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Jimmy Smits in an Emmy-award winning actor of Puerto Rican and Dutch descent. He starred in the Steven Bochco television dramas "L.A. Law" and "N.Y.P.D. Blue."
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Play NowJimmy Smits. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 12:07, May 20, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/jimmy-smits-9542327.
Jimmy Smits. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/jimmy-smits-9542327 [Accessed 20 May 2013].
"Jimmy Smits." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 20 2013, 12:07 http://www.biography.com/people/jimmy-smits-9542327.
"Jimmy Smits," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/jimmy-smits-9542327 [accessed May 20, 2013].
"Jimmy Smits," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/jimmy-smits-9542327 (accessed May 20, 2013).
Jimmy Smits [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 20] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/jimmy-smits-9542327.
Jimmy Smits, http://www.biography.com/people/jimmy-smits-9542327 (last visited May 20, 2013).
Jimmy Smits. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/jimmy-smits-9542327. Accessed May 20, 2013.
He remained with the show until 1998, when he delivered a heart-wrenching performance in the season finale. During his run on the show, Smits earned five Emmy nominations as Lead Actor in a Drama Series.
While working on N.Y.P.D. Blue, Smits attracted further attention with a lead role in the Latino film Mi Familia (1995),
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alongside Edward James Olmos.
Smits continued to pursue film roles, appearing in the thriller
The Million Dollar Hotel (2000), which paired him with Mel Gibson, Milla Jovovich, and Gloria Stewart. Despite an impressive cast, the film, which debuted at the Berlin Film Festival, failed to attract a wide audience in America. Later that year, he headlined the boxing drama
Price of Glory and the supernatural thriller
Bless the Child, opposite Kim Basinger. Smits also appeared in the final two Star Wars films -
Attack of the Clones (2002) and
Revenge of the Sith (2005).
Smits also made a brief return to television in 2004. He appeared as congressman and presidential hopeful Matthew Santos on the critically acclaimed
The West Wing until it was canceled after the 2005-2006 season.
Personal Life
In 1981, Smits married his high school sweetheart, Barbara. The couple had two children together before they divorced in 1987. He lives with long-time companion and fellow actress Wanda De Jesus.On a personal level, Smits remains passionately committed to the Latino community. Along with comedian Paul Rodriguez and actress/singer Jennifer Lopez, he has invested in The Conga Room, a Los Angeles dance club which serves as a vehicle for Latino music. Smits has also founded The National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts, an organization that promotes Hispanic talent in the performing arts.
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