Growing up in Havana, Cuba, Mario Garcia was a well-known child actor. He was about 10 years old the first time he ever stepped on the set. It began with a chance encounter. Mario had been sitting on a bench outside a studio in Havana, waiting while his father and his band were performing.
Suddenly, someone approached him and said, " We are trying to test for this commercial. " So he got up and had an audition (试境). Even with no acting experience, it quickly felt like a natural career path. From the commercial, he went on to be on TV series and a movie and all that.
But a revolution came and in its wake, his career was broken off. Mario was 15 when he had to fly to America as a refugee (难民). He landed in Miami, where he went to live with his aunt and uncle while his parents stayed in Cuba. They joined him in Miami about a year later.
Mario clearly recalled the day he left: Feb. 28, 1962. He was in high school that first year in Florida. It was a challenge living in a foreign country with no language, no parents and going to school. He had to go from being an actor to being a waiter. He always went to an alley behind the restaurant and sat on a wooden box and dried the tears with his apron. But Mario's optimism never failed him. He went on to earn his Ph. D. in Spanish language and literature from the University of Miami.
He currently teaches journalism at Columbia University. Still, he said, " I' m not giving up on getting a good part in a movie. " Mario's latest acting job was as an extra in the new musical drama film In the Heights. He continues to audition for new roles.
