Elizabeth Pena
Early life[edit]
Born in 1959 in Elizabeth, New Jersey,[1] Peña spent her early years in Cuba.[2] Her father, Mario Peña, was a Cuban actor, writer, and director who co-founded the Latin American Theatre Ensemble; her mother, Estella Margarita (Toirac) Peña, was an arts administrator and producer.[1][3] They moved to New York City when Elizabeth was eight. She graduated from New York's High School of Performing Arts in 1977, her classmates including Ving Rhames and Esai Morales, whom she would later star with in La Bamba and Resurrection Blvd.. She was a founding member of the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors.
Career[edit]
In 1979, Peña appeared in her first film, El Super, described as a "moving and melancholy comedy about a family of lower-middle-classCuban refugees attempting to adjust to life in Spanish Harlem".[4] She worked once again with director Leon Ichaso in his next feature,Crossover Dreams. She has appeared in films such as La Bamba, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Jacob's Ladder, Lone Star, *batteries not included, 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. In 2003, she appeared in and directed "It Was Fun While It Lasted", an episode of The Brothers Garcia.
Peña provided the voice of the character Mirage in Pixar's animated film The Incredibles. She guest starred in the 18th episode of season 2 of Numb3rs as Sonya Benavides, and in season 4 of Modern Family as Pilar, the Colombian mother of Gloria Pritchett. Although she spoke Spanish, she did not dub her own voice for Spanish releases. Peña was also noted for having starred in I Married Dora, a sitcom in 1987, as Dora Calderon, the title character. Writer-director John Sayles produced the critically acclaimed but short-lived television series Shannon's Deal (1989–1991), co-starring Peña. In 1996, Sayles wrote and directed the mystery film Lone Star and again cast her in a co-starring role.
Personal life and death[edit]
Peña's first marriage was to a teacher William Kibler (1988), ended in divorce in the early 1990s. She then married a carpenter, Hans Rolla, in 1994. Peña and Rolla have two children (daughter Fiona and son Kaelan) together.[citation needed]
Peña died after a brief illness at the age of 55 on October 14, 2014, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. Film reviewer Mario-Francisco Robles, Peña's nephew, confirmed her death in an article in Latino-Review the following day. The nature of her illness has not been disclosed.[5][6]
Filmography[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | El Super | Aurelita | |
| 1980 | Times Square | Disco Hostess | |
| 1981 | They All Laughed | Rita | |
| 1985 | Crossover Dreams | Liz Garcia | |
| 1985 | Cagney & Lacey | Adelita Carrena | Episode: "Ordinary Hero" |
| 1985 | T. J. Hooker | Maria | Episode: "Rip-off" |
| 1986 | Down and Out in Beverly Hills | Carmen | |
| 1986 | Hill Street Blues | Alice | Episode: "Come and Get It" |
| 1987 | La Bamba | Rosie Morales | |
| 1987 | *batteries not included | Marisa Esteval | |
| 1987–1988 | I Married Dora | Dora Calderon | 13 episodes |
| 1988 | Vibes | Consuelo | |
| 1989 | Blue Steel | Tracy Perez | |
| 1989 | Shannon's Deal | Lucy Acosta | Television film |
| 1990 | Drug Wars: The Camarena Story | Mika Camarena | Miniseries |
| 1990 | Jacob's Ladder | Jezzie | |
| 1990–1991 | Shannon's Deal | Lucy Acosta | 11 episodes |
| 1992 | The Waterdance | Rosa | |
| 1992 | Fugitive Among Us | Flo Martin | Television film |
| 1993 | Dream On | Debra | Episode: "Super Freak" |
| 1993–1994 | L.A. Law | Jinx Baldasseri | 4 episodes |
| 1994 | Dead Funny | Viv Saunders | |
| 1994 | Roommates | Lisa | Television film |
| 1995 | Two | Elizabeth Gaitan | Television film |
| 1995 | Across the Moon | Carmen | |
| 1995 | The Outer Limits | Dr. Jennifer Martinez | Episode: "Living Hell" |
| 1995 | Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home | Kate Haley | |
| 1995 | The Invaders | Ellen Garza | Television film |
| 1996 | It Came from Outer Space II | Ellen Fields | Television film |
| 1996 | Lone Star | Pilar | |
| 1996 | Recon | ||
| 1997 | Contagious | Det. Luisa Rojas | Television films |
| 1997 | The Second Civil War | Christina | Television film |
| 1997 | Gridlock'd | Admissions Person | |
| 1997 | Dead Man's Gun | Gisella | Episode: "Fortune Teller" |
| 1998 | The Pass | Zeena | |
| 1998 | Rush Hour | Detective Tania Johnson | |
| 1998 | The Eddie Files | Aunt Ida | Episode: "Charts & Graphs: The Dessert Derby" |
| 1998 | Strangeland | Toni Gage | |
| 1998 | Aldrich Ames: Traitor Within | Rosario Ames | Television film |
| 1999 | Border Line | Maria Rodriguez | Television film |
| 1999 | Seven Girlfriends | Martha | |
| 2001 | Ten Tiny Love Stories | ||
| 2001 | Things Behind the Sun | Carmen | |
| 2001 | Tortilla Soup | Leticia Naranjo | |
| 2001 | Resurrection Blvd. | Beatriz "Bibi" Corrales | Episode: "Arriba Y Abajo" |
| 2001 | On the Borderline | Connie | |
| 2002 | Impostor | Midwife | |
| 2002 | ZigZag | Ms. Tate | |
| 2002 | Resurrection Blvd. | Director Episode: "Justicia" | |
| 2002–2003 | Boston Public | Superintendent Elizabeth Vasquez | 2 episodes |
| 2003 | CSI: Miami | Mercedes Escalante | Episode: "Simple Man" |
| 2003 | The Brothers Garcia | Director Episode: "It Was Fun While It Lasted" | |
| 2004 | The Hollywood Mom's Mystery | Theresa Shoe | Television film |
| 2004 | Suburban Madness | Clara Harris | Television film |
| 2004 | Maya & Miguel | Rosa Santos | Voice |
| 2004 | The Incredibles | Mirage | Voice |
| 2004 | NCIS | FBI Agent Lina Reyes | Episode: "Terminal Leave" |
| 2004–2005 | Justice League | Paran Dul | Voice 4 episodes |
| 2005 | How the Garcia Girls Spent Their Summer | Lolita | |
| 2005 | Without a Trace | Rosie Diaz | Episode: "Neither Rain Nor Sleet" |
| 2005 | Transamerica | Margaret | |
| 2005 | Down in the Valley | Gale | |
| 2005 | Keep Your Distance | Holly | |
| 2005 | The Lost City | Miliciana Muñoz | |
| 2005 | Sueño | Mirabela | |
| 2005 | Numb3rs | Sonya Benavides | Episode: "Assassin" |
| 2006 | Minoriteam | Maria / Gold Digger | Voice Episode: "Landon in Love" |
| 2007 | Adrift in Manhattan | Isabel Parades | |
| 2007 | American Dad! | Store Owner | Voice Episode: "American Dream Factory" |
| 2007 | D-War | Agent Linda Perez | |
| 2007 | Goal II: Living the Dream | Rosa Maria | |
| 2007 | Love Comes Lately | Esperanza | |
| 2008 | Racing for Time | Flores | Television film |
| 2008 | Nothing like the Holidays | Anna Rodriguez | |
| 2009 | Ghost Whisperer | Marla | Episode: "This Joint's Haunted" |
| 2009 | Down for Life | Mrs. Castro | |
| 2009 | Becoming Eduardo | Leticia | |
| 2009 | Mother and Child | Amanda | |
| 2009 | A Single Woman | Storyteller | |
| 2011 | Off the Map | Inez | Episode: "I'm Home" |
| 2011 | The Perfect Family | Christina | |
| 2013 | Modern Family | Pilar | 2 episodes |
| 2013 | Major Crimes | Rosa Vega | Episode: "Under the Influence" |
| 2014 | Matador | Maritza Sandoval[7] | 7 episodes |
