James Victor (actor)

Lincoln Peralta (July 27, 1939 – June 20, 2016), known professionally as James Victor, was a Dominican-born American actor. He was best known for his role of Sgt. Jaime Mendoza on The Family Channel television series, Zorro, from 1990 to 1993 for three seasons. Victor was a longtime protege of John Cassavetes, a pioneering independent filmmaker. He appeared in several of Cassavetes' films, including Shadows (1959), Too Late Blues (1961), and Faces (1968).

Victor, the youngest of his family's six children, was born Lincoln Peralta in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic, on July 27, 1939. He emigrated from the Dominican Republic to New York City with his family when he was four years old. He would later chose the stage name "James Victor" in honor of his older brother.

In 1958, Victor graduated from the now defunct Haaren High School in the Hell's Kitchen section of Midtown Manhattan. He got a job in the mailroom of the Walt Disney Company's New York City offices and joined El Nuevo Círculo Dramatico, a bilingual theater company, after graduating from high school.

By chance, Victor met John Cassavetes, who would become a personal and professional mentor. The meeting led Victor to study at an acting workshop which had been established by Cassavetes and Burt Lane, a theater director and acting coach. Cassavetes liked Victor's work and cast him in several of his films, including Shadows in 1959, Too Late Blues in 1961, and Faces in 1968. Victor called Cassavetes his "" and the friendship between the two continued until Cassavetes' death in 1989.

...
Wikipedia