From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Gordon Roger Alexander Buchanan Parks (November 30, 1912 – March 7, 2006) was a groundbreaking American photographer, musician, poet, novelist, journalist, activist and film director. He is best remembered for his photo essays for Life magazine and as the director of the 1971 film Shaft. Description above from the Wikipedia article Gordon Parks, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia