Valentin de Vargas, who menaced Janet Leigh as
Pancho in Orson Welles' "Touch of Evil," has
died at the age of 78.
Vargas died June 10 of myelodysplastic syndrome
in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was laid to rest at the Santa Fe National Cemetery in
New Mexico. His daughter, Vanessa de Vargas, said the family wanted to wait
until after his burial to announce his death.
Vargas was active in Nosotros, the organization
founded by Ricardo Montalban to support Latinos in show business, and he took
acting classes taught by Anthony Quinn.
In addition to "Touch of Evil," Vargas
appeared in "Blackboard Jungle," Howard Hawks' "Hatari!,"
"The Magnificent Seven" and William Friedkin's "To Live and Die
in L.A."
Vargas also guest starred in such popular TV shows
as "Hill Street Blues," "The Wild Wild West," and
"Dallas," as well as a classic horror episode of "The
Alfred Hitchcock Hour": The Life Work of Juan Diaz, based on a
short story by Ray Bradbury.- Harvey Chartrand