# Rubens de Falco

Rubens de Falco da Costa (October 19, 1931 – August 22, 2008) was a Brazilian actor best known for his work in telenovelas, specifically his portrayal as a slave owner in the 1976 telenovela, Escrava Isaura (The Slave Isaura) and the 1986 telenovela Sinhá Moça (Little Missy).

## Career

De Falco was born in São Paulo, Brazil on October 19, 1931. He began his acting career in the local theater. In 1955, he joined the group "Os Jograis", of São Paulo, and performed beside such actors as Ruy Afonso, Italo Rossi and Felipe Wagner. He made his cinema debut in 1952 in the film Apassionata, for the Companhia Cinematográfica Vera Cruz.
In television, he had prominent parts in telenovelas such as O Rei dos Ciganos (1967), A Rainha Louca (1967), O Passo dos Ventos (1968), Gabriela (1975), O Grito (1975), Escrava Isaura (1976), Dona Xepa (1977), A Sucessora (1978) and Sinhá Moça (1986).
Perhaps his best-known work came in 1976, when he portrayed the cruel villain Leôncio Almeida, a powerful farm owner and ruthless slave owner in the telenovela Escrava Isaura. De Falco's character, Leôncio Almeida, fell in love with one of his slaves, played by Brazilian actress Lucélia Santos.
Escrava Isaura was extremely well received globally and became a hit in Africa, Eastern Europe and Latin America. Escrava Isaura was the first soap opera ever broadcast in Poland and the Soviet Union and became the first television series to air in China with foreign actors in the lead role. Rubens de Falco, who played Leôncio Almeida as one of his trademark villains, was called "the great villain of Brazilian television drama" by Lucélia Santos.
He again portrayed a powerful farm owner and ruthless slave owner, the cruel villain Baron de Araruna in the 1986 telenovela, Sinhá Moça alongside Lucélia Santos who starred this time as his rebellious daughter.
De Falco's last television role was as Almeida in 2004 in the Rede Record remake of A Escrava Isaura, and his last film role was as Deputado Ernesto Alves in 2008 in Fim da Linha.

## Death

Rubens de Falco died on February 22, 2008, of heart failure at the CIAI Center for the Aged in São Paulo, Brazil. He was not married and left no descendants.

## Filmography
### On television

| Year | Title | Role | Broadcaster |
| 1961 | Maria Antonieta | | TV Cultura |
| 1966 | O Rei dos Ciganos | Claude Ludenwerg | Rede Globo |
| 1967 | A Rainha Louca | Emperor Maximiliano | Rede Globo |
| 1968 | Demian, o Justiceiro | Anderson | Rede Globo |
| 1968 | Passo dos Ventos | René Antoine | Rede Globo |
| 1969 | A Última Valsa | Emperor Francisco José | Rede Globo |
| 1973 | Tempo de Viver | Maurício | Rede Tupi |
| 1974 | Supermanoela | Diógenes | Rede Globo |
| 1975 | Gabriela | Pimentel | Rede Globo |
| 1975 | Escalada | Commander | Rede Globo |
| 1975 | O Grito | Agenor | Rede Globo |
| 1976 | Escrava Isaura | Leôncio Almeida | Rede Globo |
| 1977 | Dona Xepa | Heitor Camargo | Rede Globo |
| 1977 | O Astro | Samir Hayala | Rede Globo |
| 1978 | A Sucessora | Roberto Steen | Rede Globo |
| 1979 | Gaivotas | Daniel | Rede Tupi |
| 1979 | Os Maias | | RTP |
| 1980 | Cabaret Literário | | TV Cultura |
| 1980 | Drácula, uma História de Amor | Drácula | Rede Tupi |
| 1980 | Um Homem Muito Especial | Conde Vladimir "Drácula" | Rede Bandeirantes |
| 1981 | Os Imigrantes | Antonio di Salvio | Rede Bandeirantes |
| 1982 | Campeão | Jorge Salém | Rede Bandeirantes |
| 1982 | La Bruja | Venacio Do Santos | Venevision |
| 1983 | Maçã do Amor | Daniel e Paulo Cardoso | Rede Bandeirantes |
| 1984 | Padre Cícero | Floro Bartolomeu | Rede Globo |
| 1984 | Viver a Vida | Rodolfo | Rede Manchete |
| 1985 | Grande Sertão Veredas | Joca Ramiro | Rede Globo |
| 1986 | Sinhá Moça | Colonel Ferreira "Barão de Araruna" | Rede Globo |
| 1987 | Bambolê | Nestor Barreto | Rede Globo |
| 1989 | Pacto de Sangue | Abílio Mendonça | Rede Globo |
| 1990 | Brasileiras e Brasileiros | Ramiro | SBT |
| 1991 | Salomé | McGregor | Rede Globo |
| 1994 | Memorial de Maria Moura | Colonel Tibúrcio do Garrote | Rede Globo |
| 1994 | Confissões de Adolescente | Dr. Rogério (Episode: "Essa Tal de Virgindade") | TV Cultura |
| 1995 | Sangue do Meu Sangue | Mário Albuquerque Soares | SBT |
| 1997 | Os Ossos do Barão | Cândido Caldas Penteado | SBT |
| 1998 | Brida | Vargas | Rede Manchete |
| 2004 | A Escrava Isaura | Leopoldo Almeida | Record TV |

### On film

| Year | Title | Role |
| 2008 | Fim da Linha | Deputy Ernesto Alves (posthumous release) |
| 2001 | Sonhos Tropicais | General Travassos |
| 1996 | O Monge e a Filha do Carrasco | Master Salineiro |
| 1985 | Un hombre de éxito | Iriarte |
| 1985 | Na Hora Texaco | Julio |
| 1984 | Macho y hembra | Vicente |
| 1981 | Pixote, a Lei do Mais Fraco | Judge |
| 1980 | A Dama de Branco | Maurício |
| 1979 | Os Foragidos da Violência | Pedreira |
| 1978 | Colonel Delmiro Gouveia | Colonel Delmiro Gouveia |
| 1977 | Este Rio Muito Louco | — |
| 1976 | O Homem da Cabeça de Ouro | Daniel |
| 1976 | Deixa Amorzinho... deixa | — |
| 1975 | O Sósia da Morte | Narciso |
| 1975 | Nós, Os Canalhas | Herculano "Tatá" |
| 1974 | O Mau Caráter | Moreira Silva |
| 1973 | Café na Cama | Flávio |
| 1972 | Missão Matar | John Dorcas |
| 1972 | A Difícil Vida Fácil | Ricardo |
| 1971 | Uma Pantera em Minha Cama | Renato Lira |
| 1970 | Anjos e Demônios | Lawyer on Tribunal |
| 1969 | Tempo de Violência | "F" |
| 1969 | O Impossível Acontece | — |
| 1968 | O Homem que Comprou o Mundo | Emperor Maximiliano |
| 1966 | Engraçadinha — Depois dos Trinta | — |
| 1966 | Essa Gatinha É Minha | — |
| 1958 | O Pão Que o Diabo Amassou | — |
| 1957 | O Capanga | — |
| 1954 | Floradas na Serra | Moacir |
| 1953 | Esquina da Ilusão | Rubens |
| 1952 | Apassionata | — |

### Narration

| Year | Title | Notes |
| 1959 | Moral em Concordata | documentary |