Gena Rowlands

About Gena Rowlands

Born Virginia Cathryn Rowlands on June 19, 1930, Gena Rowlands is a celebrated American actress who concluded her career after a remarkable seven decades in film, television, and theater. Her talent has been recognized with four Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. She is particularly remembered for her impactful collaborations with her late husband, John Cassavetes, appearing in ten of his films. Among these are A Woman Under the Influence from 1974 and Gloria in 1980, both of which garnered her prestigious Academy Award nominations for Best Actress. In 1977, she received the Silver Bear for Best Actress for her role in Opening Night. Rowlands also left her mark in Woody Allen's Another Woman in 1988 and her son Nick Cassavetes's popular film, The Notebook, released in 2004. In 2021, Richard Brody of The New Yorker lauded her as "the most important and original movie actor of the past half century-plus." Acknowledging her singular contributions to cinema, Rowlands was honored with an Honorary Academy Award in November 2015.

Her life began in Cambria, Wisconsin, on June 19, 1930. Her mother, Mary Allen Neal, was a homemaker who later pursued an acting career under the name Lady Rowlands. Her father, Edwin Myrwyn Rowlands, was a banker and served as a state legislator, representing the Wisconsin Progressive Party. He was of Welsh heritage. Gena had an older brother named David. The family relocated to Washington, D.C., in 1939 when Edwin took a position within the United States Department of Agriculture. By 1942, they were in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where Edwin managed a branch of the Office of Price Administration. Later, the family moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota.

From 1947 to 1950, Rowlands was a student at the University of Wisconsin, where she was known for her beauty and popularity. During her university years, she was an active member of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She then ventured to New York City to pursue her acting studies at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.

Gena Rowlands was married to John Cassavetes from April 9, 1954, until his passing on February 3, 1989. They first met as fellow students at the American Academy at Carnegie Hall. Together, they had three children, Nick, Alexandra, and Zoe, all of whom have gone on to become actors and directors. In 2012, Rowlands wed retired businessman Robert Forrest.

As a young woman, Rowlands expressed admiration for the iconic actress Bette Davis. Her connection to Davis continued onscreen when she portrayed Davis's daughter in the 1979 made