José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón (January 8, 1912 â€" January
26, 1992), known as José Ferrer, was a Puerto Rican actor and theatre
and film director. He was the first Puerto Rican-born actor, as well
as the first Hispanic actor, to win an Academy Award (in 1950 for
Cyrano de Bergerac).In 1947, Ferrer won the Tony Award for his
theatrical performance of Cyrano de Bergerac, and in 1952, he won the
Distinguished Dramatic Actor Award for The Shrike, and also the
Outstanding Director Award for directing the plays The Shrike, The
Fourposter, and Stalag 17.Ferrer's contributions to American theatre
were recognized in 1981, when he was inducted into the American
Theater Hall of Fame. In 1985, he received the National Medal of Arts
from Ronald Reagan, becoming the first actor to receive that
honor.Ferrer was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the son of MarÃa
Providencia Cintrón, who was from the small coastal town of Yabucoa,
Puerto Rico, and Rafael Ferrer, an attorney and writer from San Juan.
He was the grandson of Gabriel Ferrer Hernández, a doctor and
advocate of Puerto Rican independence from Spain. He had two younger
sisters, Elvira and Leticia.
26, 1992), known as José Ferrer, was a Puerto Rican actor and theatre
and film director. He was the first Puerto Rican-born actor, as well
as the first Hispanic actor, to win an Academy Award (in 1950 for
Cyrano de Bergerac).In 1947, Ferrer won the Tony Award for his
theatrical performance of Cyrano de Bergerac, and in 1952, he won the
Distinguished Dramatic Actor Award for The Shrike, and also the
Outstanding Director Award for directing the plays The Shrike, The
Fourposter, and Stalag 17.Ferrer's contributions to American theatre
were recognized in 1981, when he was inducted into the American
Theater Hall of Fame. In 1985, he received the National Medal of Arts
from Ronald Reagan, becoming the first actor to receive that
honor.Ferrer was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the son of MarÃa
Providencia Cintrón, who was from the small coastal town of Yabucoa,
Puerto Rico, and Rafael Ferrer, an attorney and writer from San Juan.
He was the grandson of Gabriel Ferrer Hernández, a doctor and
advocate of Puerto Rican independence from Spain. He had two younger
sisters, Elvira and Leticia.
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