Joaquin Martinez

Who was Joaquin Martinez?

Joaquin Martinez was a Mexican-born film, theater and television actor. Often appearing in Westerns, Martinez was perhaps best known for starring roles in the 1972 film, Jeremiah Johnson, in which he played a Crow chief, Paints His Shirt Red, and the 1972 film, Ulzana's Raid, which was directed by Robert Aldrich and starred Burt Lancaster. Martinez was often typecast in roles that stereotyped Latinos, Native Americans, and Mexicans, but he frequently changed and reworked his characters through his acting, sometimes causing tensions with a production's director.

Martinez was born on November 5, 1930, in Cozumel, Mexico. His interest in acting led him to study method acting under Seki Sano. His professional breakthrough came in the 1967 Mexican dramatic film, Pedro Páramo, which was directed by Carlos Velo and premiered at the Cannes Film Festival that same year. He moved to Los Angeles, California, shortly after making Pedro Páramo, where he worked as a professional film, television and stage actor for more than thirty years.

In Jeremiah Johnson, which was set in the American West shortly after the Mexican American War, Martinez's and Robert Redford's characters come into conflict, but come to an understanding and peace in the film's silent, unspoken finale. In addition to Jeremiah Johnson and Ulzana's Raid, both released in 1972, Martinez was cast opposite Anthony Quinn and Kevin Costner in the 1990 movie, Revenge, as well as the 1993 film, The House of the Spirits. Martinez's appearance in Revenge reportedly fulfilled a longtime dream to work with Anthony Quinn, who was also originally from Mexico.