Beloved 'Sesame Street’ Actor Emilio Delgado Dies At 81
Emilio Delgado, who played the endearing character Luis Rodgriguez on Sesame Street for more than four decades, has died. Delgado is remembered for bringing a positive image of Latinos to television, shattering stereotypes that had been a part of mainstream media for years. He was 81.
"We are saddened by the news of Emilio's passing. Emilio was an immense talent who brought so much joy and smiles to his fans. He will be missed by many and we know his legacy will live on. Our thoughts are with his loved ones, including his wife, Carole," Variety quoted his manager, A3 Artists Agency CEO Robert Attermann.
His cause of death was not immediately released. However, NPR reported that Delgado was diagnosed two years ago with a form of blood cancer.
Delgado landed his role as the fix-it-shop owner on the landmark children’s education program in 1971, quickly becoming a beloved member of the Sesame Street family for generations. He ended his run on the program in 2015 after 438 episodes.
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Long before diversity and inclusive practices were company departmental mainstays, Sesame Street hired Delgado as part of an initiative to bring diversity to its programming through Spanish-language segments of the show. Born in the U.S., but raised in part in Mexico, Delgado infused Hispanic cultural lessons and language learning into the show. He playfully interacted with the Muppet characters and used his guitar to introduce viewers to Latin infused music. In 1988, his character married Maria, Sonia Manzano. The couple raised their TV daughter Gabriela on the show.
His acting career began in the late 1960s. Before portraying Luis, Delgado struggled to find positive roles as a Latino actor.
“The only roles that I could find were gang members or drug addicts,” he said in 2021 for a Sesame Street retrospective documentary titled Street Gang.
“I realized I had gotten a role on television that was a role of a Latino, Mexican-American, who was like a regular person. He was part of the neighborhood, he had his own business. It was a role that hadn’t been shown before.”
In addition to Sesame Street, Delgado has appeared on several TV programs in the 1970s and 80s including Hawaii Five-O, House of Cards, and a recurring role as a news editor on Lou Grant. He was also a board member at the Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice, an LGBTQ+ rights group.
Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio declared Oct. 15, 2019, “Emilio Delgado Day” at a celebration to honor Hispanic heritage.
“At a time when, if you saw diversity on television, it often was with stereotypes, and not the good kind of stereotypes,” The New York Times quoted de Blasio. “Emilio was one of the people who broke the mold, created a positive role model, for everyone, but particularly for children who didn’t get to see or hear people who looked like them and spoke like them.”
