Andy García

Country of origin: Cuba

Andrés Arturo García Menéndez (born April 12, 1956), professionally known as Andy García, is a Cuban American actor. He became known in the late 1980s and 1990s, having appeared in several successful Hollywood films, including The Godfather: Part III, The Untouchables, Internal Affairs and When a Man Loves a Woman. More recently, he has starred in Ocean's Eleven and its sequels, Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen, and The Lost City. García was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Vincent Mancini in The Godfather Part III.

To read more about Andy García, visit his page on Wikipedia.

Rene Capo

Country of origin: Cuba

Rene Capo (May 9, 1961 – July 6, 2009) was a judoka from the United States who competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics and the 1996 Summer Olympics. Capo immigrated to the United States from Cuba as a young boy. Though he won several judo championships in high school, Capo took a four year break from the sport to attend the University of Minnesota. After college, Capo went on to qualify for two United States Olympics teams, could not compete as an alternate in another due to a back injury, and narrowly missed making the 2008 team. In 2008, Capo was diagnosed with lung cancer, which caused his death the following year.

To learn more about Rene Capo, visit his Wikipedia page.

Raul Ramos y Sanchez

Country of origin: Cuba

As the 100th immigrant featured in my blog, I present Raul Ramos y Sanchez:

Cuban-born Raul Ramos y Sanchez grew up in Miami’s cultural stew before becoming a long-time resident of the U.S. Midwest. After a successful career in advertising that included founding an ad agency with offices in Ohio and California, Ramos turned to more personally significant work. This began with developing a documentary for public television, Two Americas: The Legacy of our Hemisphere and also creating MyIimmigrationStory.com — an online forum for the U.S. immigrant community.

To see the rest of his biography, check out his website here. Also, you may find the following interviews of interest:

audio interview

CNN interview (in Spanish with English subtitles)

And of course, last but not least his immigrant blog can be found here, with the following description:

Statistics do not tell the story of immigration. People do. Since its inception, this nation has been continually infused with the energy of newcomers. Yet their assimilation has seldom been smooth. The challenges we face today are not new. Only the stories are.

Desi Arnaz

Country of origin: Cuba

Desi Arnaz (March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban-born American musician, actor and television producer. While he gained international renown for leading a Latin music band, the Desi Arnaz Orchestra, he is best known for his role as Ricky Ricardo on the classic American TV series I Love Lucy, starring with Lucille Ball, to whom he was married at the time.

...

Desi Arnaz has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: one at 6327 Hollywood Boulevard for contributions to motion pictures, and one at 6220 Hollywood Boulevard for television. There is a Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center museum in Jamestown, New York (birthplace of Lucille Ball) and a Desi Arnaz Bandshell in Lucille Ball Memorial Park in Celoron, New York (childhood home of Lucille Ball).

To read more about Desi Arnaz, see his page on Wikipedia.

Celia Cruz

Country of origin: Cuba

Celia Cruz (born Úrsula Hilaria Celia de la Caridad Cruz Alfonso on October 21, 1924 – July 16, 2003) was a Havana, Cuba born salsa singer, and was one of the most successful Salsa performers of the 20th century, with twenty-three gold albums to her name. She was renowned internationally as the "Queen of Salsa" as well as "La Guarachera de Cuba."

To read more about Celia Cruz, see her page on Wikipedia.

Cachao López

Country of origin: Cuba

Israel "Cachao" López (September 14, 1918 – March 22, 2008), often known just as "Cachao" (pronounced /kəˈtʃaʊ/ (kər-CHOW)) was a Cuban mambo musician, bassist and composer, who has helped bring mambo music to popularity in the United States in the early 1950s.

He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, won several Grammy Awards, and has been described as "the inventor of the mambo". He is considered a master of descarga (Latin jam sessions).

To find out more about Cachao López, see his page on Wikipedia.