Isaac in a quintessential pose.
Accomplished character actor Isaac Ruiz passed away on February 10, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. The 83 year old veteran of television and motion pictures was preceded in death by his wife Zoey Francine Ortega. He is survived by four daughters (Hannahizabel, Sarah Francine, Rebekah Ruth and Deborah Esther) and three sons (Isaac Ruiz III, Gabriel Rene Ruiz and Robert Joshua Martinez). He was also the father of two daughters (Gloria Susan Zarate and Debbie Jean Velasquez) by a previous marriage to Elvira Gloria Velasquez. Ruiz was born on June 12, 1943 in Los Angeles, California where he grew up. He joined the Marine Corps in 1961 and was honorably discharged in 1965. A friend and fellow actor, Richard Yñiguez, remembers him as “vibrant, energetic and charismatic.”
Isaac Ruiz is perhaps best known for his role as “Mando” on the 1970s comedy series Chico and the Man (1974-1977).
In the TV series, Mando is the friend of Chico, played by Freddie Prinze. Jack Albertson played Ed Brown (the Man), a garage owner where the weekly series played out. Actor and musician Scatman Crothers played Louie, a neighborhood garbage collector. “There was tremendous chemistry on the show.” Isaac recalled in a January 20, 2001 interview with the Tucson Citizen, “There was that spark between Jack and Freddie. We worked hard to get things right, but we had a lot of fun too.” In that same interview, Ruiz remembers that he had a close relationship with series lead Freddy Prinze. Often Prinze would try out his stand-up- comedy routines on Isaac. ” He thought I was his toughest critic, so if he could get me to laugh, he knew his stuff was good.”
Isaac on the set of The Infinity Factory in 1975, pictured with photographer Rudy Rodriguez.
Ruiz left the show after the 1976-1977 season following Prinze’s sudden death on Jan. 29,1977 from a self -inflicted gunshot wound to the head. At the time Prinze was going through a divorce and had a drug dependency.
Following the cancellation of Chico and The Man, Ruiz continued to act in character roles on a number of prime time television series including roles in Delvecchio (1977), The Rockford Files (1978) and Charlie’s Angels (1978).
Isaac with fellow actors Edward James Olmos and Pepe Serna.
His English language feature film credits include Nowhere to Hide (1977), Fun With Dick and Jane (1977), Corvette Summer (1978) and Heaven Only Knows (1979). In addition to the roles he portrayed on American television and films, versatile Ruiz played important roles in Mexican feature films such as Raices De Sangre (1979), Al Otro Lado Del Puente (1980) and Mojado Power (1981).
Television director Jesús Treviño, a long time friend who cast Ruiz in an early children’s television series The Infinity Factory (1975) and later in the Mexican feature film, Raices de Sangre (1979), remembers Isaac Ruiz as exemplifying the Chicano experience on film. “In many ways Isaac’s energy and barrio savvy made him the personification of Chicano life. He had a self-confidant swagger, a bold bi-lingual presence and a positive attitude to whatever he took on. He won the respect of whoever worked with him. The acting community and the Chicano community at large have lost a unique and powerful voice.”
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This profile was based, in part, on an interview with David Petruska in the Tucson Citizen. Quotes from that interview are used in this post under the fair use proviso of the copyright law. All photos of Isaac are copyrighted by George Rodriguez and are used in this post with his permission.