Ivonne Coll Mendoza (born June 18, 1947) is a Puerto Rican actress. She was

Miss Puerto Rico Miss Puerto Rico is a national beauty pageant in Puerto Rico. Currently, there are two separate televised pageants held annually: Miss Universe Puerto Rico to select the representative for Miss Universe and Miss Mundo de Puerto Rico to select t ...

in 1967 and competed in the

Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by a United States and Thailand based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stre ...

pageant the same year. She later became an actress, appearing in films such as ''

The Godfather Part II ''The Godfather Part II'' is a 1974 American epic crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film is partially based on the 1969 novel ''The Godfather'' by Mario Puzo, who co-wrote the screenplay with Coppola. ''Part II'' s ...

'' and '' Lean on Me'' and television series including '' Switched at Birth'', ''

Glee Glee means delight, a form of happiness. Glee may also refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 30 ...

'', and ''

Teen Wolf ''Teen Wolf'' is a 1985 American coming-of-age romantic fantasy comedy film directed by Rod Daniel and written by Jeph Loeb and Matthew Weisman. Michael J. Fox stars as the title character, a high school student whose ordinary life is chang ...

''. From 2014 to 2019, Coll starred as Alba Villanueva in the CW comedy-drama series ''

Jane the Virgin ''Jane the Virgin'' is an American romantic comedy-drama and satirical telenovela developed by Jennie Snyder Urman. The series premiered October 13, 2014, on The CW and concluded on July 31, 2019. It is a loose adaptation of the Venezuelan t ...

''.

Early years

Coll was born on June 18, 1947 in

Fajardo, Puerto Rico Fajardo (, ) is a town and municipality -Fajardo Combined Statistical Area. Fajardo is the hub of much of the recreational boating in Puerto Rico and a popular launching port to Culebra, Vieques, and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. It is ...

, where she received her primary and secondary education. Her mother, Rosita Mendoza, was a celebrated hairstylist in Puerto Rico. She also has a sister, Millie. After Coll was born, her father left Puerto Rico for

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, leaving Coll and her mother behind. When Coll was 10, she and her family moved to the capital of

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

, San Juan; they lived in the

Río Piedras Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

and

Hato Rey Hato Rey is a former barrio located in the northwest part of the dissolved municipality of Río Piedras. It now stretches over three barrios, of the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico: Urban landscape Its name means "king's cattle farm" (' ...

municipalities of the city. Coll was an honor student and graduated from Nuestra Señora del Pilar school. She then enrolled in the

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...

( Universidad de Puerto Rico) where she studied

Social Sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...

. Coll started her career as a

fashion model A model is a person with a role either to promote, display or advertise commercial products (notably fashion clothing in fashion shows) or to serve as a visual aid for people who are creating works of art or to pose for photography. Thoug ...

. In 1966, she represented

Fajardo Fajardo (, ) is a town and municipality -Fajardo Combined Statistical Area. Fajardo is the hub of much of the recreational boating in Puerto Rico and a popular launching port to Culebra, Vieques, and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. It is ...

in the

pageant and won. Coll remained the only representative from Fajardo to win the national title until Ashley Cariño won in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...

Career

1971–1975: ''Una chica llamada Ivonne Coll''

At the end of 1971, the owner of television channel 11 in Puerto Rico,

Rafael Perez Perry Rafael may refer to: * Rafael (given name) or Raphael, a name of Hebrew origin * Rafael, California * Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Israeli manufacturer of weapons and military technology * Hurricane Rafael, a 2012 hurricane Fiction * ''R ...

spotted Coll. His competitor had a show with a young starlet by the name of

Iris Chacón Iris Belia Chacón Tapia (born March 7, 1950 in San Juan, Puerto Rico) is a Puerto Rican dancer, singer, actress, and entertainer. She enjoys great popularity in Puerto Rico (where she had a weekly variety show for more than a decade) and in o ...

. Perez Perry believed that Coll could have a show of her own to compete. Therefore, he sponsored the show which was called ''Una chica llamada Ivonne Coll'' (''A girl named Ivonne Coll''), which ran from 1971 to 1975. In 1976, Coll moved to

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, where she took dance and singing classes in the Academy of Stage and Cinema Arts. She landed a part in a theater play called "Burning Beach", which was presented in the American Place Theater.

Career in the United States

In 1979, Coll moved back to New York, where she participated in various Off Broadway productions such as: ''Spain 1980'', '' As You Like It'', '' Romeo and Juliet'', and '' Macbeth''. In New York, film director Francis Ford Coppola recruited her for the role of "Yolanda", a

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

night club singer in ''

The Godfather II ''The Godfather Part II'' is a 1974 American epic crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film is partially based on the 1969 novel ''The Godfather'' by Mario Puzo, who co-wrote the screenplay with Coppola. ''Part II'' s ...

''. Although her role was small, the experience would serve her well in the future. She was credited as "Yvonne Coll". In 1989, Coll played a minor role of a teacher named ''Mrs. Santos'', in the film '' Lean on Me'' written by Michael Schiffer, directed by

John G. Avildsen John Guilbert Avildsen (December 21, 1935 – June 16, 2017) was an American film director. He is perhaps best known for directing ''Rocky'' (1976), which earned him the Academy Award for Best Director, and the first three ''The Karate Kid'' fil ...

and starring Morgan Freeman. She participated in the following productions: ''Orinoco'', ''The Masses Are Asses'' (a play by

Pedro Pietri Pedro Pietri (March 21, 1944 – March 3, 2004) was a Nuyorican poet and playwright and one of the co-founders of the Nuyorican Movement. He was considered by some as the poet laureate of the Nuyorican Movement. Early years Pietri was born i ...

), ''Medio Comuñas'', ''Goodbye Castro'', and ''Pancho Diablo'' (with

Fernando Allende Luis Fernando Allende Arenas (born November 10, 1952) is a Mexican singer, actor, painter, film producer, and film director. Early life Allende was born in Mexico. His father is Mexican, and his mother is from Cuba. Allende's grandfather on his f ...

and

Sully Diaz Sully may refer to: * Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger (born 1951), American pilot notable for landing his disabled airliner on the Hudson ** ''Sully'' (film), a 2016 film by Clint Eastwood about Sullenberger Places France * Sully, Calvados, commu ...

). Coll won an

ACE Award The CableACE Award (earlier known as the ACE Awards; ACE was an acronym for "Award for Cable Excellence") is a defunct award that was given by what was then the National Cable Television Association from 1978 to 1997 to honor excellence in Ame ...

for best actress for ''Orinoco''. When not acting, Coll attended the

HB Studio The HB Studio (Herbert Berghof Studio) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization offering professional training in the performing arts through classes, workshops, free lectures, theater productions, theater rentals, a theater artist residency progra ...

and

Lee Strasberg Lee Strasberg (born Israel Strassberg; November 17, 1901 – February 17, 1982) was an American theatre director, actor and acting teacher. He co-founded, with theatre directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931 ...

's Acting Studio. Among the television series on which she appeared were: '' Pacific Blue'', ''

Crisis Center ''Crisis Center'' is an American drama television series that aired on NBC from February 28 until April 4, 1997. Premise The series revolve around a crisis center in San Francisco where they deal with suicidal callers, hostage situations and mot ...

'', ''

An American Family ''An American Family'' is an American television documentary series that followed the life of a California family in the early 1970s. Widely referred to as the first example of an American reality TV show, the series drew millions of weekly vie ...

'', ''

The Bold and the Beautiful ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' (often referred to as ''B&B'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. It premiered on March 23, 1987, as a sister show to the Bells' other soap opera ''The Yo ...

'', '' Chicago Hope'', ''

Malibu Shores ''Malibu Shores'' is an American primetime teen drama/soap opera that aired on Saturday Night at 8:00PM EST from March to June 1996 for ten episodes on NBC. Created by Aaron Spelling and starring Keri Russell and Tony Lucca, the program followe ...

'', '' NYPD Blue'', ''

L.A. Law ''L.A. Law'' is an American legal drama television series that ran for eight seasons on NBC, from September 15, 1986, to May 19, 1994. Created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher, it centers on the partners, associates and staff of a Los ...

'', and '' Under Cover''.

Return to Puerto Rico

When Coll returned to Puerto Rico, she was invited to participate in ''La verdadera historia de Pedro Navaja'' and ''Paper Flowers''. She had a role in the locally produced film, ''La gran Fiesta'' (''The Grand Party''), and in the TV show ''Cuqui''. In 2002, she appeared in the film ''Besos de Fuego''. In October 2006, Coll played the title role in Bertolt Brecht's ''Mother Courage'' at the Berkeley Rep Theater in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and E ...

. From 2011 to 2014, she had the recurring roles on '' Switched at Birth'', ''

'', and ''

''. Beginning in the fall of 2014, Coll become part of the main cast as Alba Villanueva, grandmother of Jane Villanueva, in the CW comedy series, ''

''. In 2015, Coll was honored by the organizers of the

National Puerto Rican Day Parade The Puerto Rican Day Parade (also known as the National Puerto Rican Day Parade) takes place annually in the United States along Fifth Avenue in the Manhattan borough of New York City. The parade is held on the second Sunday in June, in honor ...

with a lifetime achievement award for her long and varied career. In 2019, Coll moved back permanently to Puerto Rico.

Personal life

Coll has never married and has no children.

Filmography

Film

Television

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Coll, Ivonne 1947 births Living people People from Fajardo, Puerto Rico 20th-century Puerto Rican actresses 21st-century Puerto Rican actresses Miss Puerto Rico winners Miss Universe 1967 contestants 20th-century Puerto Rican women singers Puerto Rican film actresses Puerto Rican people of Irish descent Puerto Rican soap opera actresses Puerto Rican stage actresses Puerto Rican television actresses University of Puerto Rico alumni