Emilio Delgado

Emilio Delgado (May 8, 1940 - March 10, 2022) played Luis on Sesame Street and related productions from 1971 until 2019. He holds the record for longest-running role for a Mexican-American on an American television series.CNN: Emilio Delgado, 'Sesame Street's' Luis for more than 40 years, has died
Born in Calexico, California, Delgado's family moved to Los Angeles when he was 15 and he graduated from Glendale High School in 1959 where he participated in all theater and music programs. He appeared in every school play, became president of the Thespian Club, played trombone in both their orchestra and jazz band, and was a drum major in the marching band that appeared in the Rose Parade in Los Angeles. Emilio continued his studies in the theater program at Glendale Community College and in 1970 he enrolled at CalArts (California Institute of the Arts) and was in their first theater class along with classmate Bill Irwin (with whom he was reunited on the set of Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration in 2019). Music was always an important part of Emilio's life and he performed as a folk singer, a guitarist, and was a member of a romantic Mexican trio known as Los Sublime. In 1967, he joined the Inner City Theater as a performer (including West Side Story) and later a drama instructor with them. He was director of Barrio Teatro Ensemble from 1969-1971 while also performing in local television. He appeared on the bilingual KCET telenovela style series Canción de la Raza (1968, winning an Emmy) and co-hosted the children's series Angie's Garage (1970-1971), as well as an episode of the CBS series Storefront Lawyers.CTW Biographical Sketches. November 1971.
Delgado joined the cast of Sesame Street in the third season, arriving in New York City on October 11, 1971,luissesamestreet with the season premiere shooting two days later. In press materials for the season, Delgado remarked on the value of representation on the show: "Sesame Street can do something constructive for my people. Until the recent Chicano movement, many people knew very little about us. As a Chicano, I feel my appearance will bring about major changes in the negative images heretofore perpetrated by the mass-media in regard to the Mexican-American people." In an interview from 1972, Delgado expressed his determination for presenting Mexican-Americans in positive roles, and refusing to accept negative stereotypical roles.SMU Jones Film / KERA Collection "Interview With Emilio Delgado" July 24, 1972
As with other cast members, Delgado as Luis participated in sketches in other roles or supplied voice-over narration. However, he also played occasional characters distinct from Luis, such as Yucky Pierre's assistant chef Charles (Episode 1056) and Max Ferbilfeemer in a Kermit the Frog, Smart Person sketch. He voiced the Anything Muppet boy singing the bilingual duet "Me," a Spanish-speaking echo, the word CASA in a Leslie Mostly sketch, and one of his last roles in that vein, Rosita's Abuela in Episode 4096.
Concurrent with his Sesame Street work, Delgado continued to act periodically in outside productions. He understudied his former Sesame Street co-star Raúl Juliá on Broadway during the run of Two Gentlemen of Verona, in 1972. Cast on several occasions as Native Americans, he played Ollokot in the TV movie I Will Fight No More Forever, White Bull in the ABC Weekend Special "Tales of the Nunundaga" (1977) and the subsequent four part series Born to the Wind (1982), a "half-breed" on The Chisholms (1979), and as late as 2013's Peeples (as a local chief). While he played a knife-wielding agitator on Police Story and a criminal on Hawaii Five-O, most of Delgado's guest roles avoided stereotyping, as a doctor on Cannon, a lawyer on Delvecchio, a father and a policeman on Quincy, and a winery foreman on Falcon Crest. His longest running role outside of Luis was on Lou Grant as reporter Rubin Castillo, who also functioned as the national editor in the show's frequent editors meetings. Introduced as a guest star in the second season (1979), the character recurred through the final season in 1982.
Later off-the-street TV credits include Cosby, multiple Law & Order series (from 2000 on the original series to a 2021 role as a victim's father on SVU), the 2009 series Cupid, House of Cards, The Michael J. Fox Show, and The Get Down. Films, apart from reprising Luis in Follow That Bird and The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, include Reggie's Prayer (with Rosey Grier), A Case of You (with Justin Long), Peeples (with Craig Robinson), and the indie film iGilbert. A busy voice actor, Delgado was heard in commercials, on Between the Lions (as the animated title role in "The Ram in the Pepper Patch"), the video games Red Dead Revolver and Red Dead Redemption II, the animated series The Bravest Knight (three episodes as the king), and assorted audiobooks. 
Delgado's wife Carole appeared on Sesame Street with their daughter Lauren in the 1991 special Big Bird's Birthday or Let Me Eat Cake that was filmed at Wollman Rink in Central Park. Over the years, his son Aram Delgado also made a few appearances on the show. 
Continuing to perform on stage, Emilio enjoyed being an occasional guest singer with the world popular band Pink Martini at Carnegie Hall, The Hollywood Bowl, and other venues. He recorded the song "Sing" by Joe Raposo, a duet with China Forbes that appears on their album Splendor in the Grass. He appeared in The Very Old Man with Enormous Wings (2004) as the Man in the Panama Hat and narrator/Don Galante at The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey by playwright Nilo Cruz, and Hamlet, Prince of Cuba (2012), as King Claudius at the Asolo Rep. He also played Papi in 2008's How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents at Round House Theatre and he played the lead role of Don Quixote / Jose Quijano in the play Quixote Nuevo by playwright Octavio Solis which premiered at CalShakes (California Shakespeare Theater) in 2018 in Berkeley, California. Quixote Nuevo then went on tour to Hartford Stage, Boston's Huntington Theatre, and Houston's Alley Theatre in 2019-2020. Delgado was honored by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, who proclaimed Emilio Delgado Day in New York City on October 15, 2019 at a Hispanic Heritage Celebration at Gracie Mansion. The honor was granted for his enduring legacy as a positive role model in his portrayal of a Mexican-American on television and personal commitment to promote positive representation of Latinos in all forms of media.
==See also==
* Sesame Street cast in other roles: Emilio Delgado
==Sources==
==External links==
*Sesame Street: A Tribute to Emilio Delgado (video)
*IMDb
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Category:Sesame Street Cast
Category:Muppet Movies Actors
Category:Muppet Voice Actors