One of Hollywood's most private and guarded leading men, Andy Garcia
has created iconic characters while at the same time staying true
to his acting roots and personal projects.
Garcia was born Andrés Arturo García Menéndez on April 12, 1956, in Havana, Cuba, to Amelie Menéndez,
a teacher of English, and René García Núñez, an attorney and avocado
farmer. Garcia's family was relatively affluent. However, when he was
two years old, Fidel Castro came to
power, and the family fled to Miami Beach. Forced to work menial jobs
for a while, the family started a fragrance company that was eventually
worth more than a million dollars. He attended Nautilus Junior High
School and later at Miami Beach Senior High School. Andy was a popular
student in school, a good basketball player and good-looking. He
dreamed of playing professional baseball. In his senior year, though,
he contracted mononucleosis and hepatitis, and unable to play sports,
he turned his attention to acting.
He studied acting with Jay W. Jensen.
Jensen was a South Florida legend, counting among his numerous
students, Brett Ratner,
Roy Firestone,
Mickey Rourke, and
Luther Campbell. Following his positive
high school experiences in acting, he continued his drama studies at
Florida International University.
Soon, he was headed out to Hollywood. His first break came as a gang
member on the very first episode of the popular TV series
Polizeirevier Hill Street (1981).
His role as a cocaine kingpin in
8 Millionen Wege zu sterben (1986)
put him on the radar of Brian De Palma,
who was casting for his gangster classic
The Untouchables: Die Unbestechlichen (1987). At
first, he envisioned Garcia as Al Capone's
sadistic henchman Frank Nitti, but fearing
typecasting as a gangster, Garcia campaigned for the role of "George
Stone", the Italian cop who gets accepted into
Eliot Ness' famous band of lawmen.
Garcia's next notable role came in
Black Rain (1989) by acclaimed
director Ridley Scott, as the partner of
police detective
Michael Douglas. He then
co-starred with Richard Gere in
Internal Affairs - Trau' ihm, er ist ein Cop (1990),
directed by Mike Figgis. In 1989,
Francis Ford Coppola was casting
for the highly anticipated third installment of his "Godfather" films.
Der Pate 3 (1990)
included one of the most sought-after roles in decades, the hot-headed
son of "Sonny Corleone" and mob protégé of "Michael Corloene", "Vincent
Mancini". A plum role for any young rising star, the role was
campaigned for by a host of actors.
Val Kilmer,
Alec Baldwin,
Vincent Spano,
Charlie Sheen, and even
Robert De Niro (who wanted the role
changed to accommodate his age) were all beaten out by the
up-and-coming Garcia. His performance was Oscar-nominated as Best
Supporting Actor, and secured him international stardom and a place in
cinematic history. Now a leading man, he starred in such films as
Jennifer 8 ist die Nächste (1992) and
Ein ganz normaler Held (1992). He won raves for his role
as the husband of Meg Ryan in
When a Man Loves a Woman - Eine fast perfekte Liebe (1994)
and gave another charismatic gangster turn in
Das Leben nach dem Tod in Denver (1995).
He then returned in
Nacht über Manhattan (1996),
directed by Sidney Lumet, as well as
portraying legendary mobster
Lucky Luciano in
Harlem, N.Y.C. - Der Preis der Macht (1997). In perhaps his most
mainstream role, he portrayed a cop in the action film
Desperate Measures (1998).
Garcia then starred in a few lower-profile projects that didn't do much
for his career, but things turned around in 2001, with the first of
many projects being his role as a cold casino owner in
Ocean's Eleven (2001), directed by
Steven Soderbergh. Seeing his removal
from Cuba as involuntary, Garcia is proud of his heritage which
influences his life and work. One such case is his portrayal of
renowned Cuban trumpet player
Arturo Sandoval in
Die Jazz Connection (2000).
He is an extremely private man, and strong believer in old-fashioned
chivalry. Married to his wife, Maria Victoria, since 1982, the couple
has three daughters. One of the most talented leading men around,
Garcia has had a unique career of staying true to his own ideals and
thoughts on acting. While some would have used some of the momentum he
has acquired at different points in his career to get rich off
lightweight projects, Garcia has stayed true to stories and films that
aspire to something more. But with a presence and style that never seem
old, a respect from directors and film buffs, alike, Andy Garcia will
be remembered for a long time in film history.
