Carlos Romero

Carlos Romero (February 15, 1927 – June 21, 2007) was a professional ice skater who turned to acting in films and television. He was a prolific character actor, who appeared on 132 television episodes and eleven films during his half-century of performing. Early life He was born Carlos Romero Jr, the only child of Carlos Romero Sr and Malvina Polo. His father, born Geronimo Quiroga in Monterrey, Mexico, fled to the United States as a child in 1910 with his large family. They had owned a hotel and theater in Monterrey, but supported the wrong side in the struggle between Venustiano Carranza and Pancho Villa during the Mexican Revolution. The extended family adopted the stage name "The Dancing Romeros" for their act during the 1920's, when they performed shows at nightclubs, and later at movie theaters, in between exhibitions of silent pictures. Carlos Sr switched to designing dance routines for nightclubs and films in the early 1930's. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1938 under his stage name, sponsored by members of the Hollywood film industry with whom he worked. The family settled into the San Fernando Valley of California, where young Carlos attended first Van Nuys High School then North Hollywood High School. Carlos Romero Jr applied for his first social security card at age 15 in June 1942.