Andy Garcia life and biography

Andy García is a Cuban American actor. He became known in the late 1980s and 1990s, having appeared in several successful Hollywood films, including The Godfather: Part III, The Untouchables, and When a Man Loves a Woman. More recently, he has starred in Ocean's Eleven and its sequels, Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen, and The Lost City.

García was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Vincent Mancini in The Godfather Part III.

Early Years

Born Andrés Arturo García-Menéndez, actor Andy Garcia was five-years-old when he fled with his family from his native Cuba to Miami, where Garcia's father, a former lawyer, established a successful cosmetics business upon becoming an American citizen. Following his graduation from Florida International University, Garcia moved to L.A. and performed briefly as a standup comic, working as a furniture expediter and waiter when jobs were scarce.

Career

While his TV debut was a small role in the 1981 pilot of Hill Street Blues, Garcia did not have to travel far from his adopted hometown for his film bow, Blue Skies Again (1983), which was shot on location in Florida. (Also making her first screen appearance in this forgettable baseball comedy was actress Mimi Rogers).

It was not until he was cast as a drug kingpin in Hal Ashby's 8 Million Ways to Die (1985) that Garcia's career really took off. After turning in strong roles in both The Untouchables (1987) and Stand and Deliver (1988), he achieved an additional degree of stardom when he was cast as Michael Corleone's hot-headed nephew in The Godfather Part III (1990), a role for which he earned Best Supporting Actor Oscar and Golden Globe nominations. The range of Garcia's talents was impressive enough for screenwriter Henry Bean to write the script for the 1990 police-corruption drama Internal Affairs with the actor specifically in mind. But after several years of on-the-edge characters, Garcia softened his screen image as the too-good-to-be-true husband of an alcoholic (Meg Ryan) in When a Man Loves a Woman (1994).

Garcia's career waned a bit during the second half of the '90s, and the actor concentrated some of his energies on starring in various made-for-TV movies and such Spanish-made films as Death in Granada (1997). Although Garcia found his place in American cinema -- indeed, he was one of the few Latino stars to successfully cross over into Hollywood films -- his deep connection and loyalty to his Cuban heritage was illustrated by his involvement in projects that reflect that sentiment. He has produced and directed a tribute to Cuban mambo artist Cachoao entitled Cachoao: Like His Rhythm There Is No Other, and, at one time, he planned to direct and star in a film adaptation of The Lost City, an epic novel of revolution and exile by Cuban writer Guillermo Cabrera Infante. A devoted family man, Garcia lives outside of the spotlight with his wife Maria Victoria (also a Cuban immigrant) and their three daughters.

Filmography:

1983 A Night in Heaven
1984 The Lonely Guy
1985 The Mean Season
1986 8 Million Ways to Die
1987 The Untouchables
1988 Stand and Deliver ; American Roulette
1989 Black Rain
1990 Internal Affairs ; A Show of Force ; The Godfather Part III
1991 Dead Again
1992 Hero ; Jennifer Eight
1994 When a Man Loves a Woman
1995 Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead ; Dangerous Minds ; Steal Big Steal Little
1997 Night Falls on Manhattan ; The Disappearance of Garcia Lorca ; Hoodlum
1998 Desperate Measures
1999 Just the Ticket
2000 Lakeboat
2001 The Unsaid ; Ocean's Eleven
2002 The Man from Elysian Fields
2003 Confidence
2004 Twisted ; The Lazarus Child ; Modigliani ; Ocean's Twelve
2005 The Lost City
2007 Smokin' Aces ; The Air I Breathe ; Ocean's Thirteen
2008 Beverly Hills Chihuahua ; La Linea
2009 The Pink Panther 2 ; The National Parks: America's Best Idea ; New York, I Love You ; City Island
2010 The Last Full Measure ; 5 Days of August
2011 Cristiada

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