Rick Aviles

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Rick Aviles

Richard Anthony Aviles (October 14, 1952 - March 17, 1995) was a stand-up comedian who is best remembered for the role of Willie Lopez in the movie Ghost.

1 Early years
2 Stand-up comedian
3 "Ghost"
4 Later years
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Early years

Aviles' parents were both born in New York City. His father Mariano Aviles was the only son of Puerto Rican parents and his mother Carmen Reyes Aviles was of Venezuelan descent. They lived in Manhattan, New York City, where Aviles was born. He was raised in a tough neighborhood and at times got himself into trouble. One of his assets was that he had a comical side to him.

[edit] Stand-up comedian

In the 1970s and 1980s, Aviles worked as a stand-up comedian on the Greenwich Village night-club circuit in New York. In 1981, he landed the role of Mad Dog in the movie Cannonball Run. He went on to act in 14 more film productions.

In 1987, Aviles landed a small part as the maintenance man in the movie The Secret of My Success, starring Michael J. Fox. That same year he became the host of It's Showtime at the Apollo, and continued as host until 1991.

[edit] "Ghost"

In 1990, Aviles landed his most memorable role. He was cast as Willie Lopez, Sam Wheat's killer, in the movie Ghost. The movie was a smash hit at the box office and received multiple Oscar nominations. Besides Aviles, Ghost also starred Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze and Whoopi Goldberg.

Aviles also acted in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Part III (1990) as Mask #1; Brian DePalma's Carlito's Way (1993) as "Quisqueya", starring Al Pacino; in Waterworld (1995) as the Gatesman, starring Kevin Costner and in Joe's Apartment (1996) as the voice of a cockroach.^[1]

Among the television series in which he appeared are Mr. & Mrs. Dracula (1980), The Day Women Got Even (1980), The Carol Burnett Show (1991) and Stephen King's The Stand (1994).^[2]