Nestor Paiva

Highest Rated: 100% Les Girls (1957)

Lowest Rated: 0% They Saved Hitler's Brain (1963)

Birthday: Jun 30, 1905

Birthplace: Fresno, California, USA

Nestor Paiva had the indeterminate ethnic features and gift for dialects that enabled him to play virtually every nationality. Though frequently pegged as a Spaniard, a Greek, a Portuguese, an Italian, an Arab, an even (on radio, at least) an African-American, Paiva was actually born in Fresno, California. A holder of an A.B. degree from the University of California at Berkeley, Paiva developed an interest in acting while performing in college theatricals. Proficient in several languages, Paiva made his stage bow at Berkeley's Greek Theatre in a production of Antigone. His subsequent professional stage career was confined to California; he caught the eye of the studios by appearing in a long-running Los Angeles production of The Drunkard, which costarred another future film player of note, Henry Brandon. He remained with The Drunkard from 1934 to 1945, finally dropping out when his workload in films became too heavy. Paiva appeared in roles both large and small in so many films that it's hard to find a representative appearance. Fans of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby can take in a good cross-section of Paiva's work via his appearances in Road to Morocco (1942), Road to Utopia (1945) and Road to Rio (1947); he has a bit as a street peddler in Morocco, is desperado McGurk in Utopia, and plays the Brazilian theatre manager who isn't fooled by the Wiere Brothers' attempt to pass themselves off as Americans ("You're een the groove, Jackson") in Rio. During his busiest period, 1945 through 1948, Paiva appeared in no fewer than 117 films. The familiar canteloupe-shaped mug and hyperactive eyebrows of Nestor Paiva graced many a film and TV program until his death in 1966; his final film, the William Castle comedy The Spirit is Willing (1967), was released posthumously.

Highest Rated Movies

Filmography

Movies

		Credit
No Score Yet	Fly by Night	Grube	—	1993
No Score Yet	The Spirit Is Willing	Felicity's Father	—	1967
No Score Yet	Let's Kill Uncle (Let's Kill Uncle, Before Uncle Kills Us)	Steward	—	1966
14%	Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter	Saloon Owner	—	1965
No Score Yet	Ballad of a Gunfighter	Padre	—	1964
No Score Yet	California	Gen. Micheltorena	—	1963
0%	They Saved Hitler's Brain	Police Chief Alaniz	—	1963
No Score Yet	The Madmen of Mandoras (Amazing Mr. H )	Police Chief Alaniz	—	1963
33%	Girls! Girls! Girls!	Arthur Morgan	—	1962
No Score Yet	The Three Stooges in Orbit	Chairman	—	1962
No Score Yet	The Wild Westerners	Gov. John Bullard	—	1962
No Score Yet	The 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse	Miguel	—	1962
No Score Yet	Can-Can	Bailiff	—	1960
No Score Yet	Pier 5, Havana	Lopez	—	1959
No Score Yet	Alias Jesse James	Bixby	—	1959
No Score Yet	The Case Against Brooklyn	Finelli	—	1958
90%	The Left Handed Gun	Maxwell	—	1958
No Score Yet	The Deep Six	Pappa Tatos	—	1958
No Score Yet	Outcasts of the City	Pastor Skira	—	1958
No Score Yet	The Nine Lives of Elfego Baca	Actor	—	1958
100%	Les Girls	Spanish Peasant Man	—	1957
No Score Yet	The Guns of Fort Petticoat	Tortilla	—	1957
43%	The Mole People	Prof. Etienne Lafarge	—	1956
No Score Yet	Comanche	Puffer	—	1956
90%	All That Heaven Allows	Manuel	—	1955
22%	Revenge of the Creature	Lucas	—	1955
No Score Yet	New York Confidential	Martinelli	—	1955
94%	Tarantula	Sheriff Jack Andrews	—	1955
No Score Yet	Hell on Frisco Bay	Lou Fiaschetti	—	1955
No Score Yet	Casanova's Big Night	Gnocchi	—	1954
85%	Creature from the Black Lagoon	Lucas	—	1954
No Score Yet	Thunder Pass	Daniel P. Slaughter	—	1954
No Score Yet	Killer Ape	Andrews	—	1953
80%	Call Me Madam	Miccoli	—	1953
65%	Viva Zapata!	New General	—	1952
No Score Yet	Diplomatic Courier	Train Conductor	—	1952
67%	With a Song in My Heart	Doctor	—	1952
100%	5 Fingers	Turkish Ambassador	—	1952
No Score Yet	Phone Call From a Stranger	Headwaiter	—	1952
94%	On Dangerous Ground	Gabini, Newsdealer	—	1952
No Score Yet	Mara Maru	Capt. Van Hoten	—	1952
No Score Yet	My Favorite Spy	Fire Chief	—	1951
No Score Yet	Double Dynamite (It's Only Money)	`Hot Horse' Harris	—	1951
No Score Yet	Jim Thorpe---All American	Hiram Thorpe	—	1951
No Score Yet	The Great Caruso	Egisto Barretto	—	1951
No Score Yet	Guilty of Treason	Actor	—	1950
80%	Young Man With a Horn	Louis Galba	—	1950
No Score Yet	Rope of Sand	Ship's Captain	—	1949
No Score Yet	Follow Me Quietly	Benny	—	1949
90%	The Inspector General	Gregor	—	1949
No Score Yet	Alias Nick Beal	Carl	—	1949
95%	Mighty Joe Young	Brown	—	1949
No Score Yet	Bride of Vengeance	The Mayor	—	1949
100%	The Paleface	Patient	—	1948
88%	Joan of Arc	Henri le Royer	—	1948
No Score Yet	Mr. Reckless	Gus	—	1948
82%	Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House	Joe	—	1948
No Score Yet	A Likely Story	Tiny	—	1947
No Score Yet	Shoot to Kill	Gus Miller	—	1947
100%	Road to Rio	Cardoso	—	1947
No Score Yet	Robin Hood of Monterey	Actor	—	1947
60%	Humoresque	Orchestra Leader	—	1946
No Score Yet	The Last Crooked Mile	Ferrara	—	1946
No Score Yet	Suspense	Man with Blond	—	1946
No Score Yet	Badman's Territory	Sam Bass	—	1946
No Score Yet	Fear	Schaefer	—	1946
No Score Yet	Cornered	Police Official	—	1945
No Score Yet	Along the Navajo Trail	Janza	—	1945
No Score Yet	A Thousand and One Nights	Kahim	—	1945
No Score Yet	Nob Hill	Luigi	—	1945
No Score Yet	Salome, Where She Danced	Panatela	—	1945
No Score Yet	A Medal for Benny	Frank Alviso	—	1945
91%	The Southerner	Bartender	—	1945
100%	Road to Utopia	McGurk	—	1945
No Score Yet	Kismet	Captain of Police	—	1944
No Score Yet	The Falcon in Mexico	Actor	—	1944
No Score Yet	Shine On, Harvest Moon	Romero, the Chef	—	1944
No Score Yet	Tampico	Naval Commander	—	1944
No Score Yet	The Purple Heart	Francisco De Los Santos	—	1944
86%	The Song of Bernadette	Baker	—	1943
No Score Yet	The Dancing Masters	Silvio	—	1943
No Score Yet	Background to Danger	Koylan	—	1943
No Score Yet	The Hard Way	Max Wade	—	1943
No Score Yet	The Crystal Ball	Stukov	—	1943
No Score Yet	Tornado	Big Joe Vlochek	—	1943
No Score Yet	The Desert Song	Benoit	—	1943
No Score Yet	The Fallen Sparrow	Jake	—	1943
No Score Yet	Pittsburgh	Barney	—	1942
No Score Yet	Ship Ahoy	Felix	—	1942
No Score Yet	Johnny Eager	Tony	—	1942
92%	Road to Morocco	Arab Sausage Vendor	—	1942
78%	Reap the Wild Wind	Man with Suspenders	—	1942
No Score Yet	Rise and Shine	Captain	—	1941
100%	Hold Back the Dawn	Flores	—	1941
No Score Yet	Pot o' Gold	Guide	—	1941
100%	Hold That Ghost	Glum	—	1941
No Score Yet	They Knew What They Wanted	Pals at Table	—	1940
No Score Yet	Arise, My Love	Uniformed clerk	—	1940
No Score Yet	He Stayed for Breakfast	Gendarme	—	1940
100%	The Sea Hawk	Slavemaster	—	1940
No Score Yet	Primrose Path	Bluebell Manager (uncredited)	—	1940
83%	Santa Fe Trail	Agitator	—	1940
No Score Yet	North West Mounted Police	Half-breed	—	1940
81%	Another Thin Man	Headwaiter	—	1939
100%	Beau Geste	Corporal	—	1939
100%	Bachelor Mother	Actor	—	1939
No Score Yet	Union Pacific	C.P. Conductor	—	1939
92%	Midnight	Woman's escort	—	1939
No Score Yet	Ride a Crooked Mile	Leroyd	—	1938
No Score Yet	Prison Train	Sullen	—	1938
No Score Yet	Spider's Web	Henchman Red	—	1938
No Score Yet	Ramrod	Curley	—	1930

TV

		Credit
No Score Yet	Gunsmoke 1955-1975	Barman	1965
No Score Yet	Jonny Quest 1964-1965	Voice	1964
No Score Yet	The Beverly Hillbillies 1962-1971	Auctioneer	1964
No Score Yet	Bonanza 1959-1973	Thornton Tenino Chief Crazy Fox	1964 1961 1960
No Score Yet	The Andy Griffith Show 1960-1968	Big Jack Anderson	1963
No Score Yet	Rawhide 1959-1965	Hagerty	1962
No Score Yet	Perry Mason 1957-1966	Nico	1961
No Score Yet	Maverick 1957-1962	Louie	1958 1957

QUOTES FROM Nestor Paiva CHARACTERS

Lucas says: It is impossible. But I, Lucas, will do it.