Raul Julia

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(person) by Jet-Poop (2.3 hr) (print) ? (I like it!) 1 C! Wed Aug 28 2002 at 15:13:27

American actor (1940-1994). Real name: Raul Rafael Carlos Julia y Arcelay. Julia was discovered while performing in a nightclub in his hometown of San Juan, Puerto Rico by actor Orson Bean. He moved to New York City in 1964 and began working in off-Broadway plays. Soon, he moved up to higher-profile work, playing Edmund in "King Lear" in 1973 and the title character in "Othello" in 1979, as well as performing in musicals: "Two Gentlemen of Verona" in 1971, "The Threepenny Opera" in 1976, and "Nine" in 1982. He also played Rafael for a season or two on "Sesame Street" in the early 1970s.

After moving up to films, Julia had a number of memorable roles in movies that were rarely commercial successes. He played a political prisoner in "Kiss of the Spider Woman", controversial archbishop Oscar Romero in "Romero", and a flamboyant attorney in "Presumed Innocent". His most successful role came as swashbuckling goofball Gomez Addams in "The Addams Family" and "Addams Family Values".

After he was diagnosed with cancer in 1993, Julia played Chico Mendes, a Brazilian rain forest activist in a made-for-cable movie called "The Burning Season". He suffered a stroke in mid-October of 1994, fell into a coma, and was put on life support. He died about a week later; his body was flown back to Puerto Rico, where thousands of mourners turned out for his funeral.

He won posthumous Emmys and Golden Globes for "The Burning Season", and his last movie, "Street Fighter", was dedicated to his memory. Though "Street Fighter" was a mostly forgettable video-game movie, Julia's role as the evil dictator M. Bison does a lot to redeem it, and he had the film's best line.

Partial Filmography:
"Stiletto"
"Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me"
"Death Scream"
"The Gumball Rally"
"The Eyes of Laura Mars"
"Strong Medicine"
"One from the Heart"
"The Escape Artist"
"Kiss of the Spider Woman"
"Compromising Positions"
"Overdrawn at the Memory Bank"
"The Morning After"
"The Alamo: Thirteen Days to Glory"
"Trading Hearts"
"Onassis: The Richest Man in the World"
"Moon Over Parador"
"Tequila Sunrise"
"Tango Bar"
"The Penitent"
"Romero"
"Frankenstein Unbound"
"The Rookie"
"Havana"
"The Addams Family"
"Addams Family Values"
"The Burning Season"
"Street Fighter"
Research from the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com)

printable version
chaos

Street Fighter	Overdrawn at the Memory Bank	M. Bison	You know you want me, baby!
The Addams Family	Kiss of the Spider Woman	memorable	Jane Fonda
Gumball Rally	Swashbuckling	Moon Over Parador	Just a Stache
The Escape Artist	Mercedes McNab	Ty Cobb	Horse Feathers
acting	Nine: The Musical	Addams Family Values	Goa
Goa Gajah	Cinderella	Havana	Tequila Sunrise

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