Inglewood Park Cemetery,Inglewood, California, U.S.
Other names
Butch The Latin from Manhattan
Occupation
Actor
Years active
1929–1993
César Julio Romero Jr. (February 15, 1907 – January 1, 1994) was an American actor. He was active in film, radio, and television for almost 60 years. His wide range of screen roles includedLatin lovers, historical figures in costume dramas, characters in light domestic comedies, and theJoker on the live actionBatman television series of the mid-1960s, which was included inTV Guide's 2013 list of The 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time.[1] He was the first actor to play the character.
Romero as part of the deck crew aboard theUSS Cavalier, c. 1944
César Julio Romero Jr. was born in New York City on February 15, 1907, the son of César Julio Romero Sr. (1872–1951) and María Mantilla (1880–1962).[2] His mother was a concert singer and said to be the biological daughter of Cuban national heroJosé Martí.[3][4][5][6][7] His father was born inBarcelona and emigrated to the United States in 1888, where he was an import/export merchant.[8][9] He was a first cousin of silent film starEmerson Romero, who was a few years older than César and came to New York in 1907 to attend a school for the deaf.[10]
On October 12, 1942, he enlisted in theUnited States Coast Guard as an apprentice seaman[15] and served in thePacific Theater of Operations. He reported aboard the Coast Guard-crewed assault transportUSS Cavalier in November 1943. According to a press release from the period, Romero saw action during the invasions ofTinian andSaipan. The same article mentioned that he preferred to be a regular part of the crew and was eventually promoted to the rating ofchiefboatswain's mate.[16]
Among almost countless television credits, Romero appeared several times onThe Martha Raye Show in the mid-1950s. He portrayed Don Diego de la Vega's maternal uncle in a number of Season 2Zorro episodes.[citation needed]
Romero in his role as theJoker on the 1960s TV seriesBatman
From 1966 to 1968, he portrayed theJoker onBatman. He refused to shave his moustache for the role, and so thesupervillain's white face makeup was simply smeared over it throughout the series' run and in the1966 film.[19]
His guest star work in the 1970s included a recurring role on the western comedyAlias Smith and Jones as Señor Armendariz, a Mexicanrancher feuding with Patrick McCreedy (Burl Ives), the owner of a ranch on the opposite side of the border. He appeared in three episodes. Romero later portrayedPeter Stavros onFalcon Crest (from 1985 to 1987). He also appeared in a sixth-season episode ofThe Golden Girls, where he played a suitor named Tony Delvecchio for Sophia. Apart from these television roles, Romero appeared as A.J. Arno, a small-time criminal who continually opposes Dexter Riley (played byKurt Russell) and his schoolmates of Medfield College in a series of films byWalt Disney Productions in the 1970s.
A registeredRepublican, Romero appeared in theNixon-Lodge bumper sticker motorcade campaign[20] in October 1960, and four years later, initially supportedHenry Cabot Lodge Jr. in the write-in campaign supporting Lodge for president. Romero appreciated and said he liked Lodge's strong anti-Communist stance inSouth Vietnam where Lodge was at the time the United States ambassador.[21] During 1964, Romero supportedBarry Goldwater in thegeneral election.[22]
Also in 1964, Romero was very much involved in theU.S. Senate race in California that pitted one of Romero's best friends and fellow actor,Republican nomineeGeorge Murphy (who nicknamed Romero "Butch"), in his bid to oust then-SenatorPierre Salinger, aDemocrat.[23][24]
The Senate race was a heated contest where Salinger had already narrowly defeated then-California State ControllerAlan Cranston, who would become a senator in 1968, in the Democratic primary. Both men had "primaried" SenatorClair Engle, who had sought re-nomination despite being terminally ill with abrain tumor; Engle died less than two months after the primary. Then-Democratic GovernorPat Brown appointed Salinger instead of Cranston to fill the vacancy; although the appointment seemed reasonable since Salinger had won the primary, it was roundly criticized by Romero and Murphy as cronyism since Salinger had been theWhite House press secretary for the late PresidentJohn F. Kennedy, a close ally of Brown. Romero appealed to disappointed Cranston backers after the primary to support Murphy. Romero's urging helped Salinger lose a race no one thought could be lost.[25]
Murphy lost the full use of his voice during his term when part of his larynx was removed due to throat cancer. Romero employed other Hollywood stars to try to help Murphy win re-election in 1970.[26] However, Murphy lost re-election toJohn V. Tunney, the son of boxing legendGene Tunney.
After Murphy's Senate defeat, Romero scaled back his involvement in politics but would take part for a Hollywood friend, such asRonald Reagan in his successful gubernatorial bids in 1966 and 1970[27] as well as all four of his presidential bids in 1968, 1976, 1980, and 1984. Romero also joined with fellow actors and actresses in lobbying theUnited States Congress to present the then-dyingJohn Wayne with aCongressional Gold Medal for his service to the nation.[28]
Romero never married and had no children. Many Hollywood historians and biographers have speculated on Romero being very private about his sexuality.[29] In 1996,Boze Hadleigh wrote a book,Hollywood Gays, containing a series of claimed interviews in which Romero allegedly came out.[30][31] Romero died two years before the book was released, and while many of the interviews in the book are disputed as possible forgeries, many are not disputed.[32]
For his contributions to the motion picture and television industry, Romero has a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame at 6615 Hollywood Boulevard for film and another star at1719 Vine Street for television.[35][36]
^Year: 1910; Census Place: Manhattan Ward 12, New York, New York; Roll: T624_1023; Page: 3B; Enumeration District: 0593; FHL microfilm: 1375036
^National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; NARA Series: Passport Applications, January 2, 1906 - March 31, 1925; Roll #: 453; Volume #: Roll 0453 - Certificates: 1250-1499, 11 Jan 1918-14 Jan 1918
^Voger, Mark (November 8, 2014)."'Batman' TV cast on the creation of a camp classic".The Star-Ledger. Newark. Retrieved November 15, 2014. "CESAR ROMERO – The actor who created the role of the Joker lived in Bradley Beach as a child, and attended Bradley Beach Elementary School and Asbury Park High School."
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