Who is Hector Elizondo?
One of the most popular television series in the early ’90s was “Chicago Hope”, a mystery drama that follows the lives and trials of the hospital staff; a star of the series and one of the favorite characters was Phillip Watters, portrayed by Hector Elizondo, and th role brought him a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 1997.
Besides the mentioned role, Hector has over 150 actor credits to his name, and is perhaps known best for his roles in movies such as “Pretty Woman”, “The Princess Diaries” and “Beverly Hills Cop 3”, while to the television series fans, he’s well-known for his roles in numerous popular sitcoms, including “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Down and Out in Beverly Hills”.
Early life and education
Hector was born under the zodiac sign of Capricorn on 22 December 1936, in New York City USA, thus he holds American nationality, although he comes from a family of Basque, Puerto Rican, and Spanish descent.
He was raised on the Upper West Side in New York City, by his parents Carmen Medina Reyes, who was a notary public, and Martín Echevarría Elizondo, who was an accountant, alongside his sister Emma, about whom little is known, since she prefers to keep her private life away from the media’s attention.
Hector had an interest in sports and singing from an early age.
He was in the Frank Murray Boys’ Choir when he was 10 years old, and attended High School of the Performing Arts, during which period he showed a talent for basketball and baseball, so successfully at the latter that he was being scouted by the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. Upon matriculating in 1954, Hector enrolled at the City College of New York, planning to be a history teacher, but dropped out of college during his freshman year after he became a father, thus having to work to provide for his family.
Roles in movies
Hector made his acting debut in the 1963 movie “The Fat Black Pussycat”, followed by his role as Inspector in “The Vixens” in 1969, and then in the following year, he was seen as Hector in “The Landlord”.
In the ‘70s, he appeared in numerous movies, such as “Valdez Is Coming”, “Born to Win” and “The Taking of Pelham One Two Three”, while some of his most notable roles were in the films “Diary of the Dead” (1976), and “Cuba” (1979).
In the early ‘80s, Hector was seen as Sunday in “American Gigolo”, followed by roles in “The Flamingo Kid” (1984), “Private Resort” (1985), and “Nothing in Common” (1986), among others. In 1990, he was cast to play Barney Thompson in the popular romantic drama “Pretty Woman”, also starring Julia Roberts and Richard Gere, which was nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Julia Roberts).
During the ‘90s and early 2000s, Hector acted in numerous movies, and since the list of his roles is too long to enumerate, we will mention some of his most significant roles, such as his portrayal of Jon Flint in the 1994 comedy “Beverly Hills Cop 3”, also starring Eddie Murphy and Jon Tenney, and his portrayal of Fisher in “Runaway Bride” in 1999.
In 2001, Hector was cast to play Joe in “The Princess Diaries”, also starring Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews, followed by his roles in the movies “How High” (2001), “Frankie and Johnny Are Married” (2003), “Love in the Time of Cholera” (2007), and “Valentine’s Day” (2010), among many others.
From 2010 until 2020, he was seen starring in numerous movies, including “New Year’s Eve” (2011), and “Go for Sisters” (2013), while he was also heard as Jim Gordon in the family comedy “The Lego Batman Movie” (2017).
In 2021, he was cast to play George in “Music”, which was his most recent movie role, but his fans will be happy to hear that Hector will be heard as the voice of the character Gunter in the animated movie “Max and Me”, which should be released in the .
Roles in series
Hector made his first television appearance portraying Vincento in an episode of the series “The Edge of Night” in 1966, and then, from 1968 until 1970 he was seen as John Colley in “The Doctors”, while in 1971, he guest-starred as Carlos Mendoza in “All in the Family”, followed by his role as Abraham Rodriguez in “Popi” from 1975 until 1976.
In the early ’80s, Hector was seen starring in numerous series, including “Freebie and the Bean” (1981), “Casablanca” (1983), and “Foley Square” (1985), among others.
Some of his notable roles in the ’90s were in the series such as “The Burden of Proof” (1991), “Captain Planet and the Planeteers” (from 1993 until 1995), and concurrently with this role, he was cast to play his most notable role as Doctor Phillip Waters in “Chicago Hope”, which was broadcast until 2000.
In the new millenium, Hector acted in various series including “Kate Brasher” (2001), and “Street Time” from 2002 until 2003, while he was also heard as Hath-Set in the animated superhero series “Justice League Unlimited”, in 2005 and ‘06.
From 2007 until 2013, Hector had the recurring role of Carlos Torres in the popular romantic drama “Grey’s Anatomy”, and concurrently, he was seen as Doctor Neven Bell in the series “Monk” in 2008 and ‘09.
Hector had numerous roles in the 2010 decade – he was heard as Wishing Wizzle in the animated series “Dora the Explorer” (2010), and then had the recurring role as Ed Alzate in “Last Man Standing” from 2011 until 2021, while concurrently, Hector guest-starred in “The Legend of Korra” (2013), and played Fiero in “Elena of Avalor” from 2016 until 2018.
Hector’s most recent television roles were in the series “B Positive” in 2021, and he was then heard as Dooka in the animated comedy series “Green Eggs and Ham” in 2022.
Love life and relationships
There have been various rumors concerning both Hector’s love life and his sexual orientation, however, it’s widely known that he’s straight, and has been a married man since 1969. His wife is Carolee Campbell, a photographer, publisher, and a Daytime Emmy-Award-winning actress, who is perhaps still known best for her role as Emily Kingston in the 1977 movie “This Is My Son”, which brought her the mentioned award.
Carolee is Hector’s third wife – he was first married to Marie Rivera in 1956 and ‘57, and she’s the mother of his only child, Rodd, who sadly passed away in 2017, but from whom Hector has a granddaughter named Juliette.
Hector’s second wife was Marie Mandry, about whom nothing is known, except that the two married in 1963, and divorced a year later.
As of June 2022, Hector is still in a marriage with Carolee, and the two live in their residence in Sherman Oaks, California.
Age, height, and net worth
Hector’s age is 85; he now has gray hair, and blue eyes, weighs around 165lbs (75kgs), and is 5ft 8ins (1.78m) tall.
According to sources, as of June 2022, Hector’s net worth is estimated at over $10 million.
