Biographic - Sunday October 2, 2011 Comic Strip Licensing and Permissions

Transcript

Jose Antonio Dominguez Banderas was born in Malaga, Spain, on August 10, 1960. He originally wanted to become a professional soccer player until a broken foot ended his dreams. He became interested in acting in his early teens and studied the classics at Malaga's School of Dramatic Art before joining a touring Theater Troupe. He first gained international fame for work in the films of acclaimed director Pedro Almodovar, who discovered Antonio working in small theaters and cast him in numerous Spanish films. Antonio made his Hollywood debuted in 1992's "The Mambo Kings." As he could speak no English at the time, he had to learn his lines phonetically. He soon mastered the language and landed starring roles in movies as diverse as "Philadelphia" "Interview With The Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles" "Assassins" and "Desperado." He has been married to his "Too Much" co-star, actress Melanie Griffith, since 1996. He earned Golden Globe nominations for "Evita" and "The Mask Of Zorro" and the new Millenium saw him star in a number of movie franchises. Besides reprising his Zorro role, he revisited his El Mariachi character in "Once Upon A Time In Mexico" -the sequel to "Desperado" and starred in both the "Spy Kids" and "Shrek" series of films. Late 2011 sees him reunited with director Almodovar for the thriller "The Skin I Live In" and starring in "Puss In Boots" a spin-off centered on his character from the "Shrek" movies. Having won numerous awards for his 2003 Broadway run in "Nine," he will return to the stage in "Zorba."

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