After 27 years in a career he was good at, Ed Gillow reinvented himself in the competitive field of professional acting.

by Mike Kravinsky

When 62 year old Ed Gillow was young, one of his favorite TV shows was Route 66. Remember that show? Martin Milner and Glenn Corbett, (George Maharis earlier), driving around the U.S. in a Corvette, which magically, turned into the newest model yearly. How could they afford to do that, considering the jobs they took as they were knocking around America? Anyway, I digress.

As a kid, Ed used to say to himself that he could do that. Not drive around with a buddy as a career, but act in a TV show. But just how do you do that when you're growing up in Arkansas and Texas. He didn't go out for acting classes or school plays, he just looked as acting as a fantasy and moved on.

Gillow went to college and graduated with a masters degree in electrical engineering, then he spent the next 27 years moving up the corporate ladder in positions he admits he was good at,  "I knew I had to work, and I needed to do something that I was good at, to help me move along through the journey of life... but all the while this really isn't what I was meant to be doing."

Around 10 years ago, Ed found himself working in Orange County, California. Deciding to attempt a dream long deferred, he gave up his well paying job and enrolled in a local acting school.  "When you change careers, you really have to start from ground zero. If you're gonna do it right, you have to start from the beginning."  At first his wife wasn't sure about his career change, at this point she was now the only one with a full time job. But, she gave him the room to explore.

His first actual acting jobs were as extras from ads he found in the back of trade magazines. While doing that he moved from acting classes in Orange County to improv classes in LA., "those are good to take because you have to have to have really good auditioning skills to get the work."

As he started getting roles, he did a lot of television... but then Gillow discovered independent films, where an actor of Ed's age can be the lead. "Man, I love being the lead in a movie, let me tell you! You're carrying the movie, and if you're doing your job and doing it well, it's very rewarding for all involved."

Mostly, Ed has done television, but the one thing he find's is that because of his "look", he can play a lot of varied parts, "I can't think of a role I haven't played. You know, dad, killer, hit man, child molester, doctors, lawyers, I was a colonel in a western, I was a sherrif in a zombie movie. Luckily, I have a look that allows me to play many roles."

Even though he's had many roles in TV, film and theatre, Ed admits he's still an unknown actor, "I've done some movies and some TV shows that got some noteriety, but, did anything big come out of it? No, I'm still unknown, but I'm still working"

Ed is familiar with all the stories about how tough Hollywood is, and he's realistic about the fact that it's a business, "I guess the most difficult thing about Hollywood is you never hear No, you just don't get the role.  People gotta remember that it's show business...  and people have to approach it as such and not take things personally."

Gillow finds although though he got into acting as a second act, he thinks his previous life experience helped him with his acting career. "You use your life expierience in what ever you're doing in a particular scene or movie. The older you are the better off you are because you have this wealth of experience to draw on."

Even though he's worked in several mediums, his ultimate goal would be to work in episodic TV, because it's regular work.

And as for tips to anyone considering acting as a second act?

1. "You have to have a passion for whatever it is you're getting into. If you don't, you won't have the fuel you'll need to sustain you though that journey."

2. "You got to get as much training as you can possibly afford, time wise or money wise."

3. "You've got to totally commit yourself to the profession. Throw away all the anxiety and any kind of doubt that you may have about who you are and just go for it."

But, bottom line in any life change, throw caution to the wind, but, be smart about it.  Oh, and as for Ed's wife? She's happy he made the career change.