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José Lisardo Suárez Sánchez was born in Trubia, Asturias, Spain, on September 9, 1919. He grew up in Oviedo until his family relocated to Logroño in 1927.
Returning to Asturias in 1935, he faced the death of his father and left school to find work. At just 16, when the Spanish Civil War began, he joined the Army on the Nationalist side, later becoming a member of the Falange. He enlisted in the Legionary Corps (la Legión) and eventually volunteered for the División Azul, a German infantry division fighting against communism in Russia, returning to Spain in 1943. After the war, he found employment with the Asturian railways. Renowned Spanish director Gonzalo Delgrás cast him after an audition to star in his film Altar mayor (1944), which was successful and launched his long career. Some of his early films included Oro y marfil (1947), La niña de Luzmela (1950), Historia de una escalera (1950), a supporting role in Dawn of America (1951), and the role of a young policeman in Criminal Squad (1950). This film became a hallmark for him, leading to frequent portrayals of police officers and tough characters that suited his tall, reserved, and dark appearance. In 1950, he married his Asturian girlfriend María Luisa, and they had a daughter.
He earned an award for his performance in An Impossible Crime (1954) and appeared as one of the football players in Once pares de botas (1954). He starred alongside Dolores del Río in Señora ama (1955), followed by Main Street (1956) with Betsy Blair, perhaps his best-known film, for which he received the Triunfo award for best actor. The film's success at the Venice Festival opened doors to Italian cinema, where he secured leading roles in movies like The Challenge (1958), directed by Francesco Rosi, and Il magistrato (1959), directed by Luigi Zampa. He continued to act mainly in detective stories, dramas, westerns, and some comedies across Spanish and European productions.
In 1971, he was elected mayor and local head of the Movimiento—the sole political party during Franco's regime—for Aller, Asturias. He left Madrid to return to his native region, building a house in Moreda, where he died in 1981 following a stroke (thrombosis). His final acting role was in the popular TV series Curro Jiménez (1976) in 1977.
