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Natividad Vacío

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Natividad Vácio
in The Hitch-Hiker (1953)
Born(1912-09-08)September 8, 1912
DiedMay 30, 1996(1996-05-30) (aged 83)
Years active1950–1989

Natividad Vacío (September 8, 1912 – May 30, 1996) was an American character actor in films and television from the 1950s through the 1980s. Born Natividad Domínguez Vacío in El Paso, Texas, he was Mexican-American. He nearly always played a Hispanic character in his 65 film and television appearances.[1] He was married to Henriqueta (Queta) Vacío.

Career

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His debut came in a 1950 episode of The Lone Ranger called "Dead Man's Chest". He was featured in a pivotal role in The Hitch-Hiker (1953), a film noir directed by Ida Lupino. Many of his roles were in Westerns, although he had a diverse career. For example, he played a character called "Frank Smith" who was the family gardener in five episodes of the suburban sitcom Father Knows Best (the character -- and therefore the Andersons -- pronounced his first name as "Frahnk," so the credits generally spelled it phonetically as "Fronk").

The majority of his work was in television, with an occasional movie role. Perhaps the highest-profile film in which he appeared was The Magnificent Seven (1960), portraying "Miguel", one of the Mexican townspeople trying to defend their farming village from a band of outlaws. In 1988, he appeared in the Robert Redford film The Milagro Beanfield War (1988) where he portrayed "Onofre", a man with one arm, who said his arm was eaten off by butterflies. He was one of the four men they called the "senile brigade".

Vacío was a close friend of actor George Reeves, star of the TV series Adventures of Superman. Vacío played the role of a Mexican police inspector in the 1958 episode "The Brainy Burro". Vacío and Reeves met at Pasadena Junior College, and Reeves loved to hear "Nati", Vacío's nickname, sing and play his guitar. Reeves asked Nati to show him how to play. Reeves was a quick learner and both of them would play and sing Mexican songs, all the time.

In Hollywoodland (2006), a film about Reeves' life and death, the character of Vacío was portrayed by Diego Fuentes, Toronto actor/socialite, in a couple of scenes.

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1948 The Loves of Carmen Man Uncredited
1950 Branded Peon Uncredited
1953 Jeopardy Persistent Tijuana Vendor Uncredited
1953 The Hitch-Hiker Jose
1953 Latin Lovers Vacuum Cleaner Man (scenes deleted)
1954 Green Fire Hernandez
1955 Stranger on Horseback Morales Uncredited
1956 Walk the Proud Land Compos Uncredited
1956 Giant Eusebio Uncredited
1957 The Night the World Exploded Hospital Physician Uncredited
1957 Father Knows Best Frank
1957 Escape from Red Rock Don Miguel Chavez
1958 Father Knows Best Frank
1960 The Magnificent Seven Miguel
1963 The Gun Hawk Quid
1964 Honeymoon Hotel Vagrant at Garbage Dump Uncredited
1966 Castle of Evil Muchado
1968 The Pink Jungle Figueroa
1970-1973 Adam-12 Jose / Mr. Perez 2 episodes
1972 Skyjacked Spanish Passenger Uncredited
1980 Cheech and Chong's Next Movie Mexican Man in Welfare Office
1983 The Man with Two Brains Ramon
1988 Milagro Beanfield War The Senile Brigade

References

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