"Mexican character actor Pedro Armendáriz Jr died Monday at the age of 71," reports the AP. "President Felipe Calderon's office issued a statement lamenting Armendáriz's death, calling him 'a great actor who reflected well on Mexico at home and abroad.'… He acted in more than 100 films, including the Mexican hit The Crime of Father Amaro."
Both Armendáriz Jr and his father, Pedro Armendáriz, a star during Mexican cinema's "golden age," portrayed Pancho Villa — the father in several films and Armendáriz Jr in Luis Puenzo's Old Gringo (1989). From the Wikipedia entry: "Interestingly, Pedro Armendáriz Jr also portrayed Pancho Villa's enemy Luis Terrazas in the film And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself opposite Antonio Banderas." The entry notes that both father and son also appeared in James Bond movies: "The elder Armendáriz appeared in From Russia with Love in 1963, while Pedro Jr. appeared in 1989's Licence to Kill."
The Hollywood Reporter naturally mentions "Hollywood productions such as The Legend of Zorro, Once Upon a Time in Mexico and the Brad Pitt-starrer The Mexican. He also played a role in the upcoming release of Casa de mi Padre alongside Will Ferrell and longtime Mexican friends, actors Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna. 'Pedro is one of those (people) who made you smile just seeing them,' Luna tweeted on Monday."
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