I spoke with actor Jimmy Smits via Zoom on a Thursday afternoon. Less than 24 hours earlier, he was in downtown Los Angeles hosting a farewell celebration for the Conga Room. The icon of the Los Angeles Latin music scene closed on March 27 after 25 years. 

“Twenty-five years is a great run,” says Smits, who cofounded the club with owner Brad Gluckstein and Paul Rodriguez with the goal of showcasing Latin music and artists. 

It’s the end of an era, but Smits is quick to reflect on what the club accomplished musically during its two and a half decades — the Old Hollywood-style venue hosted Cuban icon Celia Cruz, Stevie Wonder and Prince, to name a few — and what it came to represent.

In addition to hosting fundraisers and political and social events, the Conga Room spawned a nonprofit organization called Conga Kids that uses music and dance to promote social and emotional well-being, diversity, equity and inclusion for more than 50,000 kids in and around Los Angeles each year. 

“Because of all of these added community and social activities the club was involved in … there was a silver lining that came out of that,” Smits says. “We were able to pass down the music and culture to young children in Los Angeles.”

It's not surprising that the entertainment venue that Smits put his stamp on featured a component of giving back. The Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning actor is well known for his roles on L.A. Law, NYPD Blue, The West Wing and the Star Wars franchise. But he’s also made a name for himself with his long-running community involvement, philanthropy and advocacy. 

 

An Inherent — And Inherited — Generosity

Smits credits his parents, particularly his mother, Emilina, for his passion to give back. A Puerto Rican immigrant and a woman of deep faith, she dedicated her life to serving others and teaching Smits the importance of helping in any way he could. 

“That was her big thing. Try to find ways to give back. Look over your shoulder and help open the door for the next person that’s coming behind you,” he says. “That’s been my North Star in terms of what I do with any organization I’m involved with.”

Emilina Smits passed away in 2015, but her example continues to guide her son as he does what he can to open doors for others across a wide range of causes and communities. 

A Leg Up for La Nueva Ola

Smits grew up in New York City, where he became interested in theater and the arts at an early age. 

“When I was in high school, I had this drama teacher that used to take us to [Broadway shows] to expose us to theater,” he says. “This teacher was very conscious of the demographics of our school, and so when I saw people on stage like Raul Julia or James Earl Jones, there were similarities because of our backgrounds, our economics, language barriers, all of those things. It gave me a sense of, ‘Wow, maybe I could do this too.’” 

Smits’ drama teacher also helped him navigate college applications. After high school, Smits attended Brooklyn College and then earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.  

“Education for me is so important because it’s kind of like your groundwork — your toolbox with regards to what I do for a living,” he says. “The more varied you are, the more you have read the classics, it gives you more tools in the toolbox to use as a springboard. At least that’s been my rap for the last 20 years.” 

As Smits began to book roles in New York and Hollywood, he remembered the lessons he learned from his mother. In 1997, Smits — along with actors Sonia Braga, Esai Morales, Merel Julia and attorney Felix Sanchez — founded the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts (NHFA).

“There was a group of us talking about what was it that can help move the dial forward … with regards to Latino, Hispanic culture in this country, and with regards to the entertainment industry,” he says. “How can we effectively move forward so there is greater representation that’s more reflective not only of our population numbers but to give a broader perspective of our representation in this country?” 

He turned toward education, he says, because of its power to open doors and broaden horizons in terms of having a life in the entertainment business.

The result was the NHFA, which has provided scholarships for Hispanic and Latino students who show an interest in the arts. Over its 27 years, the foundation has expanded to include advocacy, visibility and talent cultivation with a goal of creating opportunities for the next generation of artists and creators and the stories they’ll tell. 

“I hope a little bit of what I’m doing is to move the dial forward so that next wave — la nueva ola — [will] have more varied opportunities,” he says. “The best thing is to see a young person who directed their first feature or … when you see a scholarship student that now is working for HBO or got into an internship program, those little nuggets that happen, that’s like icing on the cake. Like you helped in some kind of way.” 

Smits [left] with costar Dennis Franz in a season 5 episode of NYPD Blue.

NHFA founders [from left to right] Jimmy Smits, Merel Julia, Felix Sanchez, Sonia Braga and Esai Morales celebrating the foundation’s 10th Anniversary Celebration on October 3, 2006 in Washington, DC.

Keeping the Momentum Going

Smits turns 69 in July and has been a professional actor for four decades. In recent years, he’s added producer to his list of accomplishments. 

“More than anything for me at this age is to find ways to tell stories or partner up with people … to be in on the ground floor in terms of planting the seeds and watching the project grow,” he says. “That’s been where my focus has been on the last couple years, partnering up with people and pitching stories to keep the career momentum going. There’s a satisfaction you get starting something from scratch.” 

Smits heads up El Sendero Productions and is developing television projects with Skydance Media and others where he will be involved as both an actor and executive producer.  

“I want to keep working doing the thing I love most. But, like so many of us, I realize the need to try and be more in control of the storytelling process, especially when it comes to projects that might be culturally specific. So, it’s not a stretch to want to produce if that opportunity presents itself.”

While Smits can look back over a long career of doing what he loves, he’s not done working, advocating or learning. 

“One great thing about our industry and specifically what I’ve chosen to do in this part of the industry is that when you think you have something down pat, it’s always a recipe for disaster,” he says. “When you keep yourself open, each role is a learning experience because you’re trying to do a construct of a life or of a character’s profession that you don’t know anything about.”

It’s the forward movement that resonates with Smits. “To not be set in your ways. That’s an important part, to make yourself open and available and trying as much as possible to keep the momentum going.”

Smits doesn’t consider himself one to dispense advice, but he is eager to issue a challenge: Get involved and give back in whatever way you can. 

“When you’re blessed, you have a lot to be thankful for,” he says. “Yes, there are ups and downs. But you always have to find ways to acknowledge those blessings, and the way to do that is to help somebody else.”

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