Francesco Quinn

Francesco Daniele Quinn (March 22, 1963 – August 5, 2011) was an Italian-born American actor. The third son of Oscar winner Anthony Quinn, Francesco is perhaps best known for his breakout role as Rhah in Oliver Stone’s Academy Award-winning Platoon (1986).

Francesco Quinn was born in Rome, Italy, the son of Anthony Quinn and second wife Iolanda Addolori, a noted costume designer to whom Anthony Quinn was married to for 31 years.

Quinn had Mexican, Irish, and Italian ancestry.

Film

Quinn appeared in many feature films including the New York Independent Film Festival winner Placebo Effect. He acted with his father in several films, including A Star For Two with Lauren Bacall. The two Quinns also had the opportunity to share the role of Santiago inThe Old Man and the Sea, son and father playing the character as a young and old man.

Quinn sometimes played moody, dangerous characters, such as vampire Vlad Tepes in the 2003 direct to video alt-historical thrillerVlad, and wandering warrior Thane Le Mal in the short film The Gnostic. Like his father, Quinn also appeared in historical dramas, playing such roles as Latino Captain Salamanca in Steven Spielberg’s mini-series Into the West (2005) and a lead role in TNT's Rough Riders (1997) (TV). One of Quinn’s earliest roles was as Marcus Vinicius in the 1985 mini-series Quo Vadis?.

More recent examples of Quinn's work include Park, which won the audience award at 2007 CineVegas, and the short film Muertas, starring Golden Globe-winner America Ferrera. In 2007, he appeared as Ruben Vega in the Academy Award-nominated short film The Tonto Woman, adapted from the Elmore Leonard short story.

Television

From 1999 to 2001, Francesco appeared on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless as Nina Webster's boyfriend, Tomas del Cerro, and was nominated for an ALMA Award (an award reserved for Latino/a performers) as Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Soap Opera for his work as Tomas Del Cerro, an aloof writer from New York.

Quinn has also appeared extensively in television guest star roles in crime and thriller dramas. He was lead guest star in an episode of JAG (1995). On CBS's The Fugitive, Quinn played Victor Gutierrez, a DEA agent with an edge, and he has played the recurring role of villain Syed Ali on Fox's series 24. Other TV guest starring roles have occurred in Criminal Minds, ER, CSI: Miami, The Glades, Navy NCIS, Alias, Crossing Jordan, In the Heat of the Night, Miami Vice, Red Shoe Diaries, The Handler, Soldier of Fortune, Good vs. Evil,Vengeance Unlimited, and The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones. Quinn also portrayed the final criminal/villain, Guillermo Beltran, in the long-running F/X series, The Shield. In 2008, Quinn joined Luke Perry and C. Thomas Howell in the western film A Gunfighter's Pledge.

Quinn was one of the earlier working actors to branch out into contributing to video games with his role as a main character inCommand & Conquer: Tiberian Sun (1999). In 2010–2011, he took part in the second season of the Italian TV series Il commissario Manara.

Personal life

Quinn's marriage to Irish American Julie McCann, niece of Belfast snooker champion, Alex Higgins, ended in divorce. They resided inSherman Oaks, California with their twin children Max and Michela.

Death

Quinn died on August 5, 2011, in Malibu after experiencing what was believed to be a heart attack while running with his son, Max. Quinn has ten surviving siblings, including Alex, Antonia, Catalina, Christina, Danny, Duncan, Lorenzo Quinn, Ryan, Sean, and Valentina Quinn. His eldest sibling Christopher drowned in 1941, aged two.

Athletic pursuits

Quinn pursued sports such as skiing, snowboarding, windsurfing, free diving, road cycling, mountain biking, and actively racedmotocross and street bikes. Quinn also was an avid motorcycler, and was a spokesman for The Motorcycle Industry Council andHonda. A world traveler, he was fluent in English, French, Spanish and Italian.

Quinn was a contestant on Ty Murray’s Celebrity Bull Riding Challenge on CMT, until he was sidelined with a broken rib after being stomped on by a Level 2 bull.

Filmography

Films 

Year Title Role Notes

1986 Platoon Rhah  

1988 Love Dream Peter Janson  

1989 Stradivari Alessandro   The Favorite Adult Mahmud   Indio Daniel Morell   Casablanca Express Captain Franchetti  

1990 The Old Man and the Sea Santiago as a Young Man TV movie 1991 A Star for Two Young Gabriel Todd   Murder Blues John Reed   1992 Judgment Jimmy Sollera   1993 Deadly Rivals Bunny Wedman   1995 The Dark Dancer Ramone   Top Dog Mark Curtains   Red Shoe Diaries 5: Weekend Pass Tommy Video 1996 Cannes Man Frank 'Rhino' Rhinoslavsky   1997 Deadly Ransom Luis Mendes   Rough Riders Rafael Castillo TV movie. 1998 Nowhere Land Walfredo   Placebo Effect Zac   2000 The Translator Jean-Paul Esselen   2001 Almost a Woman Don Carlos   2003 Vlad Vlad Țepeș   2006 Man vs. Monday Juan Carlos   Cut Off Agent Jones   Park Smoldering Park Worker   2007 The Tonto Woman Ruben Vega   The Gnostic Warrior   Muertas Carlos   Afghan Knights Amad   2008 Danny Fricke Pablo Vicente   A Gunfighter's Pledge Sheriff TV movie Broken Promise Santos   Hell Ride Machete   2009 Four Single Fathers Dom   2010 Conflict of Interest Ron Garcia   Rollers Quinn Completed 2011 Transformers: Dark of the Moon Mirage/Dino (voice)