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Gunnar Hansen

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For other people of the same name, see Gunnar Hansen (disambiguation).

Gunnar Hansen
Hansen at Days of the Dead in Indianapolis, Indiana, 2012
Born
Gunnar Milton Hansen

(1947-03-04)March 4, 1947
Reykjavík, Iceland
DiedNovember 7, 2015(2015-11-07) (aged 68)
Northeast Harbor, Maine, United States[1]
Alma materUniversity of Texas at Austin
OccupationActor
Years active1973–2013

Gunnar Milton Hansen (March 4, 1947 – November 7, 2015) was an Icelandic-born American actor and author best known for playing the mentally impaired cannibal Leatherface in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974).

Early life

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Hansen was born in Reykjavík, Iceland, to Icelander Skúli Hansen, a dentist, and Norwegian Sigrid Hansen.[2] He moved to the United States with his mother and brother when he was five years old.[3] He lived in Maine until age eleven, when his family moved to Austin, Texas, where he attended Austin High School and the University of Texas at Austin.[4] He majored in English and mathematics as an undergraduate and then went to graduate school in Scandinavian Studies and English.[5]

Career

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His first job out of high school was as a computer operator before he began theater work during college. He was also a football player during high school and for a while a bar bouncer.[citation needed] In 1973, just after finishing graduate school, Hansen heard that The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was being filmed in Austin and decided to audition. He got the part of Leatherface, the masked killer in the movie.[6]

After writing (and occasionally editing) for magazines and writing books, Hansen returned to acting in 1988, appearing in the horror spoof Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers.[7] He acted in 20 films thereafter, including Texas Chainsaw 3D as one of the Sawyers.[citation needed] He state that he considered his later acting as a side project and continued to write books.[2] He also wrote film scripts and wrote and directed documentary films.[8]

His final film project was a cameo in Death House, which he co-wrote with Harrison Smith.[9]

Hansen was also an author; his nonfiction travel memoir, Islands at the Edge of Time; A Journey to America's Barrier Islands, was published in 1993.[8] In 2013 he wrote the nonfiction book Chain Saw Confidential about the making of and reception for The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.[8]

Death

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Hansen died at his home in Northeast Harbor, Maine, of pancreatic cancer on November 7, 2015, at the age of 68.[10][11]

Filmography

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Film and television
Year Title Role Notes
1974 The Texas Chain Saw Massacre Leatherface
1977 The Demon Lover Professor Peckinpah
1988 Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers The Stranger
1991 Campfire Tales Ralph
1995 Mosquito Earl, The Bank Robber
Freakshow Freakmaster Direct-to-video
Exploding Angel Walter
1996 Repligator Dr. Kildare
1999 Hellblock 13 The Executioner Direct-to-video
2002 Hatred of a Minute Barry
Witchunter Michael Jones Direct-to-video
Rachel's Attic Ronald
Sinister The Piper Short film
2003 Next Victim Dr. Howard (segment "rehabilitation Center")
2004 The Business Grandfather Short film, direct-to-video
Chainsaw Sally Daddy
Murder-Set-Pieces The Nazi Mechanic
2005 Wolfsbayne The Elder
Apocalypse and the Beauty Queen Reggie
2006 Swarm of the Snakehead Gunner
The Deepening Dr. Chambers
2007 Brutal Massacre: A Comedy Krenshaw
Shudder Samson Direct-to-video
Gimme Skelter Porter Sandford
2009 Won Ton Baby! Dr. Kurt Severson
It Came from Trafalgar "Tex" Ghoul
Reykjavik Whale Watching Massacre Captain Pétur
2013 Texas Chainsaw 3D Boss Sawyer / Jedidiah Sawyer / Leatherface (archive footage) Cameo, final role
2017 Death House Albert Kenny Cameo; Posthumous Release

As self

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  • 1984 Terror in the Aisles archival footage
  • 1988 Texas Chainsaw Massacre: A Family Portrait
  • 2000 Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Shocking Truth
  • 2001 Leatherface Speaks: An Informal Interview with Gunnar Hansen
  • 2002 Behind the Attic Door: The Making of "Rachel's Attic"
  • 2004 UnConventional
  • 2006 Flesh Wounds: Seven Stories of the Saw

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Associated Press "Gunnar Hansen, killer of 'Texas Chain Saw Massacre,' dies" Associated Press via The State Columbia, SC November 8, 2015. Thestate.com[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ a b "Bauðst tækifæri til að verða kvikmyndaleikari". Dagblaðið (in Icelandic). January 25, 1978. p. 4. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  3. ^ "Íslensk hrollvekjustjarna í Bandaríkjunum". Vísir (in Icelandic). July 18, 1977. p. 3. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  4. ^ Kjartan Hreinn Njálsson (November 8, 2015). "Maðurinn með ljótu grímuna og alþýðlega nafnið". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  5. ^ "Gunnar Hansen, leikari í Texas Chain Saw Massacre, er látinn". Kjarninn (in Icelandic). November 8, 2015. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  6. ^ Matthías Árni Ingimarsson (August 13, 2010). "Heill þér, mikla Leðurfés!". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). p. 36. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  7. ^ Charles Runells (June 4, 2004). "'Chainsaw' star a cut above his film character". News-Press. p. 27. Retrieved March 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  8. ^ a b c Vera Illugadóttir (November 8, 2015). "Gunnar Hansen leikari látinn". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  9. ^ "Gunnar Hansen, leikari í Texas Chain Saw Massacre, er látinn". Kjarninn (in Icelandic). November 8, 2015. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  10. ^ staff, ABC7 com (November 8, 2015). "Gunnar Hansen, original Leatherface from 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,' dies at 68". ABC7 Los Angeles. Retrieved November 11, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ "Gunnar Hansen, killer of 'Texas Chain Saw Massacre,' dies". AP. November 8, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2024.
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