Percy Rodrigues

A symbol of intelligence, leadership and moral strength in his various 1960s and 1970s roles, African-Canadian actor Percy Rodrigues rose in Hollywood stature during the late 1960s following a couple of earlier Broadway appearances. The serenely handsome, distinguished-looking actor also became notable for helping to break racial barriers on television and went on to become a voice of great distinction behind the camera. Born to a Montreal couple on June 13, 1918 (some references list 1924 as his birth year), Percy was the oldest of four children and was of African and Portuguese descent. His father abandoned the family while he was a youth and Percy started working as a teenager to help provide for his family. By his late teens, he had become a professional boxer and started scouting out acting jobs at the same time. He joined Montreal's Negro Theater Guild and although winning a Canadian Drama Festival acting award in 1939, found job offers scarce, prompting him to work as a machini