John Gavin (born John Anthony Golenor on April 8, 1931) is an American film actor and former US Ambassador to Mexico. Gavin is half Mexican and fluent in Spanish. On his father's side, the Golenor family, of Spanish origin, were early landowners in California when it was still under Spanish rule. His mother was a member of a powerful family in the Mexican state of Sonora. He received a B.A. from Stanford University, where he did senior honors work in Latin American economic history, and served in the U.S. Navy in air intelligence from 1952 to 1955. He has been married to Constance Towers, a stage and television actress, since 1974, and they have two children together, as well as two children from Towers' first marriage.
A Republican, Gavin was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Mexico in June 1981 by President Ronald Reagan and served until June 1986. Since leaving government service, he has become a successful businessman and civic leader.
His most famous film roles were in Imitation of Life (1959), Psycho (1960), and Spartacus (1961). He was signed on for the role of James Bond in Diamonds Are Forever after George Lazenby left the role; however, he never played Bond due to Sean Connery's return. He was president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1971 to 1973.
Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967)
