{"id":19354,"date":"2025-04-14T14:02:10","date_gmt":"2025-04-14T14:02:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/19354\/"},"modified":"2025-04-14T14:02:10","modified_gmt":"2025-04-14T14:02:10","slug":"only-fools-and-horses-and-miami-vice-star-dies-aged-78-after-suffering-from-a-long-and-painful-illness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/19354\/","title":{"rendered":"Only Fools And Horses and Miami Vice star dies aged 78 after suffering from a &#8216;long and painful illness&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul class=\"mol-bullets-with-font\">\n<li class=\"\"><strong>Have YOU got a story? Email tips@dailymail.com\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"author-section byline-plain\">By <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/profile-161\/rebecca-lawrence.html\" class=\"author\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">REBECCA LAWRENCE FOR MAILONLINE<\/a> <\/p>\n<p class=\"byline-section\"> Published:  04:28 EDT, 14 April 2025   |  Updated:  07:21 EDT, 14 April 2025   <\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez has died aged 78 after suffering from a\u00a0&#8216;long and painful illness&#8217;.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The Cuban actor passed away on Sunday morning, his assistant confirmed.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">A statement to\u00a0South <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/florida\/index.html\" id=\"mol-79ff9b40-1909-11f0-b3c3-71946454c291\" rel=\"noopener\">Florida<\/a> newspaper,\u00a0Diario Las Am\u00e9ricas, read: &#8216;Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez died today at 3:03 am as a result of a long and painful illness.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The actor was known for starring in\u00a0Miami Vice in a recurring limo driver role and also appeared in the Only Fools\u00a0And Horses <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/christmas\/index.html\" id=\"mol-7a051980-1909-11f0-b3c3-71946454c291\" rel=\"noopener\">Christmas<\/a>\u00a0special, Miami Twice.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">His most recent role came in 2022, in TV series Jammerz. Prior that he starred in the <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/tvshowbiz\/hbo\/index.html\" id=\"mol-68068330-190a-11f0-b3c3-71946454c291\" rel=\"noopener\">HBO<\/a> remake of the hit movie,\u00a0Father of the Bride.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Born in San Antonio de <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/las-vegas\/index.html\" id=\"mol-68008fc0-190a-11f0-b3c3-71946454c291\" rel=\"noopener\">las Vegas<\/a>, Mario moved to United States aged 15 and later took up a career in acting.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-7dfe7b7c2042328c\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/97245917-14606493-Mario_Ernesto_S_nchez_has_died_aged_78_after_suffering_from_a_lo-a-24_174462933487.jpeg\" height=\"360\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez has died aged 78 after suffering from a 'long and painful illness'. The Cuban actor passed away on Sunday morning, his assistant confirmed.\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez has died aged 78 after suffering from a &#8216;long and painful illness&#8217;. The Cuban actor passed away on Sunday morning, his assistant confirmed.<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-850bd44caba05a34\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/97245945-14606493-The_actor_was_known_for_starring_in_Miami_Vice_pictured_in_a_rec-m-11_174461933961.jpeg\" height=\"533\" width=\"634\" alt=\"The actor was known for starring in Miami Vice (pictured) in a recurring limo driver role and also appeared in the Only Fools And Horses Christmas special\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">The actor was known for starring in Miami Vice (pictured) in a recurring limo driver role and also appeared in the Only Fools And Horses Christmas special<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">He went on to land roles in Hollywood movies such as 1985&#8217;s Invasion U.S.A. and The Specialist in 1994.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">In 1978, the star founded Teatro Avante, a nonprofit theater organisation,\u00a0focused on preserving Hispanic theater and culture.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The Latino Theater Company\/LATC honoured him with the Legacy Award in 2014, an accolade for &#8216;outstanding individuals whose lifelong commitment to Latino Theater in the United States and Latin America will have a lasting impact on the field.&#8217;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Accepting the honour, Mario said that the award means &#8216;that we have done a lot but we have a lot more to do. That\u2019s all it means.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;I\u2019m humbled by it but at the same time I\u2019m very proud. But I always feel we haven\u2019t done enough. We still need to create more interest in the residents of Miami for theater; that\u2019s what we are still lacking.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Don\u2019t misunderstand me, I\u2019m happy we are getting this award and it belongs to everybody who has helped Teatro Avante and the International Hispanic Theatre Festival to survive, and that includes audiences and sponsors.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;But I have to be honest, I think there\u2019s still a lot that needs to be done.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Fans were quick to pay tribute on social media.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-bf3fef79b5c5961e\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/97246621-14606493-Mario_pictured_in_the_1991_Only_Fools_and_Horses_Christmas_speci-a-25_174462933488.jpeg\" height=\"492\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Mario pictured in the 1991 Only Fools and Horses Christmas special, Miami Twice\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Mario pictured in the 1991 Only Fools and Horses Christmas special, Miami Twice<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Ram\u00f3n A. S\u00e1nchez penned: &#8216;A glory of <a style=\"font-weight: bold;\" target=\"_self\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/cuba\/index.html\" id=\"mol-79ff2610-1909-11f0-b3c3-71946454c291\" class=\"\" rel=\"noopener\">Cuba<\/a> and the theater has left us: Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez. He is already with Lorca, Moli\u00e8re, Euripides and many more greats of the theater. Rest in peace Chachito and thank you very much for your legacy.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Actress Ver\u00f3nica Abruza added: &#8216;Sad news. Goodbye Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez. My condolences to his beloved children, family and friends.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;I will always remember how kind you were upon my arrival in Miami; your attention, your chivalry.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">I will always remember how kind you were upon my arrival in Miami; your attention, your chivalry.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;May your soul unite with the source of light and love.&#8217;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Miami Art Promotion issued a statement that read: &#8216;The outstanding actor and director of Cuban origin Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez dies in Miami.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;His tireless work in the Cuban exile theater, since his early arrival in the United States, has earned him the valuable work of Teatro Avante, a group he founded, as well as the Miami International Hispanic Theater Festival, with almost 40 years of experience.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Peace to his remains and condolences to his loved ones and friends. It also serves as a well-deserved tribute to his extensive career.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>   <img decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-1010531e475ca487\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/97246287-14606493-image-a-12_1744619766176.jpg\" height=\"801\" width=\"634\" alt=\"A statement to South Florida newspaper, Diario Las Am\u00e9ricas, read: 'Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez died today at 3:03 am as a result of a long and painful illness' (Mario pictured in 2006)\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" style=\"max-width:100%\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>   <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">A statement to South Florida newspaper, Diario Las Am\u00e9ricas, read: &#8216;Mario Ernesto S\u00e1nchez died today at 3:03 am as a result of a long and painful illness&#8217; (Mario pictured in 2006)<\/p>\n<p>                    Share or comment on this article:<br \/>\n                        Only Fools And Horses and Miami Vice star dies aged 78 after suffering from a &#8216;long and painful illness&#8217;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Have YOU got a story? Email tips@dailymail.com\u00a0 By REBECCA LAWRENCE FOR MAILONLINE Published: 04:28 EDT, 14 April 2025&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19355,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[12711,92,77,2308,813,16,15,49],"class_list":{"0":"post-19354","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-cuba","9":"tag-dailymail","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-hbo","12":"tag-tvshowbiz","13":"tag-uk","14":"tag-united-kingdom","15":"tag-united-states"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114336690570744798","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19354"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19354\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}