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Benicio Del Toro Biography |
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Benicio Del Toro emerged in the mid-`90s as one of the most watchable and charismatic character actors to come along in years. A favorite of film buffs, Del Toro gained mainstream public attention as the conflicted but basically honest Mexican cop in Steven Soderbergh`s Traffic (2000). Born in Puerto Rico on February 19, 1967, Benicio is the son of lawyer parents Gustavo and Fausta Sanchez Del Toro. His mother died when he was young, and his father moved the family to a farm in Pennsylvania. A basketball player with an interest in acting, he decided to follow the family way and study business at the University of California in San Diego. A class in acting resulted in his being bitten by the acting bug, and he subsequently dropped out and began studying with legendary acting teacher Stella Adler in Los Angeles and at the Circle in the Square Acting School in New York City. Telling his parents that he was taking courses in business, Del Toro hid his new studies from his family for a little while. During the late 1980s he made a few TV appearances, most notably in an episode of "Miami Vice" (1984) and in the NBC miniseries "Drug Wars: The Camarena Story" (1990) (mini). Del Toro`s big-screen career got off to a slower start, however--his first role was Duke the Dog-Faced Boy in Big Top Pee-wee (1988). Things looked better, however, when he landed the role of Dario, the vicious henchman in the James Bond film Licence to Kill (1989). Surprising his co-stars, Del Toro was, at 21, the youngest actor ever to portray a Bond villain. The potential break, however, was spoiled as the picture turned out to be one of the most disappointing Bond films ever; it was lost amid bigger summer competition.
Biography Credit: www.imdb.com/name/nm0001125/bio |
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Trivia |
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Quotes "Before I was ever in high school, I had dark circles under my eyes. The rumor was I was a junkie. I have dark circles under my eyes, deal with it." "I do get more recognized now. If I go to dinner, people look at me more now and whisper. But as an actor I would be no one without the people who come and see me. So it would be ridiculous for it to bother me. It just bothers me when I`m intoxicated." "I like anything that`s three-dimensional, anything I can believe in -even if it`s fantastic, surreal or from another planet." "I like to keep growing. I haven`t gotten anywhere, as far as I`m concerned." "I used to play basketball and I was pretty competitive, but I was never a bad loser. I never got angry. For me it was always about doing my best and devoting myself to a challenge. Sometimes that will cut it, other times it won`t. But I`m someone who remains faithful to my dreams. That`s how I looked at acting, even though I knew it would be tough going at first. I didn`t think about the money, I`ve always lived simply. I just need my books and I can get by." "I`d like to do completely different roles - a romantic lead, for example. I`d like to be dressed up in a suit and get the girl at the end of the movie."Trivia "Del Toro" means "of the bull" in Spanish. Acted with his ex-girlfriend, Valeria Golino, in three film: Big Top Pee-wee (1988), The Indian Runner (1991) and Submission (1995). Before moving to Pennsylvania, was a student at Academia del Perpetuo Socorro in Miramar, Puerto Rico. From 1988 to 1992 he was in a relationship with Valeria Golino. Good friends with Johnny Depp. They worked together in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998). His father owned the property across the street from his childhood home and turned it into a full-size basketball court so he and his brother Gustavo could practice and play with their friends. The property has since been built into a condominium. Third Puerto Rican Actor to win an Academy Award. The other two were: Rita Moreno (West Side Story (1961)) and José Ferrer (Cyrano de Bergerac (1950). Was an extra in a Madonna video (La Isla Bonita). Won the 2003 Audience Award for Best Actor at the Venice International Film Festival for his role in 21 Grams (2003). Youngest person ever to portray a villain in a James Bond-movie: "Dario" in Licence to Kill (1989). Attended Mercersburg Academy (graduated in 1985). He was a basketball star and artist there, but not an actor. Attended the University of California - San Diego (UCSD) Burned himself with cigarettes repeatedly for the elevator scene in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) because the real `Oscar Zeta Acosta` did as well. The shots of the burn were cut. Family urged him to become a lawyer because they felt there was no future in acting. Has one brother, Gustavo, who is two years older and is a physician in the US. Mother died when he was nine. Passionate about oil painting. Sent to boarding school in Pennsylvania when he was 13. Son of Gustavo Del Toro and Fausta Sanchez-Del Toro, and Godson of Sarah Torres (all lawyers). Studied at the Stella Adler Conservatory of Acting on a scholarship. | ||
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