Ontiveros was born in El Paso, Texas, the daughter of Luz "Lucita" Castañón and Juan Moreno, middle-class Mexican immigrants who overcame a lack of formal education to become owners of a tortilla factory and two restaurants in El Paso. She graduated from El Paso High School and went on to study at Texas Woman\'s University in Denton, Texas, where she received a bachelor\'s degree in social work. She was raised Roman Catholic.\n', '

After her marriage, she and her husband moved to California to realize his dream of starting an automotive business. During a period of dissatisfaction with her career as a social worker, Ontiveros was trying to decide whether to go back to school for a nursing degree when she saw an article about a need for local film extras. With her husband\'s encouragement, she took the job and parlayed it into a long stage and screen career. Prior to acting, she had worked for 18 years as a social worker, and she continued as an activist with many of the same causes with which she worked in that profession, such as domestic violence prevention and AIDS awareness and prevention.\n', '

Ontiveros once estimated that she had played a maid at least 150 times on stage and screen; she wanted to see more diverse roles available to Latina actors, noting "I\'m proud to represent those hands that labor in this country. I\'ve given every maid I\'ve ever portrayed soul and heart." In part because of her history in this role, she was chosen as the narrator for the documentary Maid in America.\n', '

Return to Lupe Ontiveros Autograph Profile