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Elizabeth Peña

Elizabeth Peña

Known for ActingBorn 1959-09-23Died 2014-10-14Elizabeth, New Jersey, USA
Elizabeth Maria Peña (September 23, 1959 – October 14, 2014) was an American actress, and the daughter of a theater-company co-founder, who has also compiled experience as a television director in her own right. Peña was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, daughter of Estella Margarita (née Toirac), an arts administrator and producer, and Mario Peña, the Cuban-born actor, writer, and director who jointly founded the Latin American Theatre Ensemble. It is unknown whether Peña was named after the town of her birth. Peña graduated from New York's High School of Performing Arts in 1977. Her classmates included Ving Rhames, alongside whom she would later co-star in Jacob's Ladder, and Esai Morales, alongside whom she would later co-star in La Bamba. She is also a founding member of the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors. In 1979, Peña appeared in her first film, El Super, "an exceptionally moving and melancholy comedy about a family of lower-middle-class Cuban refugees attempting to adjust to life in Spanish Harlem.", New York City. Peña worked once again with film director, Leon Ichaso in his next feature Crossover Dreams opposite Ruben Blades. Peña has appeared in movies such as La Bamba, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Lone Star, Vibes, and Rush Hour. In 2002, she starred in Showtime's Resurrection Blvd. as Tia Bibi Corrades in the episode "Justicia," which she also directed. During the next year, 2003, she appeared in and directed "It Was Fun While It Lasted," an episode of The Brothers Garcia. She also provided the voice of the character Mirage in Pixar's animated film The Incredibles. She guest starred in the 18th episode of Numb3rs, Season Two, as Sonya Benavides. Although the actress does speak Spanish, she does not dub her own voice for Spanish releases. Peña is also noted for having starred in I Married Dora, a sitcom that lasted only 13 episodes in 1987, as Dora Calderon, the "Dora" of the show's title. In the final show, the cast broke the "fourth wall" of suspended disbelief by announcing their cancellation on-camera and taking a curtain call. Writer-director John Sayles produced the critically acclaimed but short-lived television series Shannon's Deal (1989–1991) co-starring Peña alongside series lead Jamey Sheridan. In 1996 Sayles wrote and directed the mystery film Lone Star and again cast her in a co-starring role. Peña died on October 14, 2014 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California at the age of 55.Read more

Movies & web series

Recon
9.0
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Recon

1996 · Movie

Shannon's Deal9.0
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Shannon's Deal

1989 · Movie

Justice League Unlimited8.3
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Justice League Unlimited

2004 · Series

Resurrection Blvd.8.3
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Resurrection Blvd.

2000 · Series

Justice League8.2
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Justice League

2001 · Series

Justice League: Starcrossed - The Movie8.1
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Justice League: Starcrossed - The Movie

2004 · Movie

Ghost Whisperer8.1
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Ghost Whisperer

2005 · Series

Modern Family7.9
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Modern Family

2009 · Series

Dellaventura8.0
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Dellaventura

1997 · Series

The Incredibles7.7
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The Incredibles

2004 · Movie

CSI: Miami7.7
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CSI: Miami

2002 · Series

NCIS7.6
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NCIS

2003 · Series

The Outer Limits7.7
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The Outer Limits

1995 · Series

Boston Public7.6
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Boston Public

2000 · Series

Shannon's Deal7.7
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Shannon's Deal

1990 · Series

A Piece of the Action: Behind the Scenes of Rush Hour7.5
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A Piece of the Action: Behind the Scenes of Rush Hour

1999 · Movie

Hill Street Blues7.6
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Hill Street Blues

1981 · Series

The Hollywood Mom's Mystery7.3
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The Hollywood Mom's Mystery

2004 · Movie

El Super7.6
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El Super

1979 · Movie

Jacob's Ladder7.4
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Jacob's Ladder

1990 · Movie

Without a Trace7.2
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Without a Trace

2002 · Series

La Bamba7.3
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La Bamba

1987 · Movie

Rush Hour7.1
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Rush Hour

1998 · Movie

American Dad!7.0
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American Dad!

2005 · Series

Transamerica7.0
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Transamerica

2005 · Movie

Numb3rs7.0
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Numb3rs

2005 · Series

Border Line7.0
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Border Line

1999 · Movie

Lone Star7.0
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Lone Star

1996 · Movie

L.A. Law7.1
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L.A. Law

1986 · Series

Dream On7.0
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Dream On

1990 · Series

Tough Cookies
7.0
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Tough Cookies

1986 · Series

Cagney & Lacey7.0
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Cagney & Lacey

1982 · Series

The Pass6.8
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The Pass

1998 · Movie

Suburban Madness6.7
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Suburban Madness

2004 · Movie

Mother and Child6.6
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Mother and Child

2009 · Movie

Grandma6.5
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Grandma

2015 · Movie

Maya & Miguel6.6
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Maya & Miguel

2004 · Series

Gridlock'd6.6
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Gridlock'd

1997 · Movie

*batteries not included6.7
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*batteries not included

1987 · Movie

Tortilla Soup6.4
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Tortilla Soup

2001 · Movie

Nothing Like the Holidays6.3
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Nothing Like the Holidays

2008 · Movie

Drug Wars: The Camarena Story6.5
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Drug Wars: The Camarena Story

1990 · Series

I Married Dora
6.5
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I Married Dora

1987 · Series

T. J. Hooker6.5
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T. J. Hooker

1982 · Series

Times Square6.5
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Times Square

1980 · Movie

Two6.3
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Two

1996 · Series

The Lost City6.2
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The Lost City

2005 · Movie

Aldrich Ames: Traitor Within6.2
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Aldrich Ames: Traitor Within

1998 · Movie