Mario Lopez

Early life, family and education

Lopez was born on October 10, 1973, in Chula Vista, California, the son of Elvira Soledad Trasviña and Mario Alberto López Pérez. Lopez was raised in a Catholic family. His parents are both emigrants from Mexico. His father was born in Culiacán, Sinaloa, and his mother in Tijuana, Baja California. His younger sister, Marissa, is married to former NFL Minnesota Vikings and Houston Texans linebacker Kailee Wong.

Lopez started dance education at age three, training in tap and jazz. He also did tumbling, karate and wrestling at his local Boys and Girls Club when he was 7 years old. He excelled at these as well as other activities in which his mother enrolled him. During high school at Chula Vista High School, he was on the school's wrestling team at the weight class of 160 lb. He placed 2nd in the San Diego Section competition and 7th in California his senior year. He graduated in 1991.

Career

Lopez was discovered by a talent agent at a dance recital when he was 10 years old. He initially worked in local advertisements and commercials before making TV appearances.

Acting

Lopez began acting in 1984 when he appeared as younger brother Tomás in the short-lived ABC comedy series a.k.a. Pablo. That same year, he was cast as a drummer and dancer on Kids Incorporated; he performed on three seasons. In March 1987, he was cast as a guest star on the sitcom The Golden Girls as a Latino boy named Mario who faces deportation. He was cast in a small part in the film Colors (1988) as Felipe's friend.

Lopez was cast in 1989 as A.C. Slater in the television Saturday-morning series sitcom Saved by the Bell (1989–1993), and its spinoff Saved by the Bell: The College Years (1993–1994). On February 4, 2015, Lopez reunited with Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Elizabeth Berkley, Dennis Haskins, and Tiffani Thiessen on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where they appeared in a Saved by the Bell sketch with Fallon. In 2020, Lopez reprised the role of A.C. Slater in Peacock's sequel series, Saved by the Bell.

In 1997, Lopez starred as Olympic diver Greg Louganis in the television film Breaking the Surface: The Greg Louganis Story. The following year, he was cast as Bobby Cruz in the USA Network series Pacific Blue for two seasons before it was canceled after the fifth season; he then went on to guest star on Resurrection Blvd., Eve, and The Bad Girl's Guide. In March 2006, Lopez joined the cast of the daytime soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful playing the role of Dr. Christian Ramirez. On July 18, 2006, he was released from his B&B contract. Later that year, Mario guest-starred as a plastic surgeon who drives Christian Troy to jealousy when he sees him naked in the shower in an episode of FX Network's Nip/Tuck during the show's fourth season, which began in autumn 2006. He also made an appearance on George Lopez as a police officer in late 2006.

Also in the fall of 2006, Lopez signed on as a contestant on the third season of Dancing with the Stars on ABC with professional partner and then-girlfriend Karina Smirnoff who was making her series debut. They finished in second place, losing to the team of Emmitt Smith and Cheryl Burke.

Lopez and Courtney Mazza had a reality show on VH1 called Mario Lopez: Saved by the Baby which premiered on November 1, 2010. Lopez guest-starred as a reporter for Extra Sesame Street in the Sesame Street episode "The Veggie Monster" in 2012.

In December 2020, Lopez starred as Colonel Sanders in A Recipe for Seduction, a short film from Lifetime and KFC. In 2024, Lopez signed a multi-year deal with Great American Media.

Hosting duties

In 1992, he hosted his first series on NBC, called Name Your Adventure. He hosted the serial tabloid Extra, as well as the MTV reality shows America's Best Dance Crew and MTV's Top Pop Group. In the 1995–96 season, he hosted the second season of Masters of the Maze on what was then The Family Channel. Lopez is both the host (with Carmen Palumbo) and co-executive producer of Sí TV's Dating Factory. From October to December 2012, he co-hosted the Fox singing competition The X Factor along with Khloe Kardashian. In September 2013, Lopez returned to the show as sole host for season 3 after Kardashian was not asked back as co-host. The X Factor was cancelled on February 7, 2014. From 2002 to 2005, he was the host of the Animal Planet show Pet Star, despite some difficulty with an allergy to cats. Lopez hosted the Miss America pageant in 2007, 2009, and 2010.

Lopez has guest co-hosted The Wendy Williams Show, and MCed the gala benefit for the 2010 Pageant of the Masters arts festival in Laguna Beach, California.

Starting in 2012, Lopez began hosting his own nationally syndicated radio show, ON With Mario Lopez, for Premiere Radio. It streams online daily on iHeartRadio and airs on selected CHR and Hot AC stations (particularly on KBIG-FM/Los Angeles) throughout the U.S.

In August 2014, Lopez began hosting the Hot AC edition of the iHeartRadio Countdown.

In July 2019, it was reported that Lopez would be leaving his duties hosting Extra in order to host rival program Access Hollywood. In November 2019 Lopez was the Grand Marshal of the Hollywood Christmas Parade.

In 2024, Lopez began hosting the Game Show Network series Blank Slate.

Stage career

Outside of TV, Lopez made his Broadway debut on April 15, 2008, in the revival of the musical A Chorus Line as Zach.

Books

Lopez has published three non-fiction books. The first, Mario Lopez Knockout Fitness, was published in 2008 and written together with Jeff O'Connell (who had previously written a fitness book with LL Cool J). His book Extra Lean followed in early 2010 and became a New York Times bestseller. Extra Lean Family was published in May 2012. He released a children's book entitled Mario and Baby Gia by Celebra Children's Books (a division of Penguin Books), on September 27, 2011. The book is about Lopez and his daughter.

Musical

In 2022, it was announced that Lopez is involved in an effort to revive the Puerto Rican boy band Menudo, as he oversaw auditions that took place, in a project named "Menudo: A New Beginning". Lopez helped revive the band as their new manager, and in 2023, Menudo released their first single under Lopez, named "Mi Amore".

Personal life

According to Lopez, Fergie was his first kiss, and the two were involved briefly while they were both on the show Kids Incorporated.

In 1993, Lopez was accused of date rape, but prosecutors found no evidence to support the allegation, and multiple witnesses "contradicted the woman's account of her encounter" with Lopez.

After six years of dating, Lopez married actress Ali Landry on April 24, 2004, in a Catholic ceremony at the Las Alamandas resort outside Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, but their marriage was annulled two weeks later. Lopez dated professional dancer Karina Smirnoff, his Dancing with the Stars partner, from 2006 to June 2008.

In the fall of 2008, Lopez met Broadway dancer, actress, and producer Courtney Mazza on A Chorus Line on Broadway in New York. They married in Punta Mita, Mexico, on December 1, 2012. They have a daughter Gia (b. 2010) and two sons Dominic & Santino (b. 2013 and 2019).

Lopez has stated that he is Catholic and goes to church every week. In March 2018, he underwent baptism by immersion at the Jordan River, which was administered by a Catholic priest.

He is a proponent of health and fitness, and was the cover feature for the November 2013 issue of FitnessRX For Men magazine. To complement his fitness regime, Lopez is an amateur boxer and a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu; he began training in early 2017 and received his blue belt in February 2018 under Professor Robert Hill of Gracie Barra Glendale. He received his purple belt in November 2022.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards

References

References

1. (June 30, 2016). "Celebrity Central: Mario Lopez".
2. "Mario Lopez Biography".
3. ''[[Finding Your Roots]]'', February 1, 2022.
4. Quirk, Mary Beth. "Mario Lopez & His Bundle of Joy !". [[OK!]].
5. Dawn, Randee. (January 19, 2018). "Mario Lopez flashes back to his disco days with hilarious retro photo". [[Today (American TV program).
6. (2014). "Just Between Us". Penguin.
7. (August 30, 2017). "Raising Mario Lopez {{!}} Mom Tells All".
8. Virchis, William A.. (June 3, 2022). "Chula Vista native Mario Lopez is receiving a big honor, and it's not related to Hollywood". [[San Diego Union-Tribune]].
9. Page, Eric S.. (2020-12-07). "Secret's Out, Chicken Man: Chula Vista's Mario Lopez IS Colonel Sanders".
10. (2014). "Just Between Us". Penguin.
11. Allis, Tim. (November 30, 1992). "Saturday's Star". People.
12. "Mario Lopez".
13. "Watch a Glorious Saved by the Bell Reunion Courtesy of Jimmy Fallon".
14. "Jimmy Fallon assembled the cast of 'Saved by The Bell' for an epic reunion".
15. (February 5, 2015). "Jimmy Fallon reunites most of the 'Saved by the Bell' cast".
16. Crist, Allison. (September 29, 2020). "The Saved By the Bell Revival Finally Has a Premiere Date".
17. Kroll, Dan J.. (July 2, 2006). "Lopez's B&B Stay Over".
18. "Mario Lopez Gets VH1 Reality Show".
19. Del Rosario, Alexandra. (December 8, 2020). "Mario Lopez Stirs up 'A Recipe for Seduction' as KFC's Colonel Sanders in New Lifetime Mini-Movie".
20. (December 7, 2020). "KFC And Lifetime Heat Up The Holidays With A First-of-its-kind Lifetime Original Mini-Movie: A Recipe For Seduction". KFC.
21. (February 6, 2024). "Saved by the jingle bell: Mario Lopez joins Great American Christmas in multi-year deal".
22. (February 6, 2024). "Great American Media signs multiyear deal with Mario Lopez". [[Washington Examiner]].
23. (October 2, 2012). "We'll Be Your 'X Factor' Co-Hosts".
24. Ledger, Emma. (April 23, 2013). "Khloe Kardashian gets axed by X Factor USA after just one series". [[Daily Mirror]].
25. Andreeva, Nellie. (February 8, 2014). "Fox's 'The X Factor' Cancelled After Three Seasons". Deadline Hollywood.
26. (September 5, 2004). "Mario Lopez's Cat Dilemma".
27. (February 6, 2012). "Mario Lopez showed off his abs and sexy underwear range 'RatedM' on The Wendy Williams Show".
28. Chang, Richard (August 29, 2010). [http://www.ocregister.com/articles/gala-264171-laguna-pageant.html "Mario Lopez hosts gala for Pageant of the Masters"]. ''Orange County Register''. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
29. (July 17, 2019). "Mario Lopez Named New Host of ''Access Hollywood'' After Exit from ''Extra''".
30. Novak, Lauren. (2023-11-13). "Mario Lopez to Host New Game Show 'Blank Slate' Coming to GSN".
31. "PHOTO CALL: Mario Lopez Honored with Painting at Tony's Di Napoli".
32. "Mario Lopez Joins 'A Chorus Line' on April 15".
33. (June 28, 2017). "Jeff O'Connell".
34. Schuessler, Jennifer. (June 6, 2010). "Bestseller New York Times – Hardcover Advice & Misc.". The New York Times.
35. (May 3, 2011). "Extra Lean Family: Get Lean and Achieve Your Family's Best Health Ever". Penguin.
36. (July 10, 2011). "Mario Lopez To Release Children's Book In September".
37. (July 10, 2011). "Mario Lopez Uses Baby Gia As Inspiration For New Book". celebritybabyscoop.com.
38. "Mario Lopez Teams up with Menudo Productions for Talent Search and Revival of Menudo".
39. (March 28, 2023). "MENUDO at Universal Citywalk Hollywood #MENUDO 2023 @menudo_official".
40. "Latina – Latino & Latin American News, Culture, Heritage, Food, Entertainment".
41. (May 11, 1993). "Woman, 18, Accuses TV Actor of Rape". [[Los Angeles Times]].
42. (June 18, 1993). "CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF: SAN DIEGO: Rape Claims Called Unfounded". [[Los Angeles Times]].
43. (May 12, 2004). "Landry, Lopez Split After 2-Week Marriage".
44. (February 11, 2011). "Mario Lopez: I Cheated on Ex Ali Landry Days Before Wedding".
45. (June 5, 2008). "Mario Lopez and Karina Smirnoff Split".
46. (April 26, 2017). "The Story of How We Met and Fell in Love {{!}} Mario and Courtney Lopez".
47. (December 1, 2012). "Mario Lopez Weds Courtney Mazza".
48. (September 12, 2010). "It's a Girl for Mario Lopez & Courtney Mazza".
49. (September 12, 2010). "Mario Lopez and Courtney Mazza Welcome a Baby Girl!".
50. (September 10, 2013). "Mario and Courtney Lopez Welcome Son Dominic".
51. (July 8, 2019). "Baby No. 3! Mario Lopez's Wife Courtney Mazza Gives Birth". Us Weekly.
52. "Mario Lopez Shares Before-and-After Photos of His 'Busted' Eye from Jiu-Jitsu Injury: 'Makeup Magic'".
53. (October 14, 2019). "Q&A: Mario Lopez Suits Up in Women's Lingerie". [[Newsweek]].
54. (March 27, 2018). "'Hallelujah': Mario Lopez gets baptized in the same river as Jesus". [[Fox News]].
55. (October 2013). "Get Leaner, Stronger and Faster!".
56. Zahar, Chris. (February 13, 2017). "Mario Lopez Does Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu". Jiu-Jitsu Times.
57. (February 17, 2018). "Actor And Host Mario Lopez Is Now A Blue Belt In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu". Jiu-Jitsu Times.
58. (November 14, 2022). "Mario Lopez Promoted to Purple Belt".
59. (April 22, 2013). "Pic! Introducing Mario as Social Smurf". Extra.
60. (October 30, 2018). "Mario Lopez Can Teach You Something about Enjoying Family, Food and a Few Other 'Fs'".
61. Goldberg, Leslie. (March 23, 2017). "Mario Lopez to Host CBS' 'Candy Crush'". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].