Name	Hector Elizondo
Height	5' 10"
Naionality	American
Date of Birth	22 December 1936
Place of Birth	New York, USA
Famous for

Hector Elizondo was born on December 22, 1936, in New York's Upper West Side. His father was Martin Echevarria Elizondo, a Basque who was born at sea on a cargo ship sailing from Spain to Puerto Rico, and his mother was Carmen Medina from Puerto Rico. His parents married in Puerto Rico and moved to New York, before Hector and his younger sister Emma were born. At age 10, Hector was discovered by the legendary W.C. Handy (1873-1958), who was portrayed by 'Nat 'King' Cole' in St. Louis Blues (1958) (1958). Hector appeared with W.C. Handy on local radio and TV. Hector attended public high school, and also took voice lessons. He was quite an athlete, his high school baseball skill was so good he was scouted by the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 1954, Hector went to the City College of New York, wanting to become a history teacher. Around 1955 Hector got married for the first time, and had a son; the marriage ended in divorce in 1957. Hector also studied dance at the Ballet Arts Company at Carnegie Hall. From 1962-63 he was briefly married a 2nd time, to a young secretary. Hector continued acting, and met actress Carolee Campbell at the Actor's Studio, she was a star on the NBC soap "The Doctors" (1963). They got hitched in 1969 and have been happily married ever since. Hector made the transition from acting on the stage to movies, and since 1970 has been in over 80 movies and TV-movies. Director Garry Marshall considers Hector to be his "good luck charm" and Hector has appeared in 12 of Garry's movies, which included appearing with both Richard Gere and Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman (1990), for which Hector got a [Golden Globe] [award] nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He appeared again with Gere and Roberts in Runaway Bride (1999) which was a runaway success at the box office. Hector's son Rodd Elizondo is a school teacher, and Hector also has a granddaughter. Hector's hobbies include Kendo (a type of Japanese fencing), playing the guitar and singing, and he still plays the bongos.