Leonardo Perucci, the Chilean-born actor, director and television host who became one of the most familiar faces on Costa Rican screens and stages, died Tuesday, Nov. 10, at age 87. His daughter, Valeria Perucci, confirmed his death. For a generation of Costa Ricans, Perucci was the host of Fantástico, the Channel 7 variety program that aired from 1985 to 1995. He also appeared on Fabulosos Sábados and later co-hosted the morning show Giros on Repretel.
Perucci had undergone a heart procedure on Monday to treat a blocked coronary artery, according to local reports. His family has not released an official cause of death. Born in Antofagasta, Chile, on Dec. 13, 1938, Perucci began acting professionally in the early 1960s. In 1967 he starred in Los DÃas Jóvenes, widely regarded as Chile’s first telenovela, and went on to appear in 14 Chilean soap operas.
After the 1973 military coup in Chile, he went into exile in Cuba, where he spent about five years working as an actor, director and playwright. He arrived in Costa Rica in 1979 and never left. Within two weeks of his arrival he was on stage in Fuenteovejuna, directed by Atahualpa del Cioppo. As a member of the National Theater Company, he went on to perform in productions including Pedro y el capitán and La visita de la vieja dama, becoming part of Costa Rica’s long theater tradition.
He also worked extensively behind the scenes, directing plays and training young actors in university classrooms. On screen, he appeared in Costa Rican films including Caribe and Buscando a Marcos RamÃrez. In 2004 he returned to Chilean television for a new run of telenovelas, among them Brujas, Descarado and Papi Ricky. The roles introduced him to a new generation of viewers in the country where his career began.
The Universidad Nacional (UNA) honored Perucci with the Universidad Nacional Medal, its highest institutional distinction, which he received alongside his wife, the writer and actress Arabella Salaverry. Culture and Youth Minister Jorge RodrÃguez said he had just learned of the death of a leading figure of Costa Rican theater and television. He extended his condolences to Perucci’s family, friends and the country’s arts community.
A wake is scheduled for today from 4 p.m. at the Funeraria del Magisterio, with a memorial Mass planned for Thursday at the San Juan Bosco church, according to arrangements announced by his family. The time of the Mass had not yet been confirmed. Reflecting on his life in Costa Rica in a past interview, Perucci said he would run out of years before he could fully thank Costa Rica for everything it had given him, as an artist and as a person.
