Mario Michael Lopez, Jr., was born on October 10, 1973, to parents Mario Michael, Sr., and wife, Elvia. He is descended of mixed Latino and Native American heritage. He was reaised in a strong Roman Catholic family with his younger sister, Marissa. While in high school, he was on the school wrestling team. He graduated from Chula Vista High School in 1991.
His acting career began as a preteen with various character roles. He did a guest appearance on the sitcom, The Golden Girls, as a Mexican orphan named Mario and this opened doors for him in Hollywood. By the time he was a teenager and entered high school, he was in training as a wrestler and his adolescent muscular physique made him the object of other teen fantasies.
This physical presence served the young Mario well. It helped to land him in his most widely recognized role as the high school hunk, A.C. Slater in the network sitcom: Saved By The Bell. He portrayed Slater character throughout the series run in the mid-to-late 1980s and in numerous series sequels thereafter during the 1990s. He was a teen heartthrob for both females and quite a number of budding teen gays and sexually curious/questioning. His on-screen persona, with boyishly good looks and charm, served him well for both this series and the sequels.
Following the end of the regular Saved By The Bell series, he continued to appear in sequels and TV specials for the show as his original character, Slater. He also began once again returning to other guest roles on different TV shows. He has been involved in several fitness programs offering advice on weightlifting and workout routines.
Since then, he has been featured in numerous different TV projects. He was in the third season of the popular series, Dancing With The Stars, in which he and his partner were awarded second place. He was the celebrity guest host for the entertainment news magazine show, Extra. He is also the host for the series, America's Best Dance Crew for MTV.
In 2004, he married Ali Landry in a Catholic ceremony on April 24. Their marriage was annulled two weeks later over infidelities committed by Lopez during their relationship. Since then, he has been involved with Broadway dancer, Courtney Laine Mazza. Their daughter, Gia Francesca Lopez was born on September 11, 2010. In 2008, he made his Broadway debut in the revival of the show, A Chorus Line, in the role of Zach.
From 2006-2010, he played Dr. Mike Hamoui on FX Network's Nip/Tuck. As a plastic surgeon, in one episode he drove the show's character, Troy Christian, to distraction with a nude shower scene.
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| Mario Lopez Ass In Nip/Tuck Episode |
