Vic Diaz, the jolly evil fat man of Filipino exploitation cinema, is a household name in the world of B-movies. With his unmistakable appearance, characterized by a broad, mirthful grin, beady dark brown eyes, a trim black goatee and mustache, swarthy complexion, thinning hair, a protuberant sagging belly, and a smooth, oily baritone voice, Diaz was a constant and charismatic presence in a vast array of horror films and drive-in features from the 1970s.
Born in Manila in 1932, Diaz initially had aspirations of becoming a lawyer, as his father was the Chief Justice of the Court of Appeal. However, after four years of practicing law, he grew dissatisfied and decided to pursue an acting career instead. He began performing in amateur theater in 1949, and in the late 1950s, he started his extremely lengthy and prolific film career, making his debut in the war picture The Day of the Trumpet in 1958.
Diaz soon amassed a huge number of credits, frequently appearing in movies for directors Eddie Romero and Cirio H. Santiago. Some of his most noteworthy roles include a sneaky, ruthless diamond smuggler in Monte Hellman's Flight to Fury in 1964, a cunning and devious Satan in Beast of the Yellow Night in 1971, an amiable mechanic in Jack Starrett's terrific The Losers in 1970, a mute, whimpering, buck-toothed, hunch-backed village idiot in Night of the Cobra Woman in 1972, and a flamboyant homosexual prison guard in Jack Hill's hilarious chicks-in-chains send-up The Big Bird Cage in 1972.
Moreover, Diaz has also acted on stage in plays, portraying a broad range of parts that include Iago in Shakespeare's Othello and the King of Siam in The King and I. Unfortunately, in 2001, he had to voluntarily quit acting due to old age and ill health. Nevertheless, despite his retirement, Vic Diaz's many delightful cinematic contributions shall continue to amuse and entertain B-movie fans for countless years to come.
