VALENTE RODRIGUEZ

ACTOR-COMEDIAN

I was born in 1964 in Edcouch, Texas into a family of Migrant farmworkers. I was the youngest of 8. For the first 13 years we traveled year-round. Spending 6 months in the southern part of the US and the other 6 months in the northern states. Texas and Florida in the cold months and Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, North and South Dakota, Ohio and many other temporary working/stranded places along the way. When I was 13 my mother got a job at the cafeteria for the elementary school in Edcouch and I stayed in Elsa through the school year still migrating in the summer months. I remember being in the fields at a very early age. I had my own cotton sack made out of a pillowcase and a wire hanger.

Although there were many happy family moments, there were also many tragedies in the fields. I realized that life was not for me. I needed a way to get out of the fields. I concentrated on education and graduated from high school and with the help of some great teachers I went on to Pan American University in 1982. Again at Pan Am, I found some great teachers who inspired, mentored and guided me through my college journey. The plan was to be a lawyer but that quickly changed to a communication degree because Pan Am did not offer an acting degree back then. I graduated from the university in 1986. I then attended graduate school for a year, mostly to apply for a 2500 loan, so I could have some money to go to Los Angeles the very next year.

I arrived in Los Angeles and moved in with a friend in Orange county. I had 4 jobs by the end of the week. I was working at a video store, as a telemarketer, a delivery guy and doing construction work. I had the name of an agent that a professor of mine had gone to college with. I went to her office and long story short she agreed to temporarily represent me, without signing me. The first thing she sent me out on I got. A movie called Salsa which was 8 weeks worth of work in January of 1988. I was able to save that money and quit my jobs. I have been a working actor since then.

After Salsa I looked for a theatre company in Los Angeles. I found the Latino Theatre Lab and became a member for 10 years. I did a lot of Theatre in those ten years including mainstage productions and children’s tours throughout the country and abroad. In 1989, I went to Russia with the show 1000 Cranes for a children's show festival. I had the opportunity to be part of the World Premiere Plays at Stone Wedding Festival. In addition, I was also also starring on television in the The Golden Girls and Falcon Crest Shows. Futhermore, I did films such as Mi Familia, Blood in Blood out, Roosters, Volcano and Erin Brokovitch (Julia Roberts). Then in 2002, I was fortunate enough to land the George Lopez Sitcom.

The George Lopez sitcom ran for 6 years from 2002 - 2007. We did 120 shows and got syndicated in 2006. We have been on the air for 21 years. I played the part of Ernie, George's Best Friend from Childhood. After that show I had some episodic work and some movies including It’s Complicated with Meryl Streep.

In 2010, I also went to Texas and produced two films titled Gone Hollywood and Los Scavengers Directing Los Scavenger. We shot them all throughout the Rio Grande Valley (RGV). The cast and crew of the films were 90% from the RGV. It was a hard summer but very rewarding to be able to provide some experience for young eager students from the RGV Area, some of which have gone on to work in Hollywood.

Then in 2011, I got the part of Cesar on the Fran Drescer Show - Happily Divorced. The show ran for three seasons and we did a total of 36 shows. I also had the pleasure of working with Rita Moreno who played Fran's mom in the show. This would later become important because I did my Master’s Thesis on Ms. Moreno and the struggles that latino actors have in the “Business”.

I graduated with my Master’s Degree in 2015 from UTRGV. Shortly after, I landed the part of the school principal in the movie Mcfarland USA. A movie about a small town cross country team starring Kevin Kostner as the coach. In 2018, I landed the part of the Judge in the Film Instant Family with Mark Wahlberg. In 2019, I was cast in the Movie Countdown which is the only Horror/Suspense Movie that I have ever done. In 2020-2021, I auditioned for and was cast in the series with Jaimie Foxx, Dad Stop Embarrassing Me on Netflix playing the part of Manny. I was in 7 of their 8 shows. In 2022, I did a small cameo in the Movie Stu. A really small part but I got to work with Mel Gibson and Mark Wahlberg. During this time, I also had the good fortune of being cast as the Principal in the High School Musical: the Musical: The Series. That job bookeened the Covid years starting in 2018 and ending in 2022.

I have also started to do some stand up in the last couple of years. Currently doing the Guey Funny Comedy Tour. We have mainly done shows in Texas: Dallas, Plano, Corpus Christi, Mcallen, Brownsville, San Antonio and Houston.

My success throughout the years has allowed me to bring some of that back to the communities where I grew up. The films we did in 2010 were part of my commitment to the RGV. Since the very beginning of my success in Hollywood I have made it a point to come back to the RGV to speak at the University and at many schools throughout the area. I established a Scholarship at UTRGV in 2005. I have also made it a point throughout the years to go into schools and speak to many students about how education changed my life and how it can change theirs as well.

Headshots by PitRod Photography