José Manuel Martín Pérez (24 May 1924 – 12 April 2006) was a Spanish film and television actor, radio broadcaster, and screenwriter. He was a popular
character actor
A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting character (arts), characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrie ...
in
Spanish cinema
The art of motion-picture making within Spain or by Spanish filmmakers abroad is collectively known as Spanish Cinema.
Only a small portion of box office sales in Spain are generated by domestic films. The different Spanish governments have t ...
during the 1950s and 60s, best remembered for playing villainous henchmen, appearing in more than 100 film and television productions.
Born in
Casavieja,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, Martín studied at
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
's Teatro Español Universitario and the
Lope de Rueda, and began working for
Radio Nacional de España
Radio Nacional de España (acronym RNE, branded rne, "National Radio of Spain") is the national Government-owned corporation, state-owned public service broadcasting, public service radio broadcaster in Spain.
RNE is the radio division and T ...
in 1942, before making his feature film debut in
César Fernández Ardavín's 1952 war drama ''La llamada de África'' starring Ali Beiba Uld Abidin, Yahadid Ben Ahmed Lehbib and Farachi Ben Emboiric.
Martín was particularly noted for his work in the
Spaghetti Western genre, alongside regulars such as
Aldo Sambrell and
Andrea Scotti
Andrea Scotti (27 August 1931 – 21 December 2003) was an Italian film and television actor.
Background
Born in Naples, Scotti attended at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome, graduating in 1956. During his career he was mainl ...
, with supporting roles in ''
Savage Guns'' (1961), ''
Gunfighters of Casa Grande'' (1964), ''
Minnesota Clay''(1964), ''
A Pistol for Ringo'' (1965), ''
Seven Dollars on the Red'' (1966), ''
Arizona Colt'' (1966), ''
A Bullet for the General'' (1966), ''
God Forgives... I Don't!'' (1967), ''
100 Rifles
''100 Rifles'' is a 1969 American Western film directed by Tom Gries and starring Jim Brown, Raquel Welch and Burt Reynolds. It is based on Robert MacLeod's 1966 novel ''The Californio''. The film was shot in Spain. The original music score w ...
'' (1969), and ''Cut-Throats Nine'' (1972). He also had memorable roles in EuroHorror films such as ''
The Castle of Fu Manchu'' (1969), ''The Sinister Eyes of Dr. Orloff'' (1973), ''
Count Dracula's Great Love'' (1974), and ''Curse of the Devil'' (1974).
Early life
José Manuel Martín Pérez was born on 24 May 1924 in
Casavieja,
Ávila
Ávila ( , , ) is a Spanish city located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Ávila.
It lies on the right bank of the Adaja river. Located more than 1,130 m a ...
,
Castilla y León
Castile, Castille or Castilla may refer to:
Places Spain
* Castile (historical region), a vaguely defined historical region of Spain covering most of Castile and León, all of the Community of Madrid and most of Castilla–La Mancha
* Kingdom o ...
,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. He initially studied at the Teatro Español Universitario in
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
with
José Luis López Vázquez, María Jesús Valdés and
Valeriano Andrés before obtaining a
scholarship
A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...
at the
Lope de Rueda. It was there that he started working in professional theater under
Alejandro Ulloa. Starting in 1942, he was also employed as a broadcaster for
Radio Nacional de España
Radio Nacional de España (acronym RNE, branded rne, "National Radio of Spain") is the national Government-owned corporation, state-owned public service broadcasting, public service radio broadcaster in Spain.
RNE is the radio division and T ...
. Martín eventually received a
bachelor degree
A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years (d ...
in
journalism
Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree of accuracy. The word, a noun, applies to the journ ...
.
Career
At age 28, Martín made his feature film debut in the war drama ''La llamada de África'' (1952), written and directed by
César Fernández Ardavín, and starred Ali Beiba Uld Abidin, Yahadid Ben Ahmed Lehbib and Farachi Ben Emboiric. This was followed by minor roles in Ángel Vilches' adventure film ''A dos grados del ecuador'' (1953), the
Luis Lucia
Luis Lucia Mingarro (24 May 1914, in Valencia – 12 March 1984, in Madrid) was a Spanish film director and screenwriter.
His father, Luis Lucia, was the Spanish minister of communications in 1935. He studied Law and was the attorney of ...
comedy ''Aeropuerto'' (1953), and
Rafael Gil
Rafael Gil (22 May 1913 – 10 July 1986) was a Spanish film director and screenwriter. His film ''La guerra de Dios'' (1953) won the Bronze Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1953 and also won best film and best director at the San Sebastián ...
's religious-themed historical dramas ''I Was a Parish Priest'' (1953) and ''Judas' Kiss'' (1954). He received his first supporting role, as Muñoz, in Gil's next film ''Murió hace quince años'' (1954) appearing alongside
Rafael Rivelles
Rafael Félix Rivelles Guillén (23 December 1898 — 3 December 1971) was a Spanish actor born in El Cabañal (El Cabanyal), a small town in the province of Valencia, Spain. Son of play actor José Rivelles and play actress Amparo Guillén, he ...
,
Francisco Rabal
Francisco Rabal Valera (8 March 1926 – 29 August 2001), popularly known as Paco Rabal, was a Spanish actor. His career spanned more than 200 film and television roles, between 1942 and 2001. He received numerous accolades both in Spain and abro ...
and
Lyla Rocco. He made two other films with Gil, ''La otra vida del capitán Contreras'' (1955) and ''El canto del gallo'' (1955), as well part of the supporting cast in
Javier Setó
Javier Setó (1926–1969) was a Spanish screenwriter and film director.
Selected filmography
* '' Forbidden Trade'' (1952)
* '' Bronze and Moon'' (1953)
* '' Bread, Love and Andalusia'' (1958)
* '' Pelusa'' (1960)
* ''The Castilian'' (1963)
* '' ...
's dramas ''Duelo de pasiones'' (1956) and ''Ha pasado un hombre'' (1956), Pedro Luis Ramírez's comedy ''Los ladrones somos gente honrada'' (1956), and José María Ochoa's ''La mestiza'' (1956). He appeared in one more film for Rafael Gil that same year, ''Miracle of the White Suit'' (1956), and landed an important supporting roles in ''
Spanish Affair'' (1957), co-directed by
Don Siegel
Donald Siegel ( ; October 26, 1912 – April 20, 1991) was an American film director and producer.
Siegel was described by ''The New York Times'' as "a director of tough, cynical and forthright action-adventure films whose taut plots centered o ...
and
Luis Marquina,
Sergio Corbucci
Sergio Corbucci (; 6 December 1926 – 1 December 1990) was an Italian film director, screenwriter and Film producer, producer. He was one of the main exponents of the Spaghetti Western genre during the 1960s and 1970s, with his most notable work ...
's ''Ángeles sin cielo'' (1957), and
Luis Buñuel
Luis Buñuel Portolés (; 22 February 1900 – 29 July 1983) was a Spanish and Mexican filmmaker who worked in France, Mexico and Spain. He has been widely considered by many film critics, historians and directors to be one of the greatest and ...
's ''
Viridiana
''Viridiana'' () is a 1961 Spanish-Mexican surrealist comedy-drama film directed by Luis Buñuel and produced by Gustavo Alatriste. It is loosely based on the 1895 novel ''Halma'' by Benito Pérez Galdós.
The film was the co-winner of the Pa ...
'' (1961).
[Krafsur, Richard P., ed. '' The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States: Feature Films, 1961-1970''. New York: R.R. Bowker, 1976. (pg. 131, 161, 412, 439, 708, 847, 1180) ] He also started working in television joining the cast of ''Diego Valor'' in 1958. Martín continued on in supporting roles for number of other films
then being shot in Almería and elsewhere.
Spaghetti Westerns
In the early-1960s,
Eurowesterns, which would evolve into the popular
Spaghetti Western
The spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's filmmaking style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...
s, were being shot in
Almería
Almería (, , ) is a city and municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, located in Andalusia. It is the capital of the province of Almería, province of the same name. It lies in southeastern Iberian Peninsula, Iberia on the Mediterranean S ...
. Martín was among a number of Spanish
character actors
A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014 ...
to find fame in this new genre. His background playing villains made him ideal for being cast as a Mexican bandit or henchman. Martín's prolific appearances made him was one of the most recognizable Spanish actors involved in the genre, rivaling those of fellow Spaghetti Western regulars such as
Aldo Sambrell and
Andrea Scotti
Andrea Scotti (27 August 1931 – 21 December 2003) was an Italian film and television actor.
Background
Born in Naples, Scotti attended at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome, graduating in 1956. During his career he was mainl ...
, and is considered one of the best villains of the era.
[Hughes, Howard. ''Once Upon a Time in the Italian West: The Filmgoers' Guide to Spaghetti Westerns''. London and New York: I.B. Tauris, 2006. ]
His first roles were in ''
Savage Guns''
[Fridlund, Bert. ''The Spaghetti Western: A Thematic Analysis''. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co., 2006. (pg. 76) ] and ''
Gunfighters of Casa Grande'' (1964), one of the genre's earliest films, and continued working at its height with memorable performances in ''
Bullets Don't Argue'' (1964),
''
Minnesota Clay''(1964), ''
A Pistol for Ringo'' (1965),
''
Seven Dollars on the Red'' (1966), ''
Arizona Colt'' (1966), ''
A Bullet for the General'' (1966),
''
Blood River'' (1967), ''I Want Him Dead'' (1968), ''
100 Rifles
''100 Rifles'' is a 1969 American Western film directed by Tom Gries and starring Jim Brown, Raquel Welch and Burt Reynolds. It is based on Robert MacLeod's 1966 novel ''The Californio''. The film was shot in Spain. The original music score w ...
'' (1969), ''
A Bullet for Sandoval'' (1969),
and into the "twilight" Spaghetti Westerns ''Bastard, Go and Kill'' (1971), ''Amigo, Stay Away'' (1972), and ''Cut-Throats Nine'' (1972). His last Italo-Western appearance, ''Amigo, Stay Away'', was an uncredited role as a peddler.
In between Spaghetti Westerns, Martín also had supporting roles in ''The Ceremony'' (1963),
''
Operation Atlantis'' (1965), ''
Fall of the Mohicans
''Fall of the Mohicans'' (/ ''Uncas, The End of a Race'', or ) is a 1965 Spanish-Italian historical western adventure film directed by Mateo Cano and starring Jack Taylor, Paul Muller and Sara Lezana. The film is based on James Fenimore Cooper ...
'' (1965), ''
Con el viento solano'' (1966), and ''
Bewitched Love'' (1967).
Later career
In the late-1960s and 70s, Martín starred in Spanish horror films such as ''
Sax Rohmer's The Castle of Fu Manchu'' (1969), ''The Sinister Eyes of Dr. Orloff'' (1973), ''
Count Dracula's Great Love'' (1974), and ''Curse of the Devil'' (1974). An author of numerous poems, he occasionally tried his hand at
screenwriting
Screenwriting or scriptwriting is the art and craft of writing scripts for mass media such as feature films, television productions or video games. It is often a freelance profession.
Screenwriters are responsible for researching the story, dev ...
. His first script was for
Rafael Romero Marchent
Rafael Romero Marchent (3 May 1926 – 13 February 2020) was a Spanish director, screenwriter and actor.
Life and career
Born in Madrid, the son of the author Joaquín Romero Marchent Gómez de Avellaneda, he started his career as an actor, mai ...
's ''The Student Connection'' (1974), co-written with
Luciano Ercoli
Luciano Ercoli (19 October 1929 – 15 March 2015) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, producer and unit production manager. Ercoli's career spanned approximately two decades before his retirement in the late 1970s, and saw him direct se ...
, José Luis Navarro, and Marchent.
Martín went into semi-retirement in the late-1970s. He made several guest appearances on the popular action-adventure television series ''Curro Jiménez'', starring
Sancho Gracia
Félix Ángel Sancho Gracia (27 September 1936 – 8 August 2012) was a Spanish motion picture and television actor.
Career
Born in Madrid, Gracia started his acting career in Montevideo, Uruguay, where he lived from 1947 until 1961. In Urugu ...
, in 1977. Other notable performances included supporting roles in
Alberto Vázquez Figueroa
Alberto is the Romance version of the Latinized form (''Albertus'') of Germanic '' Albert''. It is used in Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. The diminutive forms are ''Albertito'' in Spain or ''Albertico'' in some parts of Latin America, Albert ...
's ''
Oro rojo
Oro or ORO, meaning gold in Spanish and Italian, may refer to:
Music and dance
* Oro (dance), a Balkan circle dance
* Oro (eagle dance), an eagle dance from Montenegro and Herzegovina
* "Oro" (Mango song), 1984
* "Oro" (Jelena Tomašević so ...
'' (1978),
Mariano Ozores' comedy western ''
Al este del oeste'' (1984),
Jaime Camino
Jaime Camino (11 June 1936 – 4 December 2015) was a Spanish film director and screenwriter. He directed 16 films between 1962 and 2001. His 1976 film '' Long Vacations of 36'' was entered into the 26th Berlin International Film Festival. ...
's
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
film
A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...
''Dragón Rapide'' (1986), and the
Peter Lilienthal
Peter Lilienthal (27 November 1927 – 28 April 2023) was a German film director, writer, actor and producer. He is most associated with being a liberal director of New German Cinema in the 1970s.
Early life
As a child, in 1939, Lilienthal emig ...
sports film
A sports film is a film genre in which any particular sport plays a prominent role in the film's plot or acts as its central theme. It is a production in which a sport or a sports-related topic is prominently featured or is a focus of the plot. D ...
''Der Radfahrer von San Cristóbal'' (1988). His last regular film was an uncredited role in ''Montoyas y Tarantos'' (1989) followed by a final appearance in the crime-drama film ''Amor propio'' (1994) directed by
Mario Camus
Mario Camus García (20 April 1935 – 18 September 2021) was a Spanish film director and screenwriter. He won the Golden Bear at the 33rd Berlin International Film Festival with '' La colmena''. His 1987 film '' The House of Bernarda Alba'' ...
. He also wrote two more scripts during the decade: Ángel Martínez Astudillo
short film
A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...
''El pisito'' (1996) and the comedy ''Maestros'' (2000), which he co-wrote with director Óscar del Caz.
In the early-2000s, Martín made one-time guest appearances on television series ''Policías, en el corazón de la calle'' and ''Los Serrano''. He also had a cameo on
Dunia Ayaso and
Félix Sabroso's
dramady
Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, illness, betrayal, grief, etc.) ...
''Descongélate!'' (2003), starring
Pepón Nieto,
Candela Peña and
Loles León
María Dolores León Rodríguez (born 1 August 1950), better known as Loles León, is a Spanish actress.
Career
León travelled to Madrid to start a career as an actress, where she met Pedro Almodóvar during La Movida Madrileña. She has pla ...
.
Personal life and death
Martín died on 12 April 2006, at the age of 81.
Filmography
;As a screenwriter
Television
References
Further reading
*Frayling, Christopher. ''Spaghetti Westerns: Cowboys and Europeans from Karl May to Sergio Leone''. 2nd ed. London and New York: I.B. Tauris, 1998.
*Gasca, Luis. ''Un siglo de cine español''. Barcelona: Planeta, 1998.
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Jose Manuel
1924 births
2006 deaths
Male Spaghetti Western actors
People from Ávila, Spain
Spanish male film actors
Spanish male poets
Spanish male television actors
Spanish poets