Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez (May 24, 1925 – February 6, 2006) was an American character actor best known for his appearances in a number of John Wayne movies.
Life and career
His father was a trumpet player, and his mother was a dancer. His brother was actor Jose Gonzalez-Gonzalez (1922–2000). He left school at the age of seven to join a family act called "Las Perlitas" that toured southwest Texas. As a result, he was functionally illiterate for all of his life. As a result of his illiteracy, he memorized scripts by having his wife read them to him. Gonzalez Gonzalez married at the age of seventeen and served in the Army during World War II as a driver in the United States.[1] After the war he performed stand-up comedy for Spanish-speaking audiences.
In 1953, he appeared on the Groucho MarxNBC television quiz show You Bet Your Life under the name Ramiro G. Gonzalez, where his banter with Marx attracted notice. Marx asked him: "What does the 'G' stand for?" to which he replied "Gonzalez", and explained that both his parents had been surnamed "Gonzalez" before being married. So Marx asked: "What does your wife call you: Ramiro or Gonzalez?" He replied "She calls me 'Pedro'", triggering rare laughter from Marx. After Gonzalez performed a 15-second comic dance to strong applause, Marx complimented his guest's comedic skill, saying: "Pedro, we could do a great act together. We could make a fortune in vaudeville, you and I. What -- what would we call our act, you know, if we went out together? 'The Two Hot Tamales'?" After Pedro deadpanned "Gonzalez Gonzalez and Marx", Marx made an aside: "That's nice billing. Two people in the act, and I get third place!" [2]
As a result of playing comic relief roles, he was accused of perpetuating negative stereotypes about Hispanic men. However, Edward James Olmos said of Gonzalez Gonzalez at the time of his death that he "inspired every Latino actor."[4]
He died at his home of natural causes, and was survived by his wife Leandra and three children.[5]
