Stephen Antonio Cardenas (born May 29, 1974) is an American

martial artist Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

, musician, and

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

. Cardenas is best known for playing the character Rocky DeSantos, which was the second Red Power Ranger in ''

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ''Mighty Power Rangers'' (''MMPR'') is a superhero television series that premiered on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Kids programming block. It is the first entry of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, and became a 1990s pop culture phenomenon along ...

'' and eventually became the Blue Zeo Ranger in ''

Power Rangers Zeo ''Power Rangers Zeo'' is a television series and the fourth season of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, based on the 19th Super Sentai series ''Chouriki Sentai Ohranger''. It is the continuation of ''Mighty Morphin Power Rangers'', which aired in ...

'', two seasons later.

Early life

Cardenas was born Stephen Antonio Cardenas on May 29, 1974 in

Hampton, Virginia Hampton () is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 137,148. It is the List ...

, at the Langley Air Force Base. Spending his early childhood as a

military brat A military brat ( colloquial or military slang) is a child of serving or retired military personnel. Military brats are associated with a unique subcultureDavid C. Pollock, Ruth E. van Reken. ''Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds'', Rev ...

, Cardenas was raised in

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. He is of Puerto Rican and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

ancestry. He started training in martial arts when he was about 12 years old and reached black belt in

Taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...

at age 16. Steve Cardenas has been in martial arts for 28 years. He earned 5th degree black belt in Taekwondo and a black belt in

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

Career

At age 20, Cardenas left his native Texas and settled in

Los Angeles 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' ...

to audition for a ''

'' role that would change his life. His character, Rocky DeSantos, replaced

Jason Lee Scott Jason Lee Scott is a fictional character and the main protagonist in the '' Power Rangers'' franchise, played by actor Austin St. John. Jason is known as the original Red Ranger from the first entry of the franchise, ''Mighty Morphin Power Rang ...

as the Red Ranger in the ''Mighty Morphin Power Rangers'' TV series, and later became the Blue Zeo Ranger for ''

''. He had no previous acting experience and had to learn on the job. Cardenas left the ''Power Rangers'' series and retired from acting during ''

Power Rangers Turbo ''Power Rangers Turbo'' is a television series and the fifth season of the Power Rangers franchise. The show was prefaced with the franchise's second film, '' Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie''. As with its predecessors, ''Power Rangers Turbo'' is ...

'', due to contract disagreements, and possibly to focus on his martial arts career. Many years later, starting at the 2007 Power Morphicon convention, he began making convention appearances with other former cast members. After ''

Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an entertainment and merchandising franchise built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. Produced first by Saban Entertainment, second by BVS Entert ...

'', he owns a

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

studio in Burbank, California and one in his hometown of San Antonio. In 2009, he started a kids-specific program at Hollywood

studio in West Hollywood, and in 2011 he opened the Force/Balance

Yoga Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...

school. Cardenas had become interested in

after losing a friendly match against "a blue belt in BJJ... echoked me out in 10 seconds! He was only training for a year and a half at that time and I had been training for 10 yrs. It was an immediate eye opener." The style was more difficult for him to learn than other martial arts disciplines.
/ref> He holds multiple awards from martial arts contests, including two Silver Medals at Copa Pacifica (2009 and 2011), Gold Medal winner of the 2009 American National Championship, Gold Medal in the 2010 Jujitsu Pro Gear Open, and Silver Medal in the 2010 No-Gi World Championships. In 2017, he starred in the short movie ''The Order'' alongside

Austin St. John Jason Lawrence Geiger (born September 17, 1974), professionally known as Austin St. John, is an American actor, martial artist, and paramedic best known for his portrayal of Jason Lee Scott in the ''Power Rangers'' franchise. Early life Austin S ...

Catherine Sutherland Catherine Jane Sutherland (born 24 October 1974) is an Australian actress. She is known for her portrayal of Kat Hillard, the second Pink Power Ranger and later, the Pink Zeo Ranger and the first Pink Turbo Ranger in the ''Power Rangers'' telev ...

David Yost David Harold Yost (; born January 7, 1969) is an American actor and producer. He is best known for portraying Billy Cranston in '' Mighty Morphin Power Rangers'', '' Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie'', ''Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers'' ...

Johnny Yong Bosch Johnny Yong Bosch (born January 6, 1976) is an American actor, musician, singer, and martial artist. His first major role was the portrayal of Adam Park, the second Black Power Ranger and later, the Green Zeo Ranger and first Green Turbo Ranger i ...

Paul Schrier Paul Schrier II (born June 1, 1970) is an American actor, director, and artist. He is known for his role of Farkas "Bulk" Bulkmeier in the ''Power Rangers'' series. He portrayed the character for seven seasons from 1993–1999, returning in 2 ...

Karan Ashley Karan Ashley Jackson, better known as Karan Ashley, is an American actress, singer, and talk show host. She is best known as Aisha Campbell, the second Yellow Power Ranger in the Fox Kids series ''Mighty Morphin Power Rangers''. In 1992, she was ...

Walter Emanuel Jones Walter Emanuel Jones (born November 30, 1970) is an American actor, martial artist and dancer, known for playing the role of Zack Taylor, the original Black Ranger on the hit television series ''Mighty Morphin Power Rangers''. He also appeared in ...

Erin Cahill Erin Jessica Cahill (born January 4, 1980) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Jen Scotts in ''Power Rangers Time Force'', Ted Mosby's sister Heather in '' How I Met Your Mother'', and Kendra Burke in '' Saving Grace''. S ...

Blake Foster Blake Anthony Foster (born May 29, 1985) is an American actor and martial artist. History Foster was the ''Huggies'' baby at the age of 16 months in 1986. In 1995, he was one of the stars in the movie '' Above Suspicion'' starring Christop ...

Nakia Burrise Nakia Burrise (born October 21, 1974) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Tanya Sloan, the Yellow Zeo Ranger and later, the first Yellow Turbo Ranger on the television series ''Power Rangers Zeo'' and ''Power Rangers Turbo'' ...

Hilary Shepard Turner Hilary Shepard (born Hilary Shapiro on December 10, 1959), alternately billed as Hilary Shepard-Turner, is an American actress and singer. She began her career in the mid 1980s, as co-lead singer and percussionist in the girl group American Girls ...

, Dan Southworth, Alyson Sullivan, Deborah Estelle Phillips and Azim Rizk.The Order on plugou.com
/ref> For the first time since ''Power Rangers Turbo'', Cardenas returned to the Power Rangers Franchise in ''

Power Rangers Super Ninja Steel ''Power Rangers Ninja Steel'' is the twenty-fourth season of the television program ''Power Rangers''. The season was produced primarily using footage, costumes, and props from Japanese 39th Super Sentai series ''Shuriken Sentai Ninninger'' wit ...

'' for the 25th anniversary Episode reprising his role as Rocky DeSantos.

Filmography

References

External links

*
Steve Cardenas
on

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Forcebalancebjj.comNo Pink Spandex

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cardenas, Steve 1974 births 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male actors of Mexican descent American male film actors American male taekwondo practitioners American male television actors American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Hispanic and Latino American male actors Living people Male actors from Virginia Musicians from Hampton, Virginia