Fifty Fabulous Facts About A Martinez

Santa Barbara's Sexy, Yet Sensitive Leading Man Shares Some Intimate Details

by Janet Di Lauro, selected from Daytime TV, June '89

(Thanks to Anne in Australia!)

    On-screen, he is Santa Barbara's Latino heartthrob -- Cruz Castillo -- the adoring husband, tender lover, devoted father, consummate friend .... in a word -- perfect.  Off-screen, most people would describe actor A Martinez the very same way.  Whenever any of his castmates are asked to talk about him, they do so with words of praise.  It seems that no one ever discusses A Martinez without using a string of superlatives.

    "You're just not talking to the right people," A laughs.  "If you asked the right ones, they're probably sick to death of me."  Then, he gets a bit more serious.  "I try to be an easy guy to get along with, because I have a great life.  It would be unfair to be a drag about it.  But I get angry.  I lose my temper.  I get irrational like everybody else."

    Okay, so the man doesn't think he's "Mr. Perfect."  Then let's compromise and say he's the next best thing.

    1.  A's birth certificate name reads:  Adolph Larrue Martinez III.  "The name has come down my family line from my grandfather," he says.

    2.  Born in Encino, CA, on September 27th, A is the eldest of six children (one girl and five boys).  His heritage includes Blackfoot Indian and Northern European on his mother's side, and Mexican blood on his father's side.

    3.  When A entered show business, his agent told him that Adolph was a terrible name to go by.  He suggested A use the name Dolph, which he did on his very first project.  "People would call my name on the set, and I wouldn't even hear them, because Dolph wasn't my name.  So, I suggested I go by the name A Martinez," he explains.

    4.  What is A's best virtue?  "I'm tenacious."

    5.  What about A's worst vice?  "I tend to ignore my limits, sometimes at the expense of my own well being," he admits.

    6.  The person most inspirational to A's career is Harry Belafonte.  "A friend of my father's used to take me to see him at the Greek Theater every other year," A recalls. "He was a great influence on me.  He used to wear satin shirts that were cut way down to the navel.  My mother made me one when I was 11 for this talent contest at the Hollywood Bowl.  I sang and won.  I fantasized I was a mini-Harry Belafonte."

    7.  A originally planned to study political science at UCLA because one of his teachers thought he'd make a fine lawyer.

    8.  Two weeks before classes began, A switched his major to drama.  "I'd received my requirements from the political science department over the summer.  I had to read 11 books by the first day of class.  A friend of mine was enrolled in the theater department.  All he had to do was write a 500 word autobiography.  I thought, 'Gosh!  That sounds like a lot more fun and a whole lot easier.'  So, I transferred."

    9.  A dropped out of college when he was a sophomore.  "I was doing an enormous amount of theater and neglecting just about everything else.  I was on probation throughout my third year.  After the third quarter of getting terrible grades, I decided to quit."

    10.  The acting bug bit A while he was in high school.  "I'd taken a few acting lessons and met this actress who had a wonderful personality.  That's when I decided I wanted to get closer to those kind of people."

    11.  A's modern day hero -- Jackson Browne!  Why?  "Because he is a great, great artist.  He's willing to put his political consciousness on the line," A says.

    12.  If A could remake any movie, he'd choose West Side Story.  "But I'm not sure if I'd want to play Bernardo or Tony."

    13.  His all time favorite film is It's a Wonderful Life.  "Whenever we think about how lucky we are to be alive -- period -- we are in a state of grace."

    14.  A's favorite actor is Meryl Streep.  "Beyond any man or other woman, I think she is in a class my herself,"  he says.

    15.  What was A's biggest career break?  "Getting cast in The Cowboys," he answers.  "That movie put me on the map."

    16.  Watching TV is not a big favorite pastime of A's.  "I don't watch any nighttime.  I watch sports and Santa Barbara."

    17.  A's favorite sports team is the Lakers.  "I think Magic Johnson is a genuine hero," he says.  "He makes all the people around him better, which is the most anyone can ask for."

    18.  If A, himself, had to recast the role of Cruz, he's pick Pepe Serna.  "He is an actor of great respect in the Latin community," A notes.

    19.  Working out is a priority with A.  He lifts weights every third day for two-and-a-half hours and rides a bicycle.

    20.  A drives a ten-year-old BMW 3201 into which he has put a second engine.

    21.  He doesn't wear any cologne at all.

    22.  What brand of jeans do he and Cruz wear?  "New Man 5-pocket jeans," says A.  "They discontinued them recently, and there was an outcry from people who like to wear tight jeans.  So, they decided to make them again."

    23.  A calls Lane Davies (Mason) his best friend on the show.  "We have the longest history.  We have a very clear understanding of what it takes to do this well...to do this well for a long period of time.  I appreciate that he really looks out for me.  And beyond that, I really respect Lane enormously as an actor."

    24.  Of his co-stars, past and present, A is the greatest admirer of Justin Deas (ex-Keith) and Robert Thaler (ex-Pearl).  "They both take chances," A says.

    25.  "I'm a fairly serious musician," says A.  "Not a good one, but a serious one.  I play keyboards and a little guitar.  But I have a terminally lame left hand as a keyboard player."

    26.  Of all the gifts he's received from fans, A truly treasures "the incredible outpouring of stuff my wife Leslie and I got when our son Cody was born.  I don't think we bought him  any clothes the first year of his life."

    27.  What has been A's most memorable fan encounter?  "I was at a newsstand at the airport in Dallas.  A bunch of people recognized me and started making a fuss.  One woman started yelling across the counter, 'He's not really as tall as he looks on TV, is he?'  There I was feeling kind of short and wishing I'd shaved that morning.  I was trying to elevate myself in my own mind when Ricky Mahorn, a power forward from the Detroit Pistons, who probably stands 6 foot, 8 inches tall, walks up to me and says, 'Man, I really love your work.  I want your autograph.'  There I am listening to this lady saying I don't look that tall, when this professional basketball player stands right next to me."

    28.  A eats no red meat and hasn't in more than 20 years.  "I eat chicken just about every single night," he says.

    29.  When he has a junk food craving it's usually for a cheeseburger.  "That's what I fantasize about the most."

    30.  Although A doesn't cook at all, he does have one specialty.  "My guacamole.  It's a hot one that will burn you up.  But it's extremely well received when I crank it out for a party."

    31.  A's favorite SB storyline:  "I think the high point of my tenure here was when Cruz thought Eden was dead.  My favorite scene was the eulogy I delivered following her death.  Patrick Mulcahey wrote that speech.  It was the best summation of Cruz, as a character, that we'll ever see."

    32.  A's least favorite storyline:  "It was a spy deal where I was chasing The Fox all over Mexico.  We couldn't get the audience to care about it at all."

    33.  If A couldn't work with Marcy Walker (Eden), who would he pick as a leading lady?  "If I couldn't work with Marcy, I can't imagine myself being here (on Santa Barbara," A says firmly.

    34.  The happiest day of A's life was "the first night I spent with my wife, followed by the day our son Cody was born.  It's a toss up.  But the second one would not have happened if it wasn't for the first," A laughs.

    35.  A's advice on how to have a good marriage -- in a word "talk".

A real family man, A loves to stay at home with his wife Leslie and their son Cody.  

    36.  On being a good father, he says, "Try to put yourself in your child's place and imagine how difficult it must be to get a handle on living."

    37.  A has been nominated for a Best Actor Daytime Emmy twice.  "I definitely want to win," a says.  "But it was also a thrill to have been nominated.  I've lost to Larry Bryggman and David Canary.  I feel better losing to people of their caliber than to have lost to somebody whom I thought was a lousy actor."

    38.  The worst job A ever had was as a janitor.  "That was a drag.  The worst part was cleaning ashtrays.  I couldn't get the smell of cigarettes off my hands for hours."

    39.  The greatest gift A ever received was "being taught by my parents how to love."

    40.  If A weren't an actor, what would he do?  "I think I would try to write.  I must be out of my mind," he laughs.  (I agree!  He is out of his mind.)

    41.  A says he owes his career to a man named Lewis Palter.  "He was a director at UCLA.  Having seen his genius and having been appreciated by him made me believe in myself.  Then, he introduced me to my agent.  So, he gets the prize."

    42.  A wishes he could rewind the tape machine of his life back to the day he ruined his leg while warming up for a charity race.  "That was July 28, 1985.  I should have declined to be in that race.  I wasn't prepared."

    43.  Fan mail really touches A.  "There's a lot of misery in America these days.  As a populace we don't like to admit it.  As an actor on a TV show I'm privy to a lot of people's pain.  People feel they can tell Cruz things.  It's difficult to stand at times."

    44.  What storyline would a like to see for Cruz?  "I'd like to see him drop his life as a cop and wander off into the bushes and think about things on more of a spiritual level."

    45.  The one character A's always wanted to play is a teacher.  "I'm starting to understand how important teachers are.  My father was a teacher."

    46.  A's worst on-set blunder was during the time Cruz was on trial for Elena's murder.  Eden was on the witness stand and D.A. Keith Timmons was verbally attacking her.  "I had to interrupt Justin during his enormous two page monologue.  It was incredibly intense.  The veins were bulging out of his neck.  He was brilliant.  I was waiting for a key word in Justin's speech to jump up and attack him, which was not a reasonable expectation.  I should have found other signals in his speech to depend on .  Justin didn't say the word.  So, I didn't interrupt him, and we had to re-shoot the entire scene.  The second time I interrupted too soon.  We had to re-shoot it again.  It's a miracle that Justin is still my friend."

    47.  A's advice to young actors starting out:  "Work!  No matter what.  Don't get caught up worrying about connections, having the right pictures, getting invited to the right parties....Concentrate on work.  Do whatever you have to do to work.  Work for free."

    48.  To his fans, he says "look out for your brothers and sisters.  Don't forget that we're all in the same boat.  We can enhance the quality of our lives by being as generous as we can to others."

    49.  What about his success is A most grateful for?  "Being removed from that constant struggle to get a job.  That's the hardest thing about acting."

    50.  Why hasn't success spoiled A Martinez?  "That's simple," A smiles.  "My friends and my family would kick my butt if it ever started to."

When Leslie gave birth to Cody on July 25, 1986, A was right there in the delivery room holding her hand.  "It was the greatest experience of my life," A admits.

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