many un-employed actors beating the tryouts he managed to do stage drama in classics like the musical Oklahoma and the drama of Carousel.
Gerard’s first real break was by a chance cab fare that landed him on the movie set of the classic romance drama Love Story (1970) as an extra but didn’t really lead to anything. Later he made it to the daytime soap The Doctors where he portrayed Dr. Allen Stewart for two years. With some minor appearances on Beretta, Hawaii Five-O and then Little House on the Prairie things began to click for him.
One major movie he appeared in was Airport ’77 (1977) when a passenger plane crashes in the Bermuda Triangle.
His talent does not only include acting. Gil took a chance produced and acted in his own movie Hootch (1977, written and directed by Ed Mann) based on a moonshiner dodging the mob and the law. It was with this movie, produced in Hollywood, by his newly formed production company Prudhomme Productions which he created with a screen writer friend.
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