Anthony Quinn Biography

Anthony Quinn was a Mexican-born American actor who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor twice: for ‘Viva Zapata!’ and ‘Lust for Life.’ A renowned character actor during the 1950s and 1960s, he appeared in a number of critically acclaimed and commercially successful films, often sharing the screen space with other prominent actors of the Hollywood Golden Age. Born in Mexico to a half-Irish father and a Mexican mother during the Mexican Revolution, he moved to the United States with his family when he was a young child. His family, which struggled financially in the new country, was dealt with a severe blow when his father died in an accident. Aged just nine at that time, Quinn was forced to do odd jobs to help his mother run the family. Always interested in acting, he received training in an acting school before beginning his acting career on stage. His success on the stage paved the way for a Hollywood career. During his initial years he was cast in a series of B-movies though it did not take him long to be considered an A-Lister. With his rugged good looks and powerful performances, he soon came to be regarded as one of the topmost Hollywood stars of the 1950s and 1960s.