Ricardo Montalban
Born: 1920-11-25 in Mexico City, Mexico
Died: 2009-01-14
Known For: Acting
Biography
Ricardo Gonzalo Pedro Montalbán y Merino (November 25, 1920 – January 14, 2009) was a Hispanic/Latin American actor. He had a career spanning seven decades (motion pictures from 1943 to 2006) across radio, television, theatre, and film. During the mid-1970s, Montalbán was most notable as the spokesman in automobile advertisements for the Chrysler Cordoba, in which he famously extolled the "soft Corinthian leather" used for its interior. He also advertised the Chrysler New Yorker. From 1977 to 1984, he became famous as Mr. Roarke the main star in the television series Fantasy Island. He played Khan Noonien Singh in both the 1967 episode "Space Seed" of the first season of the original Star Trek series, and the 1982 film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. He won an Emmy Award in 1978 for his role in the mini series How the West Was Won and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild in 1993. Into his 80s, he continued to perform, often providing voices for animated films and commercials, and appearing in several Spy Kids films as Grandfather Valentin.
Filmography
2025
- I Know Catherine, the Log Lady as Self (archive footage)
2018
- Star Trek: Short Treks as Khan (voice) (archive footage)
2009
2006
- The Ant Bully as Head of Council (voice)
2005
- American Dad! as General Juanito Pequeño (voice)
2003
- Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over as Grandfather
2002
- Kim Possible as Señor Senior Sr. (voice)
- Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams as Grandfather
2000
- Buzz Lightyear of Star Command as Vartkes (voice)
- Titans
1999
- Family Guy as The Cow (voice)
- Laurindo Almeida, Muito Prazer as Self
1998
- Behind the Planet of the Apes as Self
- Love Boat: The Next Wave as Manuel Kaire
1997
1995
- Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child as King Carlos (voice)
- Freakazoid! as Armondo Guitierrez (voice)
1994
- Chicago Hope
- That's Entertainment! III as (archive footage)
- Heaven Help Us
1992
- The Golden Palace as Lawrence Gentry
1991
1990
- Dream On as Alejandro Goldman
1989
1988
- The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! as Vincent Ludwig
1986
- American Masters as Self
1985
- The Colbys as Zach Powers
1984
- Murder, She Wrote as Vaclav Maryska
- Cannonball Run II as King
- Fatima as Himself
1983
- All-Star Party for Frank Sinatra as Self
1982
- Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan as Khan Noonien Singh
1981
- Dynasty
- Space For Women as Self - Narrator
1979
- B. J. and the Bear
- Where Dreams Come True as Narrator
1978
- Fantasy Island as Mr. Roarke
- Return to Fantasy Island as Mr. Roarke
- NBC Salutes the 25th Anniversary of the Wonderful World of Disney as Self
- The Magic of David Copperfield
- El asalto al castillo de la Moncloa as Felipe (archive footage)
1977
- Captains Courageous as Manuel
- Fantasy Island as Mr. Roarke
- Mission to Glory: A True Story as General Lafuente
1976
- Joe Panther as Turtle George
- McNaughton's Daughter as Dist. Atty. Charles Quintero
- Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood as Silent Film Star
1975
- Switch as Jean-Paul
1974
- Wonder Woman as Abner Smith
- The Mark of Zorro as Captain Esteban
1973
- Police Story
- The Train Robbers as The Pinkerton Man
- Fade In as Himself
- Griff
- Mustang as Narrator (voice)
- St. Augustine: The Oldest City as (Self) Narrator
1972
- Conquest of the Planet of the Apes as Armando
- Fireball Forward as Jean Duval
1971
- Columbo as Luis Montoya
- Escape from the Planet of the Apes as Armando
- Nichols as Colonel Diego Alcazar
- The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
- Sarge: The Badge or the Cross as Al Matteo
- The Face of Fear as Sergeant Frank Ortega
- Sentinels of Silence
1970
- The Aquarians as Dr. Luis Delgado
- The Deserter as Natachai
- Dan August
- Black Water Gold as Alejandro Zayas
1969
- Marcus Welby, M.D. as Rick Rivera
- Sweet Charity as Vittorio
- Bracken's World
- The Pigeon as John Stambler / Kane
- The Desperate Mission as Joaquin Murieta
1968
- Hawaii Five-O as Tokura
- The Name of the Game
- Blue as Ortega
- Here's Lucy as Prince Phillip Gregory
- It Takes a Thief as Nick Grobbo
- Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In as Self
- The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show as Self
- Sol Madrid as Jalisco
1967
- Ironside
- The Carol Burnett Show as Self
- The High Chaparral as El Tigre
- Code Name: Heraclitus as Janacek
- The Longest Hundred Miles as Father Sanchez
1966
- Star Trek as Khan Noonien Singh
- Mission: Impossible as Gerard Sefra
- Felony Squad
- Madame X as Phil Benton
- The Singing Nun as Father Clementi
- Alice Through the Looking Glass as The White King
1965
- The Wild Wild West
- The Money Trap as Pete Delanos
- The Long, Hot Summer
1964
- Daniel Boone as Count Alfonso De Borba
- The Fantasticks as El Gallo
- The Man from U.N.C.L.E. as Satine
- Cheyenne Autumn as Little Wolf
- The Rogues
- Slattery's People
- ¡Buenas noches, año nuevo! as Fernando
1963
- Burke's Law as Nicholas Amenor
- Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre
- The Great Adventure as Philip Crow
- The Lieutenant
- The Greatest Show on Earth
- Love Is a Ball as Duke Gaspard Ducluzeau
1962
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson as Self
- The Virginian as Enrique Cuellar
- Combat! as Barbu
- The Merv Griffin Show as Self
- Hemingway’s Adventures of a Young Man as Major Padula
- The Reluctant Saint as Don Raspi
- The Lloyd Bridges Show
1961
- The Mike Douglas Show as Self - Co-Host
- Dr. Kildare as Damon West
- Ben Casey
- The Defenders as 'Spanish John' Espejo
- Cain's Hundred as Vincent Pavanne
- The Dick Powell Show as Stephen Baird
- Rage of the Buccaneers as Captain Gordon, the Black Buccaneer
- Alcoa Premiere
1960
- Checkmate
- Let No Man Write My Epitaph as Louie Ramponi
- Play of the Week: Rashomon as Bandit Tasmoro
1959
- Bonanza as Matsou
- Adventures in Paradise as Captain Henri Privaux
- Riverboat as Lt. Devereaux
- Play of the Week
1958
- The Dick Clark Show as Self
1957
- Sayonara as Nakamura
- Desert Warrior as Prince Said
- Child of Trouble as Teddy Green
1956
- The Dinah Shore Chevy Show as Self
- Three for Jamie Dawn as George Lorenz
1955
- Gunsmoke as Chato
- Alfred Hitchcock Presents as Tony Lorca
- The 20th Century Fox Hour
- A Life in the Balance as Antonio Gómez
1954
- Climax! as Pete McLean
- The Queen of Babylon as Amal
- Untouched as Federico Vascon
- The Saracen Blade as Pietro Donati
- The Wonderful World of Disney
1953
- Sombrero as Pepe Gonzales
- Letter to Loretta as Self - Guest Host / Gino
- General Electric Theater as Esteban Espinosa
- Latin Lovers as Roberto Santos
1952
- My Man and I as Chu Chu Ramirez
- The Million Dollar Nickel as Himself
1951
- Across the Wide Missouri as Ironshirt
- The Mark of the Renegade as Marcos Zappa
- Hallmark Hall of Fame as El Gallo
- Schlitz Playhouse of Stars as Pietro
1950
- What's My Line? as Self
- Right Cross as Johnny Monterez
- Two Weeks with Love as Demi Armendez
- Mystery Street as Peter Moralas
- Star Time as Self
1949
- Battleground as Roderigues
- Border Incident as Pablo Rodriguez
- Neptune's Daughter as Jose O'Rourke
1948
- The Ed Sullivan Show as Self
- On an Island with You as Ricardo Montalban
- The Kissing Bandit as Fiesta Specialty Dancer
1947
- Fantasía ranchera
- Fiesta as Mario Morales
1946
- Pepita Jimenez as Luis Vargas
1945
- Nosotros as Armando Suárez
- La casa de la zorra
- Cadetes de la naval
- The Hour of Truth
1944
- La Fuga as Teniente
1943
- Santa as Jarameño
- Cinco fueron escogidos
1942
- The Three Musketeers as (uncredited)