Anthony Quinn

Manuel Antonio Rodolfo Quinn Oaxaca, better known as Anthony Quinn, was a Mexican-American actor whose career spanned from 1936 to 2001. He appeared in over 100 film, television, and stage roles, often playing earthy, passionate characters. Quinn won two Academy Awards and was nominated for five Golden Globes, two BAFTAs, and a Tony. He is remembered as a key figure in Latin-American representation in U.S. media.

Born in Chihuahua, Mexico, during the Mexican Revolution, Quinn was raised in El Paso, Texas, and East Los Angeles. His father, Frank Quinn, was the son of an Irish immigrant and a Mexican mother, and reportedly rode with Pancho Villa before working as a movie studio assistant cameraman. Quinn later denied the story that his father was an "Irish adventurer," calling it a Hollywood invention. As a child, he attended Catholic church and considered becoming a priest, but at age 11 joined the Pentecostal church of Aimee Semple McPherson, playing in the band and apprenticing as a preacher. He credited McPherson with inspiring the dramatic outstretched hand gesture of his character Zorba. Quinn attended several Los Angeles schools but left before graduating; he received an honorary diploma from Tucson High School in 1987.

As a young man, Quinn boxed professionally and studied art and architecture under Frank Lloyd Wright. When Quinn mentioned an acting offer from a film studio, Wright encouraged him to take it. Quinn later said the offer was for $800 a week, though in a 1999 interview he recalled it was only $300.

Quinn made his film debut in 1936 with uncredited roles in *The Milky Way* and *Parole*, and a credited part in *The Plainsman* as a Cheyenne Indian. He played ethnic villains in films like *Dangerous to Know* and *Road to Morocco*, and a sympathetic Crazy Horse in *They Died with Their Boots On*. A breakthrough came in 1941 when he played a matador in *Blood and Sand*. He co-starred in *The Black Swan* (1942), *The Ox-Bow Incident* (1943), and *Sinbad the Sailor* (1947). By 1947, he had appeared in over 50 films, playing Indians, Mafia dons, Hawaiian chiefs, Filipino fighters, Chinese guerrillas, and Arab sheiks. He also returned to the stage, replacing Marlon Brando as Stanley Kowalski in *A Streetcar Named Desire*.

Quinn won his first Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for *Viva Zapata!* (1952), becoming the first Mexican-born performer to win an Academy Award. He won his second Oscar in 1957 for *Lust for Life*. He was nominated for Best Actor for *Wild is the Wind* (1958) and *Zorba the Greek* (1964). His other notable films include *La Strada* (1954), *The Guns of Navarone* (1961), *Requiem for a Heavyweight* (1962), *Lawrence of Arabia* (1962), *Guns for San Sebastian* (1968), *The Shoes of the Fisherman* (1968), *Across 110th Street* (1972), *The Message* (1976), *Lion of the Desert* (1980), *Jungle Fever* (1991), and *Seven Servants* (1996). On Broadway, he starred in *Becket* (earning a Tony nomination) and reprised his film role in *Zorba*.

Beyond acting, Quinn was a civil rights activist, a painter, and the author of several autobiographical books. In 1987, he received the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award.