Pepe Serna

Durable Mexican-American actor 'Pepe Serna' (qv) has appeared in more than 100 feature films and 300 television shows, but is most recognized for his gritty support performances in a variety of motion pictures, including _Scarface (1983)_ (qv) as 'Al Pacino' (qv)'s ill-fated cocaine partner, as well as the western _Silverado (1985)_ (qv) with 'Kevin Costner' (qv), the crime yarn _The Rookie (1990)_ (qv) starring 'Clint Eastwood' (qv) and 'Charlie Sheen' (qv), and the drama _American Me (1992)_ (qv) starring 'Edward James Olmos' (qv). In a career surpassing five decades, Pepe's characters have played on both sides of the law -- from drug peddlers to sheriffs.He was born (and raised) in Corpus Christi, Texas on July 23, 1944, the son of a naval base interpreter for Latin American pilots and a hairdresser. His desires to become an actor happened early in life, moving to Hollywood in 1969 to finally pursue his dreams. He didn't have to wait long to find steady Latino work on film and TV.Making an inauspicious debut in the exploitation film _The Student Nurses (1970)_ (qv), Pepe found more "A" quality work after being discovered by producer 'Hal B. Wallis' (qv) for the coming-of-age film 'Tim Belcher' (qv) starring 'Richard Thomas' (qv) and 'Catherine Burns' (qv) and the western _Shoot Out (1971)_ (qv) starring 'Gregory Peck' (qv). Specializing in urban, streetwise roles, he went on to mix a number of popular films (_The New Centurions (1972)_ (qv), _The Day of the Locust (1975)_ (qv), _Car Wash (1976)_ (qv), _A Force of One (1979)_ (qv), _Walk Proud (1979)_ (qv), _Honeysuckle Rose (1980)_ (qv), _Inside Moves (1980)_ (qv), _Deal of the Century (1983)_ (qv), _Red Dawn (1984)_ (qv), _Caddyshack II (1988)_ (qv)) with a slew of popular TV crime dramas such as "Mannix," "Police Story," "Adam-12," "The Rookies," "The Rockford Files," "Baretta," "Kojak," "CHiPs," "Barney Miller," "Scarecrow & Mrs. King," "T.J. Hooker," "Simon & Simon," "Hill Street Blues," "Miami Vice," "Cagney & Lacey" and "Diagnosis Murder." He also played the role of 'Jennifer Lopez' (qv)'s disapproving father in the one-season crime mystery series _Second Chances (1993)_ (qv) and it's equally short-lived sequel _Hotel Malibu (1994)_ (qv).In addition to support roles in such millennium films as _Picking Up the Pieces (2000)_ (qv), _Exposed (2003)_ (qv), _The Black Dahlia (2006)_ (qv), _Downsizing (2017)_ (qv), _Road to Juarez (2013)_ (qv), _The Green Ghost (2018)_ (qv), _The Margarita Man (2019)_ (qv) and _The Planters (2019)_ (qv), as well as the Asian-American movies of writer/director 'Dave Boyle' (qv) including _Big Dreams Little Tokyo (2006)_ (qv) and _White on Rice (2009)_ (qv), Pepe, after a 45-year career, was handed a film lead by Boyle as a sheriff in _Man from Reno (2014)_ (qv). He also was given leads in the movies _Gino's Wife (2016)_ (qv) and _Flavor of Life (2019)_ (qv). As a producer, Pepe's credits include _Kill or Be Killed (2015)_ (qv), _Aguruphobia (2015)_ (qv), _From the Dead (2019)_ (qv) and _Going Rogue_ (qv).Long married to wife Diane, Pepe is a noted keynote teacher and motivational speaker who tours colleges and universities. His strong sideline as a painter has been met with critical success, having been commissioned quite frequently. His vibrant paintings and one-man stage shows reflect a serious return to his Mexican roots and was the subject of the 2015 short documentary "Life Is Art."::Gary Brumburgh / gr-home@pacbell.net