Jesus Ruiz was born as the third of four children in a Puerto Rican family and grew up on the Lower East Side of New York City. As a child, he was a creative and energetic individual who loved to perform. He not only excelled as a visual artist but also as a musician.
Jesus received a full scholarship to the prestigious private academic institution The Franklin School on Manhattan's upper west side, where he continued to excel as an Honor Roll student and basketball All-Star. At Cornell University, he worked his way through college by performing as a dancing DJ in his own production entertainment company, as a newscaster, on-air radio personality, and host of a local TV show.
After playing professional basketball for two consecutive summers in Puerto Rico, Jesus' research on the growing Hispanic market during his internship at WCBS-TV in New York City in the summer of 1979 further shaped his future plans. Within two weeks of graduating from Cornell, he began working as a production assistant at WPIX-TV in New York City, and a year later, he signed his first modeling contract.
Due to the lack of roles for Latinos at the time, Jesus became a successful licensed investment banker. Years later, as the market for Latino talent grew, he returned to his first love and began booking print work, commercials, and industrials for clients such as AutoZone, Verizon, Pfizer, GMC, and IBM.
Jesus has had a prolific television career, appearing in shows such as Third Watch, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Conviction, the ABC pilot 20 Questions, and soap operas One Life To Live, As The World Turns, and All My Children. He has also recurred twenty times on All My Children.
In feature films, Jesus has appeared in The Inside Man, Freedom Land, The Producers, The Brave One, and soon to be released The Singer, Elise, and TIC. Most recently, he has guest and co-starred on Days of Our Lives, Without A Trace, Doll House, CSI: Miami, The Event, The Exes, Saving Grace, NCIS: Los Angeles, Jane The Virgin, BOSCH, Get Shorty, Lethal Weapon, Speechless, All Rise, S.W.A.T., Curb Your Enthusiasm, and has a recurring role on the TNT hit crime drama S.W.A.T and All Rise, and a starring role in the upcoming series Cocaine Sisters.
Jesus currently resides in Los Angeles.
