Guillermo Rodriguez (born January 27, 1971), more commonly known as Guillermo, is a Mexican-American talk show personality who rose to fame while working as a parking lot security guard at the

Hollywood Boulevard Hollywood Boulevard is a major east–west street in Los Angeles, California. It begins in the east at Sunset Boulevard in the Los Feliz district and proceeds to the west as a major thoroughfare through Little Armenia and Thai Town, Hollywoo ...

studios for American late night talk show '' Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' He continues in character and title as the show's security guard, but actually performs nightly as

Jimmy Kimmel James Christian Kimmel (born November 13, 1967) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and producer. He is the host and executive producer of ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', a late-night talk show that premiered on ABC on January 26, 2003, ...

sidekick A sidekick is a slang expression for a close companion or colleague (not necessarily in fiction) who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to the one they accompany. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, ...

Early life

Rodriguez was born in

Zacatecas , image_map = Zacatecas in Mexico (location map scheme).svg , map_caption = State of Zacatecas within Mexico , coordinates = , coor_pinpoint = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type ...

, Mexico.

Career

Rodriguez began working as a parking-lot security guard for '' Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' studio in 2003. At that time he also had a second full-time job (hotel room server) as well as working weekends at a third. He later moved from being a parking-lot security guard to appearing on-screen. Due to his shyness at the time Rodriguez initially turned down the offer to appear on the show in 2003 but was talked into it by one of the producers. His early appearances were with "Uncle Frank" Potenza in a series of bits called "Security Night Live". (Potenza had originally handled security for the show before his role was expanded to appear on screen.) Rodriguez soon moved to acting in skits on the show with his first role being

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

's Spanish cook. His broken English coupled with his affability and teddy bear-like quality earned him a high-profile supporting role as a personality on the show, in which he usually plays the

Everyman The everyman is a stock character of fiction. An ordinary and humble character, the everyman is generally a protagonist whose benign conduct fosters the audience's identification with them. Origin The term ''everyman'' was used as early as ...

. Guillermo took over main red-carpet interviewing duties in 2011 after Potenza died of natural causes. Rodriguez's signature segment is "Guillermo's Hollywood Roundup", in which, dressed in a cowboy outfit and pretending to twirl a special effect operated lasso, he makes a mockery of entertainment news shows featured widely on television. From outside the theater and standing next to his

West Coast Customs West Coast Customs (abbreviated by the company as WCC) is an automobile repair shop focusing on the customization of vehicles. It was started by co-founders Ryan Friedlinghaus and Quinton Dodson in 1993. According to Friedlinghaus, he began the ...

-made "Guillermobile", he answers Kimmel's questions about the latest tabloid stories by taking a rack of magazines that the "Guillermobile" has been fitted with, and attempts to interpret the stories in an amusing and mis-translated way. Another recurring joke is announcing that Rodriguez has a role in a current or recent major motion picture release and showing a clip of an at-first familiar trailer for the movie with Rodriguez edited in, his appearance often made-up to resemble a character in the movie. One sketch has Rodriguez impersonating

Matt Damon Matthew Paige Damon (; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. Ranked among ''Forbes'' most bankable stars, the films in which he has appeared have collectively earned over $3.88 billion at the North Ameri ...

's character of

Jason Bourne Jason Bourne () is the title character and the protagonist in a series of novels and subsequent film adaptations. The character was created by novelist Robert Ludlum. He first appeared in the novel '' The Bourne Identity'' (1980), which was ...

in '' The Bourne Ultimatum'' by responding when asked to be named, "I am Yay-son... Bourne Identity." A physical fight between Rodriguez and Damon's actual character ensues. Rodriguez also starred alongside Kimmel in Boo!, a spoof of ''Saw''. Rodriguez often sets out to interview famous celebrities. Some of his subjects do not know who he is, which the show uses for humorous interplay. Rodriguez regularly appears at the NBA Finals to interview players. At the 2015 Finals, he called out to

LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest p ...

as James was practicing. James ignored Rodriguez, who had a meter counting how many times the name "LeBron" would be called before James acknowledged his presence. Guillermo will also interview and offer tequila to celebrities at the annual

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

. Rodriguez appeared as a special guest on the last episode of

Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and includes ...

telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...

''Eva Luna'' on April 11, 2011. In 2017, he had a brief uncredited cameo in

Marvel Marvel may refer to: Business * Marvel Entertainment, an American entertainment company ** Marvel Comics, the primary imprint of Marvel Entertainment ** Marvel Universe, a fictional shared universe ** Marvel Music, an imprint of Marvel Comics * ...

's ''

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 ''Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2'' is a 2017 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics superhero team Guardians of the Galaxy, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the sequel to ' ...

'' as a policeman, which he revealed in a video on ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' in April 2017. In April 2017, Jimmy Kimmel named his son "Billy" after Guillermo. Rodriguez was made an

honorary citizen Honorary citizenship is a status bestowed by a city or other government on a foreign or native individual whom it considers to be especially admirable or otherwise worthy of the distinction. The honour usually is symbolic and does not confer an ...

Dildo A dildo is a sex toy, often explicitly phallic in appearance, intended for sexual penetration or other sexual activity during masturbation or with sex partners. Dildos can be made from a number of materials and shaped like an erect human p ...

through the Newfoundland tradition of " screeching in", on August 15, 2019, during ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!''

Personal life

Rodriguez is married. He and his wife have a son named Benji who was born on December 11, 2011. He became a

U.S. citizen Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constituti ...

in 2005.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Guillermo 1971 births Living people Mexican television personalities Mexican emigrants to the United States Security guards American television personalities of Mexican descent People with acquired American citizenship