Jorge Garcia (actor)

Jorge Garcia
Garcia at the New York PaleyFest 2014 for the TV show Lost.
Born	(1973-04-28) April 28, 1973 (age 44) Omaha, Nebraska, United States
Alma mater	University of California, Los Angeles
Occupation	Actor, comedian
Years active	1997–present

Jorge Garcia (born April 28, 1973) is an American actor and comedian. He first came to public attention with his performance as Hector Lopez on the television show Becker, but probably became more well known later for his portrayal of Hugo "Hurley" Reyes in the television series Lost from 2004 to 2010. Garcia performs as a stand-up comedian. He starred in the FOX television series Alcatraz and played a minor character on ABC's Once Upon a Time. He stars as Jerry Ortega on Hawaii Five-0 and can be seen in the Netflix original movie Ridiculous 6.

Garcia was born in Omaha, Nebraska. His mother, Dora Mesa, is a Cuban-born professor, and his father, Humberto Garcia, is a Chilean-born doctor. He grew up in San Juan Capistrano in Orange County, California and went to San Clemente High School. He wrestled in high school, where he was given the nickname "Baby-Faced Killer". As a senior, he was selected by the faculty as "Triton of the Year", the highest award given to a graduating senior.

Garcia graduated from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1995 as a Communication Studies major. He also studied acting at the Beverly Hills Playhouse acting school.

Garcia spent six years working at Borders Books and Music while auditioning. He was in a few commercials during that time. He later said that his first taste of street recognition came from starring in a Jack in the Box commercial which was aired frequently on local television. He began landing roles in television and film, but his career really took off when he played the role of Hugo Reyes (Hurley) in the television series Lost.