Luis Valdez

Luis Valdez was born in a farm labor camp in Delano, California in June 1940. He was the second eldest of 10 children and his parents, Armeda and Francisco, were migrant farm-workers from Mexico. One of his brothers, Daniel, is a successful actor and musician. Valdez began working in the fields at the age of six and regularly moved around California bringing in the harvest until the family settled in San Jose. He attended James Lick High School and was actively involved in the drama department. He then gained a scholarship to San Jose State University. Valdez married his wife, Guadalupe, in August 1969 and the couple have three children.

Key Dates & Events

• 1965 - Valdez founds founds El Teatro Campesino at the age of 25.
• 1965-1970 - The Delano grape strike.
• 1967 - Valdez founds the first Chicano cultural centre in Del Rey, California.
• 1969 Valdez marries his wife, Guadalupe.
• 1969 - Valdez writes and directs the short film I am Joaquin, based upon the epic Chicano poem of the same name.
• 1979 - Valdez’s play Zoot Suit opens at the Mark Taper Forum, bringing his work to a wider American audience.
• 1981 - Zoot Suit is adapted into the first major Chicano feature film.
• 1987 - Valdez writes and directs the film La Bamba about the life and career of Chicano singer/songwriter Ritchie Valens.
• 2007 - Valdez becomes a Rockefeller Fellow.
• 2014 - Valdez’s play Valley of the Heart premiers at El Teatro Campesino before transferring to the Mark Taper Forum in 2018.
• 2016 - Valdez is awarded the Presidential Medal of Arts.