Gerald Castillo
Courtesy of Dayna Quinn Castillo
Gerald Castillo, the veteran character actor who played the father of Mario Lopezis AC Slater on the NBC sitcom Saved by the bell, died. He was 90.
Castillo died May 4 at his Houston home, his 36-year-old wife Dayna Quinn-Castillo announced.
Castillo also played Det. Michael Benedict on NBC Hill Street Blues 1987, dr Herrara on CBS’ knot landing in 1990 and judge Davis Wagner on the ABC daytime soap opera General Hospital 1992-94.
He has appeared on many other shows throughout his career, from Everyone in the family, Barnaby Jones, MASH And dynasty To night court, Dallas, Hunter And CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.
Castillo participated on the big screen With bare eyes (1983), Deathwish 4: The Crackdown (1987), Kinjite: Forbidden Topics (1989), Delta Force 2: The Colombian Connection (1990), Emergency (1994) and Above suspicion (1995). He often portrayed a tough guy.
fans of Saved by the bell Know him as Major Slater, a military man who AC was a strict but loving parent. He appeared in the comedy in 1989 and 1992.
Castillo was born on December 23, 1932 in Chicago and studied acting and directing at the Goodman Theater in his hometown in the 1960s. He then performed on stages across the country alongside luminaries like Rita MorenoJessica Tandy, James Broderick, Jeanne Crain and Sherman Hemsley.
It was Hemsley who convinced Castillo to move to Los Angeles to pursue a film and television career, and he appeared on an episode of CBS’ The Jeffersons in 1978 on the occasion of his screen debut.
In semi-retirement, Castillo worked in theaters throughout Los Angeles and at the Santa Paula Theater in Ventura County. He was known as “a charismatic and perceptive director who would jingle change in his pocket while contemplating a scene, then hop on stage to break the deadlock or whisper in an actor’s ear,” his noted Woman.
Castillo continued to act on screens until 2012 and moved to Houston with his wife a year later.
Also among the survivors are his grandsons Brian and Stephanie, and great-grandchildren Allen and Bernie. His daughter Lisa from his first marriage died last year.