---
name: "Manuel Padilla Jr."
canonical: "https://film.one/person/manuel-padilla-jr"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "13 July 1955"
died: "29 January 2008"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 82
updated: "2026-09-16T21:19:56.402002+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Manuel Padilla Jr.

Actor. Born 13 July 1955 in Los Angeles, California, USA. Died 29 January 2008.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 13 July 1955, Los Angeles, California, USA
- **Died:** 29 January 2008
- **Active:** 1973–1983

## Biography

Manuel Padilla Jr. was an American actor. Born in Los Angeles, California, he began his career as a child performer in the 1960s, appearing in television westerns including episodes of Rawhide, Bonanza and Gunsmoke. He played the role of Jai, a native boy adopted by Tarzan, in dozens of episodes of the 1960s series Tarzan starring Ron Ely, and had a semi-regular role in The Flying Nun.

As an adult, Padilla appeared in films including The Great White Hope (1970), A Man Called Horse (1970), American Graffiti (1973) as Carlos, More American Graffiti (1979) as Carlos, and Scarface (1983). He died in Pomona, California, on 29 January 2008.

*Sources: imdb.com, rottentomatoes.com, al.com.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *Scarface* (1983), Fi1m 79, as Kid #2 — [page](https://film.one/film/scarface.md)
- *American Graffiti* (1973), Fi1m 84, as Carlos — [page](https://film.one/film/american-graffiti.md)

## Also known for

- *A Man Called Horse* (1970), Leaping Buck
- *Gunsmoke* (1955), Paco Avila
- *More American Graffiti* (1979), Carlos
- *Robin and the 7 Hoods* (1964), Orphan Boy (uncredited)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/manuel-padilla-jr