Danny Trejo
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| Danny Trejo | |
|---|---|
 Danny Trejo attending the "Babes In Toyland" Toy Drive at Lucky Strike Lanes, Hollywood, CA on Dec. 4, 2009 | |
| Born | Dan Trejo, Jr. May 16, 1944 Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Spouse(s) | Debbie Shreve |
Dan "Danny" Trejo, Jr. (last name pronounced [ˈtreho]; born May 16, 1944) is an American character actor who has appeared in many Hollywood movies, usually known for his tough guy roles.
Contents[hide] |
Early life
Trejo, a Mexican-American,[1] was born Dan Trejo, Jr.[2] in Los Angeles, the son of Alice Rivera and Dan Trejo, a construction worker. He is a cousin of filmmaker Robert Rodriguez[3][4] and is from the Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. As a youth, he roamed the streets around his home area, committing various crimes with his uncle and becoming addicted to drugs. He was in and out of jail many times as a teenager.
While on the streets, Trejo developed talent as a boxer and considered taking up boxing as a profession. That ambition was dashed by a lengthy prison sentence. While serving time in San Quentin State Prison, he became the California state prison champion in both the lightweight and welterweight divisions. During this time, Trejo became a member of a twelve-step program, which he credits with his success in overcoming drug addiction.
Career
While speaking at a recovery meeting in 1985, Trejo met a young man in the movie business. His newfound friend invited him to the set of Runaway Train, where Trejo was offered a job as an extra. Edward Bunker, himself a former convict and well-respected crime author who was writing the screenplay for the film, recognized Trejo, with whom he had done time at San Quentin. Remembering Trejo's boxing skills, he offered Trejo $350 per day to train Eric Roberts, one of the movie's stars, for a boxing scene. Director Andrei Konchalovsky liked Trejo's work and decided to offer him a prominent role in the film.
Since then, Trejo has become a prolific actor in both films and television, acting alongside some of Hollywood's most famous actors, including Jean-Claude Van Damme, Johnny Depp, Al Pacino, Nicolas Cage, Charles Bronson, George Clooney, John Malkovich, Robert De Niro, Harrison Ford, Val Kilmer, and Antonio Banderas. Trejo has often appeared in five or more movies per year in various genres. Major releases in which he has acted include Blood in Blood Out, Animal Factory, Anaconda, xXx, Desperado, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Heat, From Dusk till Dawn, Con Air, Six Days Seven Nights, Spy Kids, The Replacement Killers, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, The Devil's Rejects, Valley of Angels, Delta Farce, Grindhouse, Rob Zombie's Halloween and Snoop Dogg's Hood of Horror.
Trejo is known for his very distinctive appearance. In addition to his heavily lined face (usually sporting a long mustache), he has displayed the large tattoo on his chest for many roles (the tattoo depicts a woman wearing a sombrero). He often plays thugs or lowlife characters, although he has also played protagonists in films such as Robert Rodriguez's Spy Kids trilogy, Bubble Boy and a guest appearance on the USA Network series Monk with art imitating life as a convict roommate to Tony Shalhoub's undercover detective. He also appeared in an episode of Desperate Housewives in Season 2, sent by Carlos to help Gabrielle deal with her grief of losing her unborn baby (another good-guy character). He voices the character Enrique, and Octavio's character is based on his appearance on King of the Hill. His role on King of the Hill was referenced in the HBO series Unscripted in which he appears in a quick cameo.
The independent film Champion was released in 2005, documenting Trejo's life and featuring appearances by friends and associates from the film industry. Trejo appears as a playable character in Def Jam: Fight for NY, a fighting game to which the actor lent his voice and likeness. He had previously lent his voice to Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories for the character Umberto Robina, who also resembles Trejo. Trejo will next voice the character of Rico in Rob Zombie's upcoming animated film The Haunted World of El Superbeasto as well as star alongside Steven Seagal in Urban Justice. He is now portraying the Mexican bartender in the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless.
In regards to his continued growth as a professional actor, he has stated that he still can't believe how fortunate he's been. "I'm so blessed. I'm still scared that somebody's going to wake me up and say, 'Hey, we're still in prison. Let's go to chow'".[5]
Many of Trejo's characters in Robert Rodriguez movies have been named after knives or sharp instruments: Machete in Spy Kids, Razor Charlie and Razor Eddie in the From Dusk till Dawn movies, and Navajas (Spanish for knives) in Desperado. He also plays another character called Machete in a trailer made for Rodriguez's film collaboration with Quentin Tarantino, Grindhouse, though it is unclear if this Machete is related to the Spy Kids character. He is set to star in a full theatrical version of the film of the same name, based on the character.
He has also made cameo appearances in music videos such as, in rapper Tech N9ne's video for the single, "Like Yeah," from his 2008 release Killer, Rehab's 2007 song "Bartender", Jay Chou's short movie-music video "Double Blade" from his 2003 album Ye Hui Mei, and the Jonas Brothers' "Burnin' Up" from their album A Little Bit Longer. and there.
Personal life
Trejo is married to Debbie Shreve. He has three children: Danny Boy (b. 1981), Gilbert (b. 1988), and Danielle (b. 1990), who are all from previous relationships.
Trejo has said that he is amazed when he walks the streets where he used to commit crimes and children ask him for autographs. He also pointed out that he often chooses to play bad guys to teach younger audiences that bad guys often die or go to prison, and that one should try to live a decent life.
Trejo often speaks in front of youth groups and at colleges, and encourages young people to avoid making the mistakes he did while growing up.
Partial filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Runaway Train | Boxer | |
| 1987 | Penitentiary III | See Veer | |
| The Hidden | Prisoner | ||
| Death Wish 4: The Crackdown | Art Sanella | ||
| 1988 | Bulletproof | Sharkey | |
| 1989 | Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects | Prison Inmate | |
| Lock Up | Chink's Gang Member | ||
| Bail Out | Mean | a.k.a. W.B., Blue and the Bean | |
| 1990 | Guns | Tong | |
| Maniac Cop 2 | Prisoner | ||
| Marked for Death | Hector | ||
| 1991 | The Last Hour | Spider | |
| Whore | Tattoo Artist | ||
| Wedlock | Tough Prisoner #1 | ||
| Femme Fatale | Toshi | ||
| Carnal Crimes | Ticket Agent | ||
| Lonely Hearts | Angry Client | ||
| 1992 | Nails | Las Virgenes bartender | TV film |
| 1993 | Sunset Grill | Young Mexican | |
| Blood in Blood Out | Geronimo | a.k.a. Bound by Honor | |
| Doppelganger | Hard Hat | ||
| Mi Vida Loca | Frank | ||
| 12:01 | Prisoner | TV film | |
| Love, Cheat & Steal | Cuban | ||
| 1994 | Criminal Passion | Construction Worker | |
| Against The Wall | Luis | TV film | |
| 1995 | Dead Badge | El Tango Bartender | |
| The Stranger | Hawk | ||
| Desperado | Navajas | ||
| Heat | Trejo | ||
| 1996 | From Dusk till Dawn | Razor Charlie | |
| Le Jaguar | Kumare | ||
| 1997 | Los Locos | Manuel Batista | |
| Anaconda | Poacher | ||
| Con Air | Johnny 23 | ||
| Trojan War | Scarface | ||
| Dilemma | Rudy Salazar | ||
| 1998 | The Replacement Killers | Collins | |
| Point Blank | Wallace | ||
| Six Days Seven Nights | Pierce | ||
| Champions | Max Brito | ||
| Soundman | Duce's Father | ||
| 1999 | From Dusk till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money | Razor Eddie | |
| Desert Heat | Johnny Six Toes | a.k.a. Inferno | |
| 2000 | From Dusk till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter | Razor Charlie | |
| Animal Factory | Vito | ||
| Reindeer Games | Jumpy | ||
| 2001 | Spy Kids | Machete | |
| Bubble Boy | Slim | ||
| Skippy | Hitman | ||
| 2002 | 13 Moons | Hoodlum #2 | |
| The Salton Sea | Little Bill | ||
| Do It for Uncle Manny | Pedro | ||
| Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams | Machete Cortez | ||
| xXx | El Jefe | ||
| Grand Theft Auto: Vice City | Umberto Robina (voice only) | video game | |
| The Hire: Beat the Devil | Bob | short film | |
| Nightstalker | Officer Frank Luis | ||
| 2003 | Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over | Machete | |
| Once Upon a Time in Mexico | Cucuy | ||
| Double Blade | El Patron | short film | |
| 2004 | Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy | Bartender | |
| Def Jam: Fight for NY | Trejo (voice only) | video game | |
| Lost | Edward James Archer | ||
| Monk: Mr. Monk Goes to Jail | Spyder Rudner | TV episode | |
| 2005 | All Souls Day | Vargas Diaz | a.k.a. All Souls Day: Dia de los Muertos |
| Tennis, Anyone...? | Hector | ||
| The Curse of El Charro | El Charro (voice only) | ||
| Chasing Ghosts | Carlos Santiago | ||
| The Devil's Rejects | Rondo | ||
| The Crow: Wicked Prayer | Harold | ||
| Venice Underground | Papi | ||
| Dreaming on Christmas | Train Driver | ||
| 2006 | Furnace | Fury | |
| TV: The Movie | Unknown | ||
| Propensity | Roy | ||
| Sherrybaby | Dean Walker | ||
| Nice Guys | Shady | a.k.a. High Hopes | |
| Living the Dream | Chuck | ||
| Danny Roane: First Time Director | Hector | ||
| Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories | Umberto Robina (voice only) | video game | |
| Hood of Horror | Derelict | a.k.a. Snoop Dogg's Hood of Horror | |
| Seven Mummies | Apache | ||
| Slayer | Montegna | TV film | |
| Haunted Prison | Priest | TV film; a.k.a. Death Row | |
| 2007 | Smiley Face | Albert | |
| Grindhouse | Machete | segment: Machete | |
| Delta Farce | Carlos Santana | ||
| Halloween | Ismael Cruz | ||
| Battle for Terra | Elder Barum (voice only) | ||
| The Blue Rose | Junk | ||
| Urban Justice | El Chivo | ||
| On Bloody Sunday | The Ref | ||
| 2008 | Valley of Angels | Hector | |
| Through the Valley | Don Reyes | ||
| Richard III | Major | ||
| The Art of Travel | Limo Driver | ||
| Jake's Corner | Clint | ||
| Ranchero | Capone | ||
| Toxic | Antoine | ||
| Alone in the Dark II | Perry | ||
| La Linea | Mario | ||
| Necessary Evil | Barro | ||
| 2009 | The Grind | Nicholi Guzman | |
| Fanboys | The Chief | ||
| The Haunted World of El Superbeasto | Rico (voice only) | ||
| Modus Operandi | Director Holiday | ||
| Eyeborgs | G-Man | ||
| 2010 | Shadows in Paradise | Shadow Company member | |
| Shoot the Hero | Crazy Joe | ||
| Burn Notice | Vega | TV; one episode | |
| The Bill Collector | Uncle Frankie | forthcoming film | |
| Machete | Machete | forthcoming film | |
| Vengeance | forthcoming film | ||
| Predators | Cuchillo [6] | forthcoming film |
[edit] Cultural references
Plastilina Mosh, a Mexican alternative rock band, paid tribute to Trejo with their song "Danny Trejo", featured in their album All You Need Is Mosh.
ITN Clothing
In addition to his acting career, Danny Trejo is also the founder of ITN Clothing, which offers hip-hop style T-shirts and accessories.
References
- ^ Former 'predator' Danny Trejo is a kids' favorite - Latino - NY Daily News
- ^ His birthname is simply "Dan", according to the State of California. California Birth Index, 1905-1995. Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, California. At Ancestry.com
- ^ Danny Trejo Biography (1944-)
- ^ Danny Trejo Biography - Yahoo! Movies
- ^ Danny Trejo: The illustrated man
- ^ Danny Trejo Scores a Role in 'Predators' Remake, Script Review!
External links
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Danny Trejo |
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