Ricardo Cortez
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- September 17, 1900
- Died
- April 28, 1977
- Birthplace
- New York City, New York, USA
Ricardo Cortez (September 19, 1900 – April 28, 1977) was an American film actor who began his career during the silent film era. Born Jacob Krantz in New York City into a Jewish family, he worked on Wall Street in a broker's office and as a boxer before his looks got him into the film business. Hollywood executives changed his name to Cortez to appeal to film-goers as a "Latin lover" to compete with such highly popular actors of the era as Rudolph Valentino, Ramon Novarro and Antonio Moreno. When rumour began to circulate that Cortez was not actually Spanish, the studios tried to pass him off as a different type of Latin, French, before they finally admitted his (supposedly) Viennese origin. Cortez appeared in over 100 films. He played opposite Joan Crawford in Montana Moon in 1930, played Sam Spade in the original The Maltese Falcon in 1931, co-starred with Charles Farrell and Bette Davis in The Big Shakedown and Wonder Bar (with Al Jolson and Dolores del Río) in 1934. He also played Perry Mason in the 1936 film The Case of the Black Cat. Although he began his career playing romantic leads with actresses like Greta Garbo, when sound cinema arrived, his powerful delivery and New York accent made him an ideal villain and conman, and he switched from sex symbol to character actor. Cortez was married to silent film actress Alma Rubens until her death of pneumonia in 1931. When he retired from the film business, Cortez went to work as a stockbroker for Solomon Brothers on New York's Wall Street. He died in New York City in 1977 and was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in The Bronx. He was the older brother of noted cinematographer Stanley Cortez (born Stanislaus Krantz).
Filmography
Stars of the Silver Screen - Greta Garbo 2014
as Self (archive footage)
Complicated Women 2003
as Self (archive footage)
Greta Garbo: The Temptress and the Clown 1986
as Self as Don Rafael Brull (archive footage)
Hedda Hopper's Hollywood 1960
as Self
The Last Hurrah 1958
as Sam Weinberg
Bunco Squad 1950
as Tony Weldon / Anthony Wells
Mystery in Mexico 1948
as John Norcross
Blackmail 1947
as Ziggy Cranston
The Locket 1946
as Drew Bonner
The Inner Circle 1946
as Duke York
Make Your Own Bed 1944
as Wilson / Fritz Alden
Tomorrow We Live 1942
as The Ghost, Alexander Caesar Martin
Rubber Racketeers 1942
as Gilin
Who Is Hope Schuyler? 1942
as Anthony Pearce
I Killed That Man 1941
as Roger Phillips
World Premiere 1941
as Mark Saunders
A Shot in the Dark 1941
as Phillip Richards
Romance of the Rio Grande 1941
as Ricardo de Vega
Murder Over New York 1940
as George Kirby
Girl in 313 1940
Director
Free, Blonde and 21 1940
Director
City of Chance 1940
Director
Heaven with a Barbed Wire Fence 1939
Director
The Escape 1939
Director
Charlie Chan in Reno 1939
as Dr. Ainsley
Chasing Danger 1939
Director
Inside Story 1939
Director
Mr. Moto's Last Warning 1939
as Fabian
City Girl 1938
as Charles Blake
Breakdowns of 1937 1937
as Self
West of Shanghai 1937
as Gordon Creed
The Californian 1937
as Ramon Escobar
Her Husband Lies 1937
as J. Ward Thomas
Breakdowns of 1936 1936
as Self
Talk of the Devil 1936
as Ray Allen
The Case of the Black Cat 1936
as Perry Mason
Postal Inspector 1936
as Inspector Bill Davis
The Walking Dead 1936
as Nolan
Man Hunt 1936
as Frank Kingman
Sunkist Stars at Palm Springs 1936
Actor
The Murder of Dr. Harrigan 1936
as George Lambert
Frisco Kid 1935
as Paul Morra
Special Agent 1935
as Alexander Carston
Manhattan Moon 1935
as Dan Moore
Shadow of Doubt 1935
as Sim
The White Cockatoo 1935
as Jim Sundean
I Am a Thief 1934
as Pierre Londais
The Firebird 1934
as Herman Brandt
A Lost Lady 1934
as Ellinger
The Man with Two Faces 1934
as Ben Weston
Hat, Coat and Glove 1934
as Robert Mitchell
Wonder Bar 1934
as Harry
Hollywood Newsreel 1934
as Himself
Mandalay 1934
as Tony Evans
The Big Shakedown 1934
as Dutch Barnes
The House on 56th Street 1933
as Bill Blaine
Big Executive 1933
as Victor Conway
Torch Singer 1933
as Tony Cummings
Midnight Mary 1933
as Leo
Broadway Bad 1933
as Craig Cutting
Flesh 1932
as Nicky
The Phantom of Crestwood 1932
as Gary Curtis
Thirteen Women 1932
as Police Sergeant Barry Clive
Is My Face Red? 1932
as William Poster
Symphony of Six Million 1932
as Felix
No One Man 1932
as Bill Hanaway
Men of Chance 1931
as Johnny Silk
- Reckless Living
Reckless Living 1931
as Curly
Bad Company 1931
as Goldie Gorio
Transgression 1931
as Don Arturo de Borgus
Big Business Girl 1931
as Robert J. Clayton
Screen Snapshots (Series 10, No. 8) 1931
as Self
The Maltese Falcon 1931
as Sam Spade
White Shoulders 1931
as Lawrence Marchmont
Behind Office Doors 1931
as Ronnie Wales
Illicit 1931
as Price Baines
Ten Cents a Dance 1931
as Bradley Carlton
Her Man 1930
as Johnnie
Montana Moon 1930
as Jeff
The Lost Zeppelin 1929
as Tom Armstrong
The Phantom in the House 1929
as Paul Wallis
Midstream 1929
as James Stanwood
New Orleans 1929
as Jim Morley
The Younger Generation 1929
as Morris Goldfish
Excess Baggage 1928
as Val D'Errico
Prowlers of the Sea 1928
as Carlos De Neve
Ladies of the Night Club 1928
as George Merrill
Woman of Destiny 1928
as Yoannès Etchegarray
The Private Life of Helen of Troy 1927
as Paris
By Whose Hand? 1927
as Agent X-9
Mockery 1927
as Dimitri
New York 1927
as Michael Angelo Cassidy
The Eagle of the Sea 1926
as Captain Sazarac
The Sorrows of Satan 1926
as Geoffrey Tempest
The Cat's Pajamas 1926
Actor
Volcano 1926
as Stéphane Séquineau
Torrent 1926
as Don Rafael Brull
Not So Long Ago 1925
as Billy Ballard
The Pony Express 1925
as Jack Weston
In the Name of Love 1925
as Raoul Melnotte
The Spaniard 1925
as Don Pedro de Barrego
The Swan 1925
as Dr. Walter, the Tutor
Argentine Love 1924
as Juan Martin
This Woman 1924
as Whitney Duane
The City That Never Sleeps 1924
as Mark Roth
Feet of Clay 1924
as Tony Channing
The Bedroom Window 1924
as Robert Delano
A Society Scandal 1924
as Harrison Peters
The Next Corner 1924
as Don Arturo
The Call of the Canyon 1923
as Larry Morrison
Hollywood 1923
as Ricardo Cortez
Children of Jazz 1923
as Ted Carter
Sixty Cents an Hour 1923
as William Davis
The Gentleman from America 1923
Actor
Credits from TMDB.