Joe Santos

Joe Santos
Santos in 2009
Born	Joseph John Minieri Jr. (1931-06-09)June 9, 1931 Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Died	March 18, 2016(2016-03-18) (aged 84) Santa Monica, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1963–2010
Spouse	Maria Montero ​ ​ (m. 1958; died 1988)​
Partner	Nancy Hobson
Children	3, including Perry Santos

Joe Santos (born Joseph John Minieri Jr.; June 9, 1931 – March 18, 2016) was an American film and television actor, best known as Sgt. Dennis Becker (later Lieutenant), the friend of James Garner's character on the NBC crime drama The Rockford Files.

Early years

Santos was born in Brooklyn on June 9, 1931, the same day his father died.^[1] His mother Rose (née Sarno), sold olive oil and eventually became a nightclub owner and singer in New York City and Havana. She later married Puerto Rican-born Daniel Santos, and Joe took his name.^[2]

Santos was a football player at Fordham University, and even turned semi-pro, before finding a new avenue in acting. He struggled in show business, and worked blue-collar jobs until his friend Al Pacino helped him get a role in the 1971 movie The Panic in Needle Park.^[3]

In the Korean War, Santos served in the United States Army.^[1]

Career

Santos had roles in a number of notable films of the early 1970s, including The Panic in Needle Park (1971), The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight (1971), as the leader of a slave-catching gang in the western The Legend of Ngr Charley (1972), Shaft's Big Score! (1972), as a policeman in Shamus (1973), The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973), The Don Is Dead (1973), Blade (1973) and Zandy's Bride (1974). More than two decades later he appeared in the big budget Kevin Costner flop, The Postman (1997).

From 1974 to 1980, Santos played LAPD Sergeant (later Lieutenant) Dennis Becker, the friend of the easy-going private investigator Jim Rockford (played by James Garner) in The Rockford Files.^[4] He portrayed Lt. Frank Harper in the TV series Hardcastle and McCormick (1985–86). He reprised the Dennis Becker role in eight The Rockford Files television movies (1994-1999).

Santos appeared in various television movies during the 1970s and 1980s, including Nightside (1973), The Blue Knight (1973), The Girl on the Late, Late Show (1974), A Matter of Wife... and Death (1975), Power (1980), The Hustler of Muscle Beach (1980), The Selling of Vince D'Angelo (1983), and The Ratings Game (1984). His character was often a police detective or lieutenant. He portrayed Marty Sinatra, Frank's father, in the four-part 1992 television miniseries Sinatra.

In 1980, Santos played Norman Davis in the short-lived (10 episodes) NBC comedy Me and Maxx.^[5]: 675 In 1984, he portrayed Domingo Rivera on the ABC comedy a.k.a. Pablo, which was cancelled after six episodes.^[5]

Santos made guest appearances on television shows throughout his acting career, including Room 222, Toma, Barnaby Jones, The Streets of San Francisco, Kung Fu, Baretta, Lou Grant, Police Story (in 8 episodes), Black Sheep Squadron, Trapper John, M.D. , The Greatest American Hero, Hill Street Blues (in 3 episodes), The A-Team, Remington Steele, T. J. Hooker, Hardcastle and McCormick (in 10 episodes), MacGyver (in 2 episodes), Magnum P.I. (in 5 episodes), Murder, She Wrote (in 2 episodes), Miami Vice, Quantum Leap, Santa Barbara (in 5 episodes), Hunter (in 2 episodes), and NYPD Blue.

From 1978 to 1980 he appeared on the CBS game show Match Game, always sitting in the top left seat.

Santos also appeared on The Sopranos as Angelo Garepe in seven 2004 episodes.

Personal life

In 1958, Santos met and married Maria Montero while he was in Cuba. They were married 30 years until her death in 1988.^[1]

Death

Santos died on March 18, 2016, two days after suffering a heart attack at the age of 84.^[3][6]

Filmography

Actor
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1964	Warm Nights and Hot Pleasures	Dick	Directed by his cousin, Joe Sarno[7]
	Flesh and Lace	Julian Shop Owner
1966	Moonlighting Wives	Detective Hank
1967	The Tiger Makes Out	Man At Housing Authority	Uncredited
	My Body Hungers	Truck Driver	Also directed by Sarno
1968	The Detective	Reporter	Uncredited
1971	The Panic in Needle Park	Detective DiBono
	The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight	Ezmo
1972	The Legend of Nigger Charley	Reverend
	Shaft's Big Score!	Pascal
1973	Shamus	Lieutenant Promuto
	The Friends of Eddie Coyle	Artie Van
	The Blue Knight	Sergeant Cruz Segovia	TV movie
	The Don Is Dead	Joe Lucci
	Blade	Spinelli
1974	Zandy's Bride	Frank Gallo
	A Knife for the Ladies		Uncredited
1975	A Matter of Wife... and Death	Lieutenant Promuto	TV movie
1983	Blue Thunder	Montoya
1984	Fear City	Frank
1986	The Education of Allison Tate	Detective Duncan
	MacGyver	Jimmy Thomas Kendall
1987	MacGyver	Jimmy Thomas Kendall
1989	Beverly Hills Brats	'Spyder'
1990	Revenge	Ibarra
	The Old Man and the Sea	Lopez
	Sinatra	Marty Sinatra	5 episodes
1991	The Last Boy Scout	Lieutenant Ben Bessalo
1992	Mo' Money	Lieutenant Raymond Walsh
1994	Trial by Jury	Johnny Verona
	Art Deco Detective	Detective Guy Lean
1997	The Postman	Colonel Getty
1998	The Right Way
2000	Auggie Rose	Emanuel
	Hammerlock	Warden Stan Cromwell
2001	Proximity	Clive Plummer
	The Man from Elysian Fields	Domenico
2009	Baseline	Bashir Abu Ahmed
2010	Dead Genesis	Jason
2015	Chronic	Issac Sr.	(final film role)

Television credits

• 1972: Room 222 — Season 4 Episode 6 "The Imposter" as Manny Galvez
• 1973: Police Story Season 1 Episodes 12 - 13 "Countdown" — Detective Sally Pickel
• 1974–1980: The Rockford Files — Sergeant (later Lieutenant) Becker (recurring), also in 8 subsequent TV-movies (1994-1999)
• 1978: Black Sheep Squadron  — CPO Miller Timmons (one episode)
• 1978-1980: Match Game — Himself (multiple episodes)
• 1974: Kung Fu Season 3 Episode 52 "A Lamb to the Slaughter" — Señor Sanjero
• 1983: The Greatest American Hero — Season 3 Episode 8 "Space Ranger" as Henry Fletchner
• 1984: a.k.a. Pablo — Domingo Rivera (6 Episodes)
• 1984: Remington Steele — Alf Nussman
• 1984 Hunter - Season 1 Episode 3 "The Hot Grounder" as Detective Ortega
• 1985–1986: Hardcastle and McCormick — Lt. Frank Harper
• 1986–1987: MacGyver — Jimmy 'The Eraser' Kendall (two episodes)
• 1986–1988: Magnum, P.I. — Police Lieutenant Nolan (five episodes)
• 1988: Miami Vice — Oscar Carrere (one episode)
• 1989: Quantum Leap  — Tony La Palma (one episode)
• 1990 Hunter - Season 7 Episode 10 "La Familia" as Ernesto/Grandpa
• 1993: NYPD Blue — Angelo Marino (2 episodes)
• 2004: The Sopranos — Consigliere Angelo Garepe (seven episodes)

References

1. Lentz, Harris M. III (2017). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2016. McFarland. pp. 347–348. ISBN 9781476670317. Retrieved March 24, 2018.
2. Weber, Bruce (March 18, 2016). "Joe Santos, a Mainstay of 'The Rockford Files,' Dies at 84" – via NYTimes.com.
3. Weber, Bruce (March 18, 2016). "Joe Santos, a Mainstay of 'The Rockford Files,' Dies at 84". The New York Times. p. A22.
4. Susan Doukas Brady (July 11, 2012). Tales, Observations and Notes: Bob an Actor's Mentor. Susan Doukas Brady. p. 36. ISBN 978-1-61927-060-2.
5. Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. pp. 21–22. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
6. "Joe Santos, 'The Rockford Files' Actor, Dies at 84". March 18, 2016.
7. "Joe Santos - The Rockford Files on Series-80.net". www.series-80.net. Retrieved September 18, 2021.

External links

• Joe Santos at IMDb