Tony Alvarez (19 December 1956 – 21 July 1997) was a Spanish Australian actor and singer. Born in Velez-Malaga, he was best known for his television roles in Australia and the US.

Television in Australia

He is probably best remembered for his ongoing role as Dr Tony Garcia in the long running Australian

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

The Young Doctors ''The Young Doctors'' is an Australian early-evening soap opera originally broadcast on the Nine Network and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation, it aired from Monday, 8 November 1976 until Wednesday, 30 March 1983. The series is prima ...

''. He appeared in the role from 1977 until 1979. His character was a love interest of characters Lisa Brooks ( Paula Duncan) and Tania Livingston (

Judy McBurney Judith McBurney (19 May 1948 – 1 December 2018) was an Australian actress and model. She is best known for serial ''The Young Doctors'' in 1,300 episodes as Tania Livingstone and also appeared in cult series'' Prisoner'' as Sandra" Pixie" Mas ...

UK stage and music

After leaving ''The Young Doctors'' Alvarez starred on the stage in ''Evita'' and toured the UK with

Ronnie Corbett Ronald Balfour Corbett (4 December 1930 – 31 March 2016) was a Scottish actor, broadcaster, comedian and writer. He had a long association with Ronnie Barker in the BBC television comedy sketch show ''The Two Ronnies''. He achieved promine ...

in ''Cabaret''. Alvarez was also a singer, and in the early 1980s he released a cover of ''Talking In My Sleep''. He had a brief guest role in television serial ''

Prisoner A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

'' in 1983 playing a man, also named Tony, revealed to be a vicious rapist. He followed this with a six-month stint as a fiery Spanish servant in drama series ''

Carson's Law ''Carson's Law'' is an Australian television series made by Crawford Productions for the Ten Network between 1982-1984. The series was a period piece set in the 1920s and starred Lorraine Bayly as progressive solicitor Jennifer Carson. The ep ...

'' in 1984.

US television roles

After ''Carson's Law'', Alvarez worked in the US on the series '' General Hospital'' and ''

The Bold and the Beautiful ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' (often referred to as ''B&B'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. It premiered on March 23, 1987, as a sister show to the Bells' other soap opera ''The Yo ...

''. During Alvarez' career, he worked alongside Antonio Banderas and subsequently discovered they were born in the same town.

Death

Alvarez was diagnosed with an AIDS related cancer and died in Sydney at age 40 not far from the Mitchell Street studios where he first shot to fame in ''The Young Doctors''.

References

1956 births 1997 deaths Australian people of Spanish descent Australian male television actors 20th-century Australian male actors {{Australia-tv-actor-stub