John Leguizamo Biography

John Leguizamo, (born July 22, 1964 in Bogotá, Colombia), is a comedian, actor and producer of Colombian-Puerto Rican descent.

Leguizamo was born in Bogotá, Colombia. His father, Alberto Leguizamo, was a Puerto Rican Realtor living in Colombia who met and married a young Colombian woman by the name of Luz. In 1968 the couple emigrated with their children to the United States and settled down in the Jackson Heights section of Queens in New York City. where Leguizamo received his primary and secondary education.
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As a student in high school, Leguizamo would write comical material and test it out on his classmates. He was voted "Most Talkative" by his fellow classmates. After graduating from high school (Murry Bergtraum High School), Leguizamo enrolled at New York University where he took theater classes.

Leguizamo started out as a stand-up comic doing the New York nightclub circuit. In 1984, he made his T.V. debut with a small part in Miami Vice. His other roles include:

In 1993, Leguizamo wrote and participated in Spic-O-Rama, where he made fun of the stereotyping of Latinos in the U.S.. The production won a Drama Desk Award and four Cable ACE Awards. The 1993 movie production Super Mario Brothers where he played the role of "Luigi Mario", uplifted his acting career in Hollywood.

Other movies have since followed, such as:

In 2000, Leguizamo played two genies in the Emmy Award winning miniseries Arabian Nights. Leguizamo has participated in over 53 films, including The Alibi where he will play the role of "Hannibal" and which is in the post-production stages as of 2005.

Leguizamo also created, executive produced, wrote for, and starred in the 1995 Latino-oriented variety show called House of Buggin'. The show showcased Leguizamo's well-known ability to assume a wide variety of colorful, energetic characters. The show ran less than a year on Fox.

In 1998, he debuted on Broadway in the production of Freak, which was also turned into an HBO film by director Spike Lee. Leguizamo has produced 10 films, including Pińero and made 13 TV guest appearances.

Later, in 2003, he voice-acted Globox from Rayman 3. The game versions with his voice acting were PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, PC, and Mac.

In 2005, Leguizamo joined the cast of the show ER, playing Dr. Victor Clemente, a new attending who is keen on introducing the staff of County General to ways of treating patients and cutting-edge technology.

JOHN LEGUIZAMO PICTURES

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JOHN LEGUIZAMO BIOGRAPHY