Born in St. Louis, Missouri on October 2, 1929, Moses Gunn left his home at the age of 12 to jump trains. Around high school age, he returned to St. Louis to the care of teacher Jewel Richie, who became like a mother to him.

Gunn attended and graduated from Tennessee State University some time in the 1950s after a stint in the army, where he was stationed in Germany. From 1959-1961, Gunn attended the University of Kansas for a master's degree but did not complete the coursework at that time, leaving early to pursue an acting career in New York City.

In his early years in NYC, Gunn was involved in many national touring stage productions and regional reperatory theaters. In 1964 while at the Antioch Shakespeare Festival, Gunn met Gwen Mumma Landes. The two married in 1966. Gwen already had a daughter, Kirsten, and the couple would eventually have a son, Justin, in 1970.

In 1968, Moses helped co-found the Negro Ensemble Company, which he stayed with until the early 1970s. Also during that decade, Gunn's career began to include roles in television and film production. While Gunn had a prolific career, he was best known for his roles in Shaft, Father Murphy, The Never Ending Story, and several other productions about which information is included in this collection.

In the spring of 1989, Gunn finished his master's degree at the University of Kansas, acting alongside KU professor William (Bill) Kuhlke in I'm Not Rappaport.

In 1991, Gunn began to have health issues associated with his asthma and was in and out of the hospital over the next 3 years. On December 16, 1993, Gunn died.