Alan Tafoya
Encyclopedia
Alan Tafoya is an American actor and musician of the Jicarilla Apache
nation. He is a member of the Screen Actor's Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists
.
and lived there until moving to Los Angeles
in 2010. He is a fourth generation descendant of the Apache chief Mangas Coloradas
, and maintains a spiritual connection to his ancestry through the martial art of knife fight
ing. He is most well known to American audiences for his appearances on the Spike TV
television program Deadliest Warrior
, as the nominal Apache in the "Gladiator vs. Apache" episodes, aired in 2009.
Tafoya served as acting police chief for the Jicarilla nation after the death of his father in March 2000. He married Noraleen Vicenti in 1985, with whom he has four children. The couple later divorced, and Tafoya married fellow actor Cynthia Strauss on September 26, 2010.
In addition to his acting roles, Tafoya plays the guitar and composes original music. He is currently at work on a CD entitled Moments Locked in Time.
2010 Ink: A Tale of Captivity (currently in post-production) -- James Printer
2010 MacGruber—Charging Guard
2009 Outlaw Justice—Apache
2009 Life's Blood (short) -- Hector
2008 The Unfound (short) -- Guard
2008 Las Vegas New Mexico 1875 (short) -- Tafoya (voice)
2007 Army Men (short) -- Abachi
2002 Groom Lake—Shaman #1
2001 Maniacts—Gang Guy (as Alan R. Tafoya)
2009 Special Ops Mission (TV series) -- Tracker
2008 Comanche Moon (TV mini-series)-- Peta Nacona
2005 Dancing on the Edge (documentary short) -- Himself
2000 The Lost Child (TV movie) -- Bus driver
Jicarilla Apache
Jicarilla Apache refers to the members of the Jicarilla Apache Nation currently living in New Mexico and speaking a Southern Athabaskan language...
nation. He is a member of the Screen Actor's Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists
American Federation of Television and Radio Artists
The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists is a performers' union that represents a wide variety of talent, including actors in radio and television, as well as radio and television announcers and newspersons, singers and recording artists , promo and voice-over announcers and other...
.
Life and career
Tafoya was born on the Jicarilla Apache reservation in Dulce, New MexicoDulce, New Mexico
Dulce is a census-designated place in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 2,623 at the 2000 census, almost entirely Native American...
and lived there until moving to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in 2010. He is a fourth generation descendant of the Apache chief Mangas Coloradas
Mangas Coloradas
Mangas Coloradas, or Dasoda-hae , was an Apache tribal chief and a member of the Eastern Chiricahua nation, whose homeland stretched west from the Rio Grande to include most of what is present-day southwestern New Mexico...
, and maintains a spiritual connection to his ancestry through the martial art of knife fight
Knife fight
A knife fight is a violent physical confrontation between two or more combatants in which one or more participants is armed with a knife...
ing. He is most well known to American audiences for his appearances on the Spike TV
Spike TV
Spike is an American cable television channel. It launched on March 7, 1983 as The Nashville Network , a joint venture of WSM, Inc...
television program Deadliest Warrior
Deadliest Warrior
Deadliest Warrior is a television program in which information on historical or modern warriors and their weapons are used to determine which of them is the "deadliest" based upon tests performed during each episode...
, as the nominal Apache in the "Gladiator vs. Apache" episodes, aired in 2009.
Tafoya served as acting police chief for the Jicarilla nation after the death of his father in March 2000. He married Noraleen Vicenti in 1985, with whom he has four children. The couple later divorced, and Tafoya married fellow actor Cynthia Strauss on September 26, 2010.
In addition to his acting roles, Tafoya plays the guitar and composes original music. He is currently at work on a CD entitled Moments Locked in Time.
Film
2011 Horro Torium (short, currently filming) -- Mohican2010 Ink: A Tale of Captivity (currently in post-production) -- James Printer
2010 MacGruber—Charging Guard
2009 Outlaw Justice—Apache
2009 Life's Blood (short) -- Hector
2008 The Unfound (short) -- Guard
2008 Las Vegas New Mexico 1875 (short) -- Tafoya (voice)
2007 Army Men (short) -- Abachi
2002 Groom Lake—Shaman #1
2001 Maniacts—Gang Guy (as Alan R. Tafoya)
Television
2009 Deadliest Warrior (TV series documentary), Gladiator vs. Apache—Himself (World Champion Knife Fighter)2009 Special Ops Mission (TV series) -- Tracker
2008 Comanche Moon (TV mini-series)-- Peta Nacona
2005 Dancing on the Edge (documentary short) -- Himself
2000 The Lost Child (TV movie) -- Bus driver