John Vargas is an American actor best known for his roles in the films ''

Primary Colors Primary colors are colorants or colored lights that can be mixed in varying amounts to produce a gamut of colors. This is the essential method used to create the perception of a broad range of colors in, e.g., electronic displays, color printin ...

'' and '' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan''.

Early life

John Vargas was born in

the Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

and moved to

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

when his father Juan A. Maldonado was killed in

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

Career

John Vargas was cast in

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He received three ...

's film '' Only When I Laugh'', with

Marsha Mason Marsha Mason (born April 3, 1942) is an American actress and theatre director. She has been nominated four times for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performances in '' Cinderella Liberty'' (1973), '' The Goodbye Girl'' (1977), '' Chap ...

and

James Coco James Emil Coco (March 21, 1930 – February 25, 1987) was an American stage and screen actor. He was the recipient of a Primetime Emmy Award, a Drama Desk Award, a Cable ACE Award and three Obie Awards, as well as nominations for a Tony Award, ...

. The following year, he featured in the film '' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'' in the role of Jedda, and then joined the cast of

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

's ''

At Ease At Ease was an alternative to the Macintosh desktop developed by Apple Computer in the early 1990s for the classic Mac OS. It provided a simple environment for new Macintosh users and young children to help them to work without supervision. At ...

'', becoming one of the first Latino actors to star in an American television sitcom. Vargas also appeared as Oliviera in ''

The Hanoi Hilton ''The Hanoi Hilton'' is a 1987 war film which focuses on the experiences of U.S. prisoners of war who were held in the infamous Hoa Lo Prison in Hanoi during the 1960s and 1970s and the story is told from their perspectives. It was directed by ...

''. Vargas joined the ensemble cast of the film ''

'', directed by

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

-winning director

Mike Nichols Mike Nichols (born Igor Mikhail Peschkowsky; November 6, 1931 – November 19, 2014) was an American film and theatre director and comedian. He worked across a range of genres and had an aptitude for getting the best out of actors regardless of ...

, and starring

John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He began acting in television before transitioning into a leading man in films. List of awards and nominations received by John Travolta, His accolades include a Primetime Em ...

Emma Thompson Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress and screenwriter. Emma Thompson on screen and stage, Her work spans over four decades of screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Emma Thompson, her accola ...

and

Kathy Bates Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an American actress. Kathy Bates filmography, Her work spans over five decades, and List of awards and nominations received by Kathy Bates, her accolades include an Academy Awards, Academy Award, t ...

. The following year, Vargas was cast in the role of Asher, the eurotrash maitre d' in the

Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

comedy series ''

Action Action may refer to: * Action (philosophy), something which is done by a person * Action principles the heart of fundamental physics * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video gam ...

'', starring

Jay Mohr Jon Ferguson "Jay" Mohr (born August 23, 1970) is an American actor, stand-up comedian and radio host. He is known for playing film producer Peter Dragon in the television comedy series '' Action'' in 1999, Professor Rick Payne in the television ...

and

Illeana Douglas Illeana Hesselberg ( ; born July 25, 1961), known professionally as Illeana Douglas, is an American actress and filmmaker. She appeared in three episodes of '' Six Feet Under'', for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination as Outsta ...

. John Vargas has worked on several

soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

s. He joined the cast of ''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...

'' in the role of Rico Chacone, and '' Santa Barbara'' as Marcos Llamera. In 2004, John was cast as Dr. Rojas in the soap opera ''

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...

''. He also appeared in season 4, episode 11 of '' Star Trek: Voyager''. He played Pierson in the ''

Sliders Slider or Sliders may refer to: Arts * K.K. Slider, a fictional character within the ''Animal Crossing'' franchise * '' The Slider'', a 1972 album by T. Rex * ''Sliders'' (TV series), an American science fiction and fantasy television series * ...

'' episode "A Current Affair" (1999).

Filmography

*'' Only When I Laugh'' (1981) - Manuel *'' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'' (1982) - Jedda *'' My Tutor'' (1983) - Manuel *'' Mass Appeal'' (1984) - Scott Alvarez *''

Wildcats The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while th ...

'' (1986) - Poolhall Man #3 *''

'' (1987) - Oliviera *''Last Stand at Lang Mei'' (1989) - Pvt. Wolfdreamer *'' Sunset Park'' (1996) - Mr. Santiago *''In Dark Places'' (1997) - Karl *''

'' (1998) - Lorenzo Delgado *'' The Minus Man'' (1999) - Priest *''Largo'' (2000) - Lucky Moreno *'' Across the Line'' (2000) - Alvarez *''

Zoolander ''Zoolander'' is a 2001 American comedy film directed by and starring Ben Stiller. The film contains elements from a pair of short films directed by Russell Bates and written by Drake Sather and Stiller for the '' VH1 Fashion Awards'' televisi ...

'' (2001) - Italian Designer *''The Commission'' (2003) - Loran Hall *''Charlotta-TS'' (2010) - Father Juan *''The Lost One'' (2015) - Gypsy *''Airstream'' (2016) - Lex

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vargas, John Living people Male actors from the Bronx Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts alumni 20th-century American male actors Year of birth missing (living people)