Pedro Armendariz

[COP11]

Pedro Armendáriz (May 9, 1912 – June 18, 1963) was a Mexican actor of the cinema of Mexico and Hollywood.

Early life

Born Pedro Gregorio Armendáriz Hastings in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico to Pedro Armendáriz García-Conde (Mexican) and Adela Hastings (American). He was also the cousin of actress Gloria Marín. Armendáriz lived with his parents in Texas and studied in California, where he graduated with an engineering degree from the California Polytechnic State University.

Career

When Armendáriz finished his studies, he moved to Mexico where he worked for the railroad, as a tour guide and as a journalist for the bilingual magazine México Real. He was discovered by film director Miguel Zacarías when Armendáriz recited the soliloquy from Hamlet to an American tourist. He obtained his first role in a movie at the age of 22 and after that he made many films in Mexico, the United States, France, Italy and England. Under the direction of Emilio Fernandez, and with Dolores del Río, represented to the Mexican Cinema in all the world. He received a Silver Ariel Award in 1948 in the category of Best Actor for his role in La Perla and another in 1952 for El Rebozo de Soledad. In 1947, he was the recipient of a Special Ariel for his works.

Armendáriz's last appearance was in the second James Bond film, From Russia with Love (1963) as Bond's ally, Kerim Bey. His son Pedro Armendáriz Jr. is also an actor, who appeared in the James Bond film Licence to Kill in 1989.

However, he was terminally ill with cancer during the filming of From Russia with Love, and towards the end of shooting he was too ill to perform his part, so his final scenes were performed by his double, director Terence Young.

Later life and death

In 1954, Armendáriz had a role in the film The Conqueror produced by Howard Hughes. This movie was filmed in the state of Utah during the time when the US government ran nuclear tests in the neighboring state of Nevada. 91 of the 220 people involved in the production of the film contracted cancer within 25 years, and 46 of these died as a consequence of this illness. However, in rebuttal, Pilar Wayne later wrote in her autobiography that she did not believe radiation was involved in the deaths of those associated with this film. She mentioned she had visited the set many times as had others and not become sick. Wayne said she believed the real cause of her husband's John's death and the others was their smoking and nothing else.

Armendáriz began to suffer pain in his hips and years later it was discovered that he had cancer in these regions. He learned his condition was terminal while at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. He reportedly acted in From Russia with Love while enduring great pain (he visibly limps in most scenes) in order to leave behind financial resources for his family after his impending death. On June 18, 1963, rather than waste away under the haze of pain medication, he took his own life by firing a bullet into his heart from a gun which he had smuggled into the hospital.

untitled.bmp

untitled.bmp