John Leguizamo facts for kids

Quick facts for kids John Leguizamo
Leguizamo in 2014
Born	John Alberto Leguizamo Peláez (1960-07-22) July 22, 1960 (age 64) or (1964-07-22) July 22, 1964 (age 60) Bogotá, Colombia
Citizenship	Colombia United States
Occupation	Actor comedian producer screenwriter
Years active	1984–present
Spouse(s)	Yelba Osorio ​ ​ (m. 1994; div. 1996)​ Justine Maurer ​ (m. 2003)​
Children	2
Comedy career
Medium	Film stand-up television
Genres	Improvisational comedy observational comedy character comedy musical comedy satire
Subject(s)	Latin American culture childhood self-deprecation family parenting race relations racism everyday life

John Leguizamo (born July 22, 1960 or 1964) is a famous American comedian, actor, and film producer. He has been in over 100 movies and many TV shows. He is also known for his stand-up comedy and for writing and performing on Broadway.

Some of his most famous roles include Luigi Mario in Super Mario Bros. and the drag queen Chi-Chi Rodriguez in To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar. He also voiced Sid the Sloth in the Ice Age movies and Bruno Madrigal in Disney's Encanto. John Leguizamo has won many awards, including a Primetime Emmy Award and a special Tony Award.

Growing Up and School

John Leguizamo was born in Bogotá, Colombia, on July 22, 1960. His parents are Luz Marina Peláez and Alberto Rudolfo Leguizamo. His father once wanted to be a film director.

When John was three years old, his family moved to New York City. They lived in different parts of Queens, like Jackson Heights. Growing up, he learned to be funny to deal with tough situations. His parents divorced when he was 13. He lived with his mother and moved apartments often.

John went to Joseph Pulitzer Middle School and Murry Bergtraum High School. In high school, he wrote comedy jokes and tried them out on his friends. He was even voted "Most Talkative"! After high school, he started studying theater at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. He later left college to focus on becoming a stand-up comedian. He also took theater classes at LIU Post and HB Studio.

Discovering His Family History

Through a TV show called Finding Your Roots, John learned more about his family history. He found out his family is from Colombia. His ancestors include Indigenous, European, and some African roots. His great-great-grandfather, Higinio Cualla, was the Mayor of Bogotá for 16 years. He helped modernize the city in the late 1800s.

His Amazing Career

Starting Out in Comedy and Acting

John Leguizamo began his career as a stand-up comedian in New York City in 1984. He also performed in plays, like A Midsummer Night's Dream. His first TV role was in Miami Vice in 1986. He appeared in Madonna's "Borderline" music video. Some of his early movie roles include Die Hard 2 (1990) and Regarding Henry (1991). He became well-known for playing Luigi Mario in Super Mario Bros. and Benny Blanco in Carlito's Way, both in 1993.

Voice Acting and More Roles

In 2000, John played both Genies in the TV mini-series Arabian Nights. In 2001, he released a CD called John Leguizamo LIVE, which had his comedy routines. He also appeared on a celebrity episode of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? to promote his movie Moulin Rouge! (2001).

A big voice role for him was Sid the Sloth in the movie Ice Age (2002). He continued to voice Sid in all the Ice Age sequels. He also voiced Globox in the video game Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc. In 2004, he was a guest voice on Dora the Explorer.

From 2005 to 2006, John joined the TV show ER as Dr. Victor Clemente. In 2008, he was in the movie The Happening. He also appeared on Sesame Street as Captain Vegetable, teaching Elmo about eating vegetables.

On Stage and Screen

In 2010, John Leguizamo started his one-man theater show called Klass Klown, later renamed Ghetto Klown. This show was based on his own life story. It was very popular and even came to Broadway in 2011. The show received great reviews and won awards. A documentary about his life and the show, Tales From a Ghetto Klown, came out in 2012.

In 2014, John starred with Jon Favreau in the movie Chef. He played a line cook named Martin. He even worked as a real line cook to prepare for the role! He also appeared in the action movie John Wick in 2014 and its sequel John Wick: Chapter 2 in 2017.

In 2015, his Ghetto Klown show was turned into a graphic novel. It shared his life story, from growing up in Queens to his movie career. In 2016, he was in the Netflix series Bloodline.

Recent Work and Awards

In 2017, John sang on "Almost Like Praying", a song to help people in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. In 2018, he received a special Tony Award for his amazing work and for bringing diverse stories to Broadway.

He played an undercover agent in the miniseries Waco (2018). In 2019, he was in the Netflix series When They See Us. He also wrote a musical called Kiss My Aztec, which was very well-received.

In 2020, John directed his first movie, Critical Thinking. He also starred in it, playing a teacher who helps students compete in a chess championship. He wanted the movie to share a message of hope. In 2021, he voiced Bruno Madrigal in Disney's hit animated movie Encanto. In 2022, he was in the movie The Menu and the Christmas action comedy Violent Night.

In 2023, he hosted the MSNBC series Leguizamo Does America. He also briefly hosted The Daily Show.

Personal Life

John Leguizamo was married to actress Yelba Osorio from 1994 to 1996.

He married Justine Maurer, a costume designer, on June 28, 2003. They have two children: a daughter named Allegra Sky (born 1999) and a son named Ryder Lee (born 2000). They live in Manhattan.

John has received many honors, including the Made in NY Award in 2011. In 2018, he received an Honorary Degree from Marymount Manhattan College.

Standing Up for What's Right

John Leguizamo is an activist who uses his voice to support important causes. In 2004, he supported Voto Latino, an organization that encourages Latino people to vote. In 2012, he helped start NGL Collective to create content for Latinx audiences.

He has also spoken out against Hollywood's whitewashing, which is when actors who are not from a certain background are cast in roles that should go to people from that background. For example, he spoke about how actors who are not Latino were cast as Italian-American characters in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. He believes that Latino actors should be better represented in movies and TV shows.

John is also a strong supporter of LGBTQ+ rights.

Selected Movies and TV Shows

Movies

Some of his movies:

TV Shows

Some of his TV shows:

Theater Shows

Awards and Nominations

Images for kids

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  Leguizamo at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival

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  Leguizamo at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival

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  Leguizamo at the Chicago Theatre in 2014

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  Leguizamo in 2013

See also

In Spanish: John Leguizamo para niños