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Percy Rodriguez (born Percy Rodrigues; June 13, 1918 – September 6, 2007) was a
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...
who appeared in many television shows and films from the 1950s to the 1980s. He was of Afro-Portuguese heritage and was born in the
Saint-Henri Saint-Henri () is a neighbourhood in southwestern Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in the Montreal borough, borough of Le Sud-Ouest. Saint-Henri is bounded to the east by Atwater Avenue, to the west by the town of Montreal West, Quebec, Montreal West, ...
neighbourhood of
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
. Born with the surname "Rodrigues," he adopted the spelling "Rodriguez" after it was misspelled in a Broadway program early in his career. Rodriguez was also known for his extensive voiceover work as the narrator of film trailers, television spots and documentaries.


Early life

Rodriguez was the oldest of three siblings and was of African and Portuguese descent. After his father left home while Percy was in his early teens, Percy began working to help provide for his family. He developed an interest in boxing and acting, becoming a professional boxer while simultaneously exploring acting jobs. He ended up joining Montreal’s Negro Theatre Guild and ultimately won the Canadian Drama Festival acting award in 1939. Despite the award, finding a legitimate acting job was difficult, which led to him working as a toolmaker and machinist for 10 years at Pratt & Whitney in Longueuil, Quebec in order to survive.


Career

Rodriguez began his acting career in the 1930s, appearing in
stage play A play is a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between characters and is intended for theatrical performance rather than mere reading. The creator of a play is known as a playwright. Plays are staged at various levels, ranging ...
s and television series in his native country. He eventually moved to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, where he made his
Broadway theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, American and British English spelling differences), many of the List of ...
debut in
Lillian Hellman Lillian Florence Hellman (June 20, 1905 – June 30, 1984) was an American playwright, Prose, prose writer, Memoir, memoirist, and screenwriter known for her success on Broadway as well as her communist views and political activism. She was black ...
's '' Toys in the Attic'' in 1960. Appearing next in
The Actors Studio The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights located on West 44th Street in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, Hell's Kitchen in New York City. The studio is best known for its work refining ...
Theatre production of James Baldwin's '' Blues for Mister Charlie'' (and, shortly thereafter, in an abbreviated television adaptation on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
), Rodriguez subsequently became a life member of the Studio. Known for his rich and distinctive voice, Rodriguez became one of the few
black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
actors in the 1960s who were able to circumvent restrictive and negative
stereotype In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalization, generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can ...
s. He managed to avoid the stereotypical roles given to black actors at the time and was known for applying and projecting quiet authority and inner calm during his roles, as well as for the touch of grey in his hair. He went on to star on
American television Television is one of the Mass media in the United States, major mass media outlets in the United States. In 2011, 96.7% of households owned television sets; about 114,200,000 American households owned at least one television set each in August ...
in programs such as '' The Nurses'', '' Naked City'', ''
The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western (genre), Western, spy film, spy, and science fiction on television, science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 19 ...
'', ''
Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) is one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The high ...
'' and ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
'' but first gained widespread notoriety in 1968 for his role as
neurosurgeon Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty that focuses on the surgical treatment or rehabilitation of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, ...
Dr. Harry Miles in the prime time
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 ...
'' Peyton Place'', seen as a breakthrough white-collar role for a black actor. He also appeared in the made-for-
television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...
s ''The Old Man Who Cried Wolf'' (1970), ''Ring of Passion'' (1978), ''Angel Dusted'' (1981), and the
miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...
'' Roots: The Next Generations'' (1979). Through his depictions on television, Percy was seen as an excellent
supporting character A supporting character is a character in a narrative that is not the focus of the primary storyline, but is important to the plot/protagonist, and appears or is mentioned in the story enough to be more than just a minor character or a cameo a ...
actor. Rodriguez also had an extensive career on the stage and worked with several prominent African-American actors, such as Al Freeman Jr.,
Brock Peters Brock Peters (born George Fisher; July 2, 1927 – August 23, 2005) was an American actor, best known for playing the villainous "Crown" in the 1959 film version of ''Porgy and Bess'', and Tom Robinson in the 1962 film ''To Kill a Mockingbird ...
,
Moses Gunn Moses Gunn (October 2, 1929 – December 16, 1993) was an American actor of stage and screen. An Obie Award-winning stage player, he is an alumnus of the Negro Ensemble Company. His 1962 off-Broadway debut was in Jean Genet's ''The Blacks,'' and ...
, William Marshall, Raymond St. Jacques, Lincoln Kilpatrick,
Rosetta LeNoire Rosetta LeNoire (born Rosetta Olive Burton; August 8, 1911 – March 17, 2002) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She was known to contemporary audiences for her work in television. She had regular roles on such series as ' ...
, Otis Young and Tony nominee Diana Sands. He also narrated numerous film trailers, TV spots and documentaries throughout his career, continuing to do voiceovers after retiring from acting in 1987, following his final on-camera role as a doctor in the TV movie ''Perry Mason: The Case of the Sinister Spirit''.


Film trailers

Rodriguez was a prolific voice-over artist for film advertising. He is particularly famous for his eerie narration for trailers and TV spots for the film '' Jaws'' (1975), as well as the opening narration for Michael Jackson’s science fiction musical '' Captain EO'' (1986) for
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
theme parks. Rodriguez also provided narration for the ''Jaws'' sequels ''
Jaws 2 ''Jaws 2'' is a 1978 American horror thriller film directed by Jeannot Szwarc and co-written by Carl Gottlieb. It is the sequel to Steven Spielberg's '' Jaws'' (1975), and the second installment in the ''Jaws'' franchise. The film stars Roy ...
'' (1978), ''
Jaws 3-D ''Jaws 3-D'' (titled ''Jaws III'' in its 2-D form) is a 1983 American horror film directed by Joe Alves and starring Dennis Quaid, Bess Armstrong, Simon MacCorkindale and Louis Gossett Jr. As the second sequel to Steven Spielberg's '' Jaws' ...
'' (1983), and '' Jaws the Revenge'' (1987); his final appearance was in the
documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
'' The Shark is Still Working'', where he spoke of his narration of the trailer for the film ''Jaws''; he also provided the narration for the documentary's trailer. Rodriguez also narrated the very first teaser trailer for '' Alien'' (1979) and the trailer for the "Special Edition" release of the ''Star Wars'' Trilogy in 1997. Of the many film trailers and TV spots Rodriguez narrated over several decades, notable titles include '' The Other'' (1972), ''
The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on The Exorcist (novel), his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller (play ...
'' (1973), '' Shivers'' (1975), ''
Taxi Driver ''Taxi Driver'' is a 1976 American neo-noir psychological drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Paul Schrader. Set in a morally decaying New York City following the Vietnam War, it stars Robert De Niro as veteran Marine and ...
'' (1976), ''
Close Encounters of the Third Kind ''Close Encounters of the Third Kind'' is a 1977 American science fiction film, science fiction drama film written and directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr, Bob Balaban, Cary Guffey, and François ...
'' (1977), '' The China Syndrome'' (1979), ''
Monty Python's Life of Brian ''Monty Python's Life of Brian'' (also known as ''Life of Brian'') is a 1979 British biblical black comedy film starring and written by the comedy group Monty Python (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Micha ...
'' (1979), ''
The Amityville Horror ''The Amityville Horror'' is a book by American author Jay Anson, published in September 1977. It is also the basis of a series of films released from 1979 onward. The book is based on the claims of paranormal experiences by the Lutz family b ...
'' (1979), ''
The Blues Brothers The Blues Brothers (formally, The Fabulous Blues Brothers’ Show Band and Revue) are an American blues and soul music, soul revue band founded in 1978 by comedians Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi, who met and began collaborating as original cast ...
'' (1980), '' For Your Eyes Only'' (1981), '' Videodrome'' (1983), '' Children of the Corn'' (1984), ''
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
'' (1985), ''
Ferris Bueller's Day Off ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' is a 1986 American Teen film, teen comedy film written, co-produced, and directed by John Hughes (filmmaker), John Hughes. The film stars Matthew Broderick, Mia Sara, and Alan Ruck, with supporting roles from Jenn ...
'' (1986), ''
Spaceballs ''Spaceballs'' is a 1987 American space opera parody film co-written, produced and directed by Mel Brooks. It primarily parodies the original ''Star Wars'' trilogy, but also other popular franchises such as ''Star Trek'', '' Alien'', '' The Wi ...
'' (1987), '' Planes, Trains & Automobiles'' (1987), ''
Coming to America ''Coming to America'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy film directed by John Landis, based on a story originally created by Eddie Murphy, written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, and starring Murphy (in various roles), Arsenio ...
'' (1988), ''
A Fish Called Wanda ''A Fish Called Wanda'' is a 1988 heist comedy film directed by Charles Crichton and written by Crichton and John Cleese. It stars Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, and Michael Palin. The film follows a gang of diamond thieves who double- ...
'' (1988), '' Poltergeist III'' (1988), '' Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood'' (1988), ''
Pet Sematary ''Pet Sematary'' is a 1983 horror novel by American writer Stephen King. The novel was nominated for a World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1984, and adapted into two films: one in 1989 and another in 2019. Background In 1979, King was wr ...
'' (1989), ''
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure ''Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure'' is a 1989 American science fiction comedy film directed by Stephen Herek and written by Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon. The first installment of the ''Bill & Ted'' franchise, it stars Keanu Reeves, Alex Win ...
'' (1989), '' National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation'' (1989), '' Gremlins 2: The New Batch'' (1990), '' Jetsons: The Movie'' (1990), '' Misery'' (1990), '' Look Who's Talking Too'' (1990), ''
The Addams Family The Addams Family is a fictional family created by American cartoonist Charles Addams. They originally appeared in a series of 150 standalone single-panel comics, about half of which were originally published in ''The New Yorker'' between 193 ...
'' (1991), ''
Wayne's World "Wayne's World" was originally a recurring sketch from the NBC television series ''Saturday Night Live''. The first "Wayne's World" sketch appeared in the 13th ''Saturday Night Live'' episode of the Saturday Night Live season 14, 1988–1989 seas ...
'' (1992), ''
Clerks A clerk is someone who works in an office. A retail clerk works in a store. Office holder Clerk(s) may also refer to a person who holds an office, most commonly in a local unit of government, or a court. *Barristers' clerk, a manager and administ ...
'' (1994), '' The Nutty Professor'' (1996), and '' What Planet Are You From?'' (2000).


Legacy

Rodriguez played numerous roles, including
detective A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads the ...
s,
lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
s,
politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
s,
ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...
s, and
doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...
. According to Robert J. Thompson, "Television didn't have its equivalent of
Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
 – there wasn't that one moment when the race barrier was broken. But Rodriguez was one of a very small group of actors who were in a relatively quiet way beginning to get these roles that television was very reluctant in the 1960s to give to black actors." Rodriguez was seen as a symbol of intelligence, moral strength and leadership during his various roles in the 1960s and 1970s. His upsurge in Hollywood’s stature was due to a few of his earlier Broadway appearances. Rodriguez is well known for helping to break the racial barriers on television. He is a well distinguished-looking actor and went on to become a voice of great distinction behind the camera.


Personal life

Rodriguez had a daughter, Hollis, and a son, Gerald, with his first wife, Alameda. Following Alameda's death, he married Karen Cook in 2003. On September 6, 2007, the actor died of kidney disease at his
Indio, California Indio (Spanish language, Spanish for "Indian") is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the Coachella Valley of Southern California's Colorado Desert region. Indio is approximately east of Los Angeles, east of Palm Springs, ...
home, aged 89.


Television work

*''
A Carol for Another Christmas ''Carol for Another Christmas'' is a 1964 American TV movie, written by Rod Serling as a modernization of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella ''A Christmas Carol'' and a plea for global cooperation. It was the first in a United Nations television fil ...
'' (1964) *'' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' episode "The My Friend the Gorilla Affair" (1966) as President Khufu *''
The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western (genre), Western, spy film, spy, and science fiction on television, science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 19 ...
'' (1966) episode "The Night of the Poisonous Posey" as Brutus *'' Mission: Impossible'' four episodes (1966–1970) *''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
'' episode "
Court Martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the mili ...
" (1967) as Commodore Stone *'' The Fugitive'' episode "Passage To Helena" Sheriff Dalton (1967) *''
Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that originally aired for eight seasons on CBS from September 16, 1967, to March 13, 1975. The show was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer ...
'' (1967) episode "A Catalogue of Sins" as Roy Bradley *'' Chrysler Theatre''(1967) episode "Deadlock" *'' Peyton Place'' (1968–1969) as Dr. Harry Miles *'' Adventures in Rainbow Country'' episode "The Boy Who Loved Animals" (1969) *'' Then Came Bronson'' episode " Two Percent of Nothing" (1969) *''
The Silent Force ''The Silent Force'' is the third studio album by Dutch symphonic metal band Within Temptation, released on 15 November 2004, by GUN Records. On 5 August 2008, ''The Silent Force'' along with ''Mother Earth (Within Temptation album), Mother Eart ...
'' as Jason Hart (series regular, 15 episodes) (1970-1971) *''
Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
'' as The Lieutenant (1971) *''
Cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...
'' (1972) episode "A Flight of Hawks" *'' The Starlost'' episode "Circuit of Death" as Sakharov Richards (1973) *'' Genesis II'' (1973) as Primus Kimbridge *''
Planet of the Apes ''Planet of the Apes'' is a science fiction media franchise consisting of films, books, television series, comics, and other media about a Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, post-apocalyptic world in which humans and intelligent apes c ...
'' episode "The Tyrant" (1974) as Aboro *''
Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans (actor), Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was televis ...
'' episode "Florida's Rich Cousin" (1975) as Cousin Edgar *'' The Lives of Jenny Dolan'' (1975) as Dr. Mallen *'' Sanford and Son'' episode " The Olympics" (1975) as Lou Turner *'' Arthur Hailey's the Moneychangers'' (1976) as Nolan Wainwright *''
The Jeffersons ''The Jeffersons'' is an American sitcom television series that was broadcast on CBS from January 18, 1975, to July 2, 1985. Lasting 11 seasons and a total of 253 episodes, ''The Jeffersons'' is one of the longest-running sitcoms in history ...
'' episode "Louise's New Interest" (1977) as Dr. Bob Jessup *''
What's Happening!! ''What's Happening!!'' is an American sitcom television series that first aired on ABC from August 5, 1976, premiering as a summer series. It also returned as a weekly series, that later aired for the rest of the three seasons, from November 1 ...
'' episode "Mama, The School Girl" (1977) as Tod Miller *'' Roots: The Next Generations'' (1979) as Boyd Moffatt *'' Sanford'' (1980) as Winston *'' Benson'' (1982–1985) as Judge Harper *'' T. J. Hooker'' episode "Lady In Blue" (1983) as Jason *'' The Atlanta Child Murders'' (1985) as
Maynard Jackson Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr. (March 23, 1938 – June 23, 2003) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 52nd mayor of Atlanta, Georgia, from 1974 to 1982, and again as the city's 54th mayor from 1990 to 1994. A member of the ...
*'' The Incredible Crash Dummies PSAS'' (1985-1999) as announcer *''Perry Mason: The Case of the Sinister Spirit'' (1987)


Filmography

*'' Trouble-Maker (Trouble fête)'' (1964) as Le policier noir *'' The Plainsman'' (1966) as Brother John *'' The Sweet Ride'' (1968) as Lt. Harvey Atkins *''
The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter ''The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter'' (1940) is the debut novel of American author Carson McCullers, who was 23 at the time of publication. It is a Southern Gothic novel about a deaf man named John Singer and the people he encounters in a 1930s m ...
'' (1968) as Dr. Benedict Copeland *'' Come Back, Charleston Blue'' (1972) as Bryce *''The Legend of Hillbilly John'' (1972) as Capt. Lojoie H. Desplain IV *''
Rhinoceros A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...
'' (1974) as Mr. Nicholson *''
Hugo the Hippo ''Hugo the Hippo'' () is a 1975 animated film produced by the Pannónia Filmstúdió of Hungary and co-produced in the United States by Brut Productions, a division of French perfume company Faberge. It was released in Hungary in 1975 and in th ...
'' (1975) as Jorma's father (voice) *'' The Astral Factor'' (1978) as Captain Wells *'' Galaxina'' (1980) as Ordric (voice) *'' Heavy Metal'' (1981) as Loc-Nar (voice, uncredited) *'' Deadly Blessing'' (1981) as
Narrator Narration is the use of a written or spoken commentary to convey a story to an audience. Narration is conveyed by a narrator: a specific person, or unspecified literary voice, developed by the creator of the story to deliver information to the ...
(voice) *'' BrainWaves'' (1982) as Dr. Robinson *'' Captain EO'' (1986) as
Narrator Narration is the use of a written or spoken commentary to convey a story to an audience. Narration is conveyed by a narrator: a specific person, or unspecified literary voice, developed by the creator of the story to deliver information to the ...
*'' The Shark Is Still Working'' (2006) (documentary)


References


External links


Obituary in ''The Times'' (London), 3 October 2007
(Registration Required) * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Percy 1918 births 2007 deaths 20th-century Canadian male actors Anglophone Quebec people Black Canadian male actors Canadian male film actors Canadian male stage actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Canadian people of Portuguese descent Deaths from kidney failure in California Male actors from Montreal People from Indio, California Canadian expatriate male actors in the United States