Social cues, such as eye gaze direction, can affect attention. When a viewer sees someone gazing to the left, the viewer attends in the gazed-at direction. Results from normal subjects suggest that gaze direction directs attention automatically. We question this conclusion and present evidence from a frontal-damaged patient that suggests gaze direction influences attention voluntarily, not automatically. The patient has executive dysfunction after removal of an orbitofrontal meningioma but has otherwise normal cognitive abilities and vision. The patient identified target letters preceded by attentional precues. Cues either predict the target location (valid condition) or do not predict the target location (neutral condition). The cues were (1) peripheral flickers which orient attention automatically, (2) foveally presented words that orient attention voluntarily, and (3) foveally presented faces with gaze direction. The patient was able to orient attention from peripheral cues only; no attentional effect was observed for word or gaze precues. These findings support the hypothesis that gaze direction directs attention in a voluntary, not automatic, manner. Attentional orienting per se is not impaired in this patient, based on his intact orienting to peripheral precues. Instead, the patient's impairment appears to be in directing attention voluntarily via symbolic precues, including gaze precues.