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Sad news came that Puerto Rican actor Kamar de los Reyes has passed away at the age of 56. The artist is best known for his time portraying Antonio Vega on ABC’s, “One Life to Live“ and installments in the “Call of Duty” video game franchise.
He is survived by his wife, Sherri Saum, and their three children. Saum’s publisher, Lisa Goldberg, confirmed to Variety that he passed away on Sunday in Los Angeles after a brief battle with cancer.
De los Reyes was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada. He comes from a family of artists, as his dad is Cuban percussionist Walfredo de los Reyes. His brothers, Walfredo Reyes Jr, and Daniel de los Reyes are also acclaimed percussionists.
His first major credit was in the 1994 film Blade to the Heat, where he portrayed a Chicano boxer named Pedro ‘Roadman’ Quinn. Soon after, he was cast as Vega, a former gang member who found new life as a lawyer and eventually a police officer, in One Life to Live.
He was a regular cast member from 1995 to 2009, appearing in nearly 300 episodes. It was on the show that he met his future wife. Saum appeared in 33 episodes as Keri Reynolds from 1999 to 2002.
They said “I do” in 2007 and welcomed their twins, John and Michael, in 2013. Saum is also a stepmom to de los Reyes’ son, Caylen, from a previous relationship. She opened up about their parenting styles in an interview with People. “We have a factory-like system going on with the feeding and bathing. I’m lucky because Kamar has a very organized way of approaching everything he does, and it comes in handy with babies who need structure,” she told the outlet.
The 49-year-old also shared insight into what he was like as a father, calling him a “mythical baby whispering superhero.” “Sometimes I’ll be pulling my hair out, and he’ll just swoop in like some mythical baby whispering superhero — he straps them onto his chest and salsa dances with them — or plays the congas while bouncing them on an exercise ball,” she explained.
Rest in peace.