Edward James Olmos was born on February 24,1947 and is an American actor, director, producer, and activist.
32 Facts About Edward James Olmos
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Edward James Olmos is best known for his roles as Lieutenant Martin "Marty" Castillo in Miami Vice, American Me, William Adama in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica, teacher Jaime Escalante in Stand and Deliver, Detective Gaff in Blade Runner and its sequel Blade Runner 2049 and the English dub voice of Mito in the 2005 Disney dub of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind.
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Edward James Olmos is known for his roles as folk hero Gregorio Cortez in The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez, patriarch Abraham Quintanilla in the film Selena, narrator El Pachuco in both the stage and film versions of Zoot Suit, and the voice of Chicharron in Coco.
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Edward James Olmos was born and raised in East Los Angeles, California, the son of Eleanor and Pedro Edward James Olmos, who was a welder and mail carrier.
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Edward James Olmos's father was a Mexican immigrant who moved to California in 1945 and his mother was an American of Mexican descent.
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Edward James Olmos's parents divorced when he was seven years old, and he was primarily raised by his great-grandparents as his parents worked.
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Edward James Olmos grew up wanting to be a professional baseball player, and at age 13 joined the Los Angeles Dodgers' farm system, as a catcher.
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Edward James Olmos left baseball at age 15 to join a rock and roll band, which caused a rift with his father, who was hurt by the decision.
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Edward James Olmos graduated from Montebello High School in 1964.
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The play moved to Broadway, and Edward James Olmos earned a Tony Award nomination.
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Edward James Olmos subsequently took the role to the filmed version in 1981, and appeared in many other films including Wolfen, Blade Runner and The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez.
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In 1980, Edward James Olmos was cast in the post-apocalyptic science fiction film Virus, directed by Kinji Fukasaku and based on a novel written by Sakyo Komatsu.
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Edward James Olmos's role required him to play a piano while singing a Spanish ballad during the later part of the film.
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Edward James Olmos had a slight appearance in the video of the American rock band Toto, "I Will Remember", where he can be seen with actor Miguel Ferrer.
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Edward James Olmos played Dominican Republic dictator Rafael Trujillo in the 2001 film In the Time of the Butterflies.
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Edward James Olmos had a recurring role as US Supreme Court Justice Roberto Mendoza in the NBC drama The West Wing.
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Edward James Olmos directed a television film based upon the show, The Plan.
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Edward James Olmos appeared in Snoop Dogg's music video "Vato".
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Edward James Olmos has been a spokesperson for Farmers Insurance Group, starring in their Spanish language commercials.
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Edward James Olmos joined the cast of the television series Dexter for its sixth season, as a "brilliant, charismatic professor of religious studies".
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Edward James Olmos has often been involved in social activism, especially that affecting the US Hispanic community.
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In 1999, Edward James Olmos was one of the driving forces that created Americanos: Latino Life in the US, a book project featuring over 30 award-winning photographers, later turned into a Smithsonian traveling exhibition, music CD and HBO special.
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Edward James Olmos makes frequent appearances at juvenile halls and detention centers to speak to at-risk teenagers.
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Edward James Olmos has been an international ambassador for UNICEF.
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Edward James Olmos narrated the 1999 documentary film Zapatista, in support of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation, a revolutionary group that has abstained from using weapons since 1994.
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Edward James Olmos gave $2,300 to New Mexico governor Bill Richardson for his presidential campaign.
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Edward James Olmos is a supporter of SENS Research Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to treating and curing diseases of aging by repairing the underlying damage caused by aging.
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From 1979 to 1987, Edward James Olmos lived in West New York, New Jersey.
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Edward James Olmos has four adopted children: Daniela, Michael, Brandon, and Tamiko.
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Edward James Olmos filed for divorce in January 2002 after five years of separation.
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Edward James Olmos paid the family a cash settlement of $150,000 in response to the allegations, but denied that they were true.
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Edward James Olmos claimed that the settlement was in fact meant to protect his son, Bodie Olmos, not him.