Santos Ortega

Santos Ortega
Ortega (left) as Inspector Queen with Hugh Marlowe as Ellery Queen and Marian Shockley as Nikki in The Adventures of Ellery Queen, 1939
Born	(1899-06-30)June 30, 1899 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	April 10, 1976(1976-04-10) (aged 76) Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
Other names	Santos Ortegga
Occupation	Radio, television actor

Santos Edward Ortega (June 30, 1899 – April 10, 1976) was an American actor and comedian. He was best known for playing Will Hughes in As the World Turns, taking over from Will Lee (who only played one episode). Ortega continued in the role until his death in 1976.

Ortega was born in New York City, New York, on June 30, 1899, to parents Rafael (born in Venezuela and of Spanish descent) and Isabella (née Corbett, from Ireland) Ortega. Rafael Ortega was a cigar maker by trade, which may have influenced his son's habit of cigar smoking throughout his career.

Ortega initially had aspirations of joining the priesthood and studied briefly at the Christian Brothers Seminary in Pocantico Hills, New York, but changed his mind after landing a series of small acting roles in a series of Broadway productions.

He began his career when he was 17 in the theater in "an extravaganza at the old Hippodrome Theater. Later, he went on tour with a singing group, returning to New York City to appear on the Broadway stage including roles in Jeb (1946), Puppets of Passion (1927), What Never Dies (1926-1927), What's the Use (1926), and Marilyn's Affairs.

As radio stations began to come on the air in large numbers, radio programs began to gain momentum, thus opening up new opportunities for Ortega. He first worked in radio in comedy, appearing on a variety show, Blackstone Plantation, where he played a character named Don Rodrigo. Ortega later said that he was hired for the role after a casting director hired the young unknown based on seeing Ortega's name, assuming that he would be perfect for the role.

Despite Ortega's ethnic-sounding name, and the fact that he did have Latino origins on his father's side, he did not speak Spanish nor look it. He came to learn that if he convincingly mastered a Spanish dialect, more work would come his way, and it did.

He served as straight man for the duo of Frank Crumit and Julius Sanderson. Ortega said, "It was a song and patter show, and I provided the laughter." He went on to be active in the medium, starring in The Adventures of Nero Wolfe (1943–1944) and narrating Gangbusters, as well as Stroke of Fate. Perhaps his most famous and notable radio role was Commissioner Weston on The Shadow. He played the title role in Bulldog Drummond (1942–43) and was heard in the daytime radio serials Valiant Lady (as Edward Curran),Perry Mason, 1948's Roger Kilgore, Public Defender, and as the title character in The Adventures of Charlie Chan (1947–1948),The Affairs of Peter Salem from 1949 to 1953, and Hannibal Cobb (1950–1951).