Perry Lopez (born Julio César Lopez; July 22, 1929 – February 14, 2008) was an American film and

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of Transmission (telecommunications), television tra ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), l ...

. His acting career spanned 40 years.

Biography

Lopez was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

of Puerto Rican descent. Lopez began his acting career in

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...

, based in New York. He was signed to a contract at Warner Bros. Studios in 1954, his first appearance being Bogus Charlie in ''

Drum Beat A drum beat or drum pattern is a rhythmic pattern, or repeated rhythm establishing the meter and groove through the pulse and subdivision, played on drum kits and other percussion instruments. As such a "beat" consists of multiple drum stroke ...

''. Lopez appeared as Spanish Joe in ''

Battle Cry A battle cry or war cry is a yell or chant taken up in battle, usually by members of the same combatant group. Battle cries are not necessarily articulate (e.g. "Eulaliaaaa!", "Alala"..), although they often aim to invoke patriotic or religious ...

'' (1955), as Rodrigues in '' Mister Roberts'' in 1955, then had the leading role in '' The Steel Jungle'' (1956) and appeared as Toro in '' Cry Tough'' in 1959. He also played in a number of

B-movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

s and

Westerns The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

early on in his career, including the ''

Creature from the Black Lagoon ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' is a 1954 American black-and-white 3D monster horror film produced by William Alland and directed by Jack Arnold, from a screenplay by Harry Essex and Arthur Ross and a story by Maurice Zimm. It stars ...

'' (1954), '' The Young Guns'' (1956) and ''

The Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in ...

''. Although he was part of the supporting cast in '' Mister Roberts'', his role was prominent – he played opposite Henry Fonda and James Cagney, who were both established stars at the time. However, he was perhaps best known as Lieutenant Lou Escobar in the 1974 film '' Chinatown'', which he starred in opposite

Jack Nicholson John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. In many of his films, he played rebels against the social structure. He received numerous ...

and

Faye Dunaway Dorothy Faye Dunaway (born January 14, 1941) is an American actress. She is the recipient of many accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, three Golden Globe Awards, and a BAFTA Award. In 2011, the government of France made ...

. He reprised the role sixteen years later (with Escobar promoted to Captain) in '' The Two Jakes'' in 1990. Also right before this time he starred opposite

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. Known for his "granite features and brawny physique," he gained international fame for his starring roles in action, Western, and wa ...

playing drug gang leader Ed Zacharias in 1987's '' Death Wish 4: The Crackdown''. Patrick Wayne-Perry Lopez in McLintock!

Among his many television appearances, one of his more well-known roles is that of Esteban Rodriguez in the ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vario ...

'' episode "

Shore Leave Shore leave is the leave that professional sailors get to spend on dry land. It is also known as "liberty" within the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and Marine Corps. During the Age of Sail, shore leave was often abused by the mem ...

". Lopez also appeared in an episode of ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 13, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 432 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running western, the second-longest-running western series on ...

'', as the cold-blooded outlaw Duke Miller, who kills a man over being first in line to get a haircut. He was Joaquín Castañeda, a mestizo that fought to free his people, on ''

Zorro Zorro ( Spanish for 'fox') is a fictional character created in 1919 by American pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo of Los Angeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashing masked vigilant ...

'', starring Guy Williams. Lopez also appeared in episode 14, "Night Of The Long Knives" originally airing December 16, 1966 of ''

The Time Tunnel ''The Time Tunnel'' is an American color science fiction TV series written around a theme of time travel adventure starring James Darren and Robert Colbert. The show was creator-producer Irwin Allen's third science-fiction television series and ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed ...

; the ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' episode "Savage Jungle"; ''

McLintock! :''See also McClintock (disambiguation)'' ''McLintock!'' is a 1963 American Western comedy film, starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, directed by Andrew V. McLaglen. The film co-stars Wayne's son Patrick Wayne, Stefanie Powers, Jack Krusche ...

'' (1963) as Davey Elk; the ''Juan Moreno's Body''Timeless Video Group DVD collection - "Checkmate" as a migrant Mexican fruit picker accused of murdering the son of the owner of the orchard; and ''

Kelly's Heroes ''Kelly's Heroes'' is a 1970 World War II comedy-drama heist film, directed by Brian G. Hutton, about a motley crew of American GIs who go AWOL in order to rob a French bank, located behind German lines, of its stored Nazi gold bars. The film ...

'' (1970) as Pvt. Petuko.

Death

Lopez died of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, malign ...

at The Rehabilitation Centre of Beverly Hills in

Beverly Grove, Los Angeles Beverly Grove is a neighborhood within the Beverly–Fairfax neighborhood in the Mid-City West area of Los Angeles, California. Geography City of Los Angeles The term "Beverly Grove" was first used in 2006 to unofficially refer to an area that w ...

, at age 78. He was survived by several nieces and nephews. His ashes were interred at

Hollywood Forever Cemetery Hollywood Forever Cemetery is a full-service cemetery, funeral home, crematory, and cultural events center which regularly hosts community events such as live music and summer movie screenings. It is one of the oldest cemeteries in Los Ang ...

Filmography

* 1954 '' Jubilee Trail'' as Silva's Son (uncredited) * 1954 ''

'' as Tomas (uncredited) * 1954 ''

'' as Charlie "Bogus Charlie" * 1955 ''

'' as Private Joe "Spanish Joe" Gomez * 1955 '' Mister Roberts'' as Rodrigues * 1955 '' The McConnell Story'' as "Red" (uncredited) * 1955 '' I Died a Thousand Times'' as Louis Mendoza * 1956 '' Hell on Frisco Bay'' as Mario Amato * 1956 ''

'' as Pete Ramirez * 1956 '' The Steel Jungle'' as Ed Novak * 1956 '' The Young Guns'' as San Antone * 1957 ''

Omar Khayyam Ghiyāth al-Dīn Abū al-Fatḥ ʿUmar ibn Ibrāhīm Nīsābūrī (18 May 1048 – 4 December 1131), commonly known as Omar Khayyam ( fa, عمر خیّام), was a polymath, known for his contributions to mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, ...

'' as Prince Ahmud * 1958 ''

The Deep Six ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

'' as Al Mendoza * 1958 '' Violent Road'' as Manuelo * 1959 '' Cry Tough'' as Toro * 1960 ''

Flaming Star ''Flaming Star'' is a 1960 American Western film starring Elvis Presley, Barbara Eden and Steve Forrest, based on the book ''Flaming Lance'' (1958) by Clair Huffaker. Critics agreed that Presley gave one of his best acting performances as th ...

'' as Two Moons * 1961 '' Man-Trap'' as Puerco * 1962 ''

Taras Bulba ''Taras Bulba'' (russian: «Тарас Бульба»; ) is a romanticized historical novella set in the first half of the 17th century, written by Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852). It features elderly Zaporozhian Cossack Taras Bulba and his sons An ...

'' as Ostap Bulba * 1963 ''

'' as Davey Elk * 1966 '' The Rare Breed'' as Juan * 1968 '' Sol Madrid'' as Hood * 1968 '' Daring Game'' as Reuben * 1968 ''

Bandolero! ''Bandolero!'' is a 1968 American Western film directed by Andrew V. McLaglen and starring James Stewart, Dean Martin, Raquel Welch and George Kennedy. The story centers on two brothers on the run from a posse, led by a local sheriff who wan ...

'' as Frisco * 1969 '' Che!'' as Rolando * 1970 ''

'' as Petuko * 1973 '' Lady Ice'' as Carlos * 1974 '' Chinatown'' as Lieutenant Lou Escobar * 1987 '' Death Wish 4: The Crackdown'' as Ed Zacharias * 1989 '' Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects'' as Detective Eddie Rios * 1990 '' The Two Jakes'' as Captain Lou Escobar * 1994 ''Confessions of a Hitman'' as Priest (final film role)

References

External links

*
Perry Lopez
at Memory Alpha, a Star Trek wiki
Perry Lopez Obit
at ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' via

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lopez, Perry 1929 births 2008 deaths American male film actors American male television actors American people of Puerto Rican descent Deaths from lung cancer in California Male actors from New York City Warner Bros. contract players 20th-century American male actors Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery