Rudy Robles (born Pastor Lluviosa Robles, 29 April 1910 – 11 August 1970) was a Filipino film and television actor. He was one of the first Filipino actors to appear in Hollywood movies.

Career

Robles was born in

Tacloban Tacloban ( ; ), officially the City of Tacloban ( war, Syudad han Tacloban; fil, Lungsod ng Tacloban), is a first class highly urbanized city in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. The city is autonomous from the province of Leyte, ...

, in the Eastern Visayas region of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, where he began his schooling before emigrating to the United States. He completed high school and college in California, where he excelled in debating and acting. Producer

Samuel Goldwyn Samuel Goldwyn (born Szmuel Gelbfisz; yi, שמואל געלבפֿיש; August 27, 1882 (claimed) January 31, 1974), also known as Samuel Goldfish, was a Polish-born American film producer. He was best known for being the founding contributor an ...

reportedly discovered and gave him the screen name Rudy Robles whilst he was working as a bellhop at

The Beverly Hills Hotel The Beverly Hills Hotel, also called the Beverly Hills Hotel and Bungalows, is located on Sunset Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California. One of the world's best-known hotels, it is closely associated with Hollywood film stars, rock stars, and cel ...

in Hollywood. His credits include pre- and post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

films, such as Lt. Yabo in '' The Real Glory'' (1939) starring

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, ...

and

David Niven James David Graham Niven (; 1 March 1910 – 29 July 1983) was a British actor, soldier, memoirist, and novelist. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Major Pollock in '' Separate Tables'' (1958). Niven's other roles ...

. HIs uncredited roles include appearances in ''

The Adventures of Martin Eden ''The Adventures of Martin Eden'' is a 1942 black-and-white adventure film directed by Sidney Salkow and starring Glenn Ford and Claire Trevor. It is based on Jack London's novel ''Martin Eden'' (1909). Premise Martin Eden (Glenn Ford) wants ...

'' (1942), ''

Wake Island Wake Island ( mh, Ānen Kio, translation=island of the kio flower; also known as Wake Atoll) is a coral atoll in the western Pacific Ocean in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, east of Guam, west of Honolulu, southeast of T ...

'' (1942), ''

Manila Calling ''Manila Calling'' is a 1942 American black-and-white World War II propaganda war film drama from 20th Century Fox, produced by Sol M. Wurtzel, directed by Herbert I. Leeds, that stars Lloyd Nolan, Carole Landis, Cornel Wilde, James Gleason, ...

'' (1942), and he played a Filipino assassin in the 1942 film ''

Across the Pacific ''Across the Pacific'' is a 1942 American spy film set on the eve of the entry of the United States into World War II. It was directed first by John Huston, then by Vincent Sherman after Huston joined the United States Army Signal Corps. It sta ...

''. During World War II, Robles entered the U.S. Army and served in Australia, New Guinea and the

with the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, rising to the rank of first sergeant. After the war Robles was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Civil Affairs, where he contracted Filipino entertainers for the U.S. military. He returned to the U.S. and civilian life in February 1946.Deocampo, Nick ''Film: American Influences on Philippine Cinema'' Anvil Publishing, Incorporated, 9 Nov 2017 In addition to appearing in several Hollywood films such as ''

Nocturne A nocturne is a musical composition that is inspired by, or evocative of, the night. History The term ''nocturne'' (from French '' nocturne'' 'of the night') was first applied to musical pieces in the 18th century, when it indicated an ensembl ...

'' (1946), ''

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

'' (1947) (which starred

Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' attention in 1946 with her perform ...

and Fred MacMurray) and ''

Omoo-Omoo, the Shark God ''Omoo-Omoo the Shark God'' is a 1949 American exploitation film directed by Leon Leonard. Loosely based on the Herman Melville novel '' Omoo'', it is about the curses that befall a ship following the removal of pearls from an island shrine. The ...

'' (1949), Robles returned to the Philippines where he raised a family and started to produce, direct and star in his own films. One of his last on-screen appearances was in an episode of '' Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' in 1956.

Death

On 11 August 1970, Robles died in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

at the age of 60.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robles, Rudy 1910 births 1970 deaths People from Tacloban Male actors from Leyte (province) 20th-century Filipino male actors Filipino emigrants to the United States Filipino male film actors Filipino film directors Filipino film producers Filipino male television actors American military personnel of Filipino descent United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army officers