This engaging Latino player of TV, film and stage has demonstrated a versatility that has gained him a varied and productive career. Born in Cuba but raised in Miami and Los Angeles, Plana trained at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He first garnered notices for his sympathetic portrayal of Rudy in the musical "Zoot Suit" (1978), a role he reclaimed in the subsequent Broadway and feature productions (1979 and 1981, respectively). Other notable early stage roles have included the assassin in "Sirhan and RFK: A Murder Mystery" (1977), the sergeant in the Broadway production "The Boys of Winter" (1985), "Rum and Coke" (1985-86) and "Charlie Bacon and His Family" (also 1986). Through the 90s, Plana has continued to appear on stage in shows like "Widows" (1991) and moved behind the scenes to direct productions of "A Heart's Eye" (1992) and a series of one-acts in 1994.
Plana became a regular face in TV and films, often typecast as low-level thugs, Latino drug lords or cops. But his range is reflected in his choice of roles and directors; he has appeared in character parts in some 30 films since his 1980 debut in "Love & Money". Plana was the mohawked flight trainee in Taylor Hackford's "An Officer and a Gentleman" (1981), a gung-ho green beret in Haskell Wexler's "Latino" (1985), and El Jefe, a long-haired Mexican bandit in John Landis' "Three Amigos" (1986). He has worked for some of today's best-known directors: Oliver Stone ("Salvador" 1986, "JFK" 1991, "Nixon" 1995); Martha Coolidge ("Valley Girl" 1983); Clint Eastwood ("The Rookie" 1990); and John Sayles ("Lone Star" 1996). Plana made his producing debut with the comedy "A Million to Juan" (1994), a good-natured rags to riches tale starring Paul Rodriguez.
Plana's most visible TV role has been as Luke Ramirez, the 'mother hen' partner on the sharp and critically hailed cop comedy, "Bakersfield P.D." (Fox, 1993-1994). But he has appeared in numerous longforms and guested on many series. His TV-movie debut was in "The Streets of L.A." (CBS, 1979), and among his many subsequent vehicles were "Madame X" (NBC, 1981), "Sadat" (syndicated, 1983), "Drug Wars: The Camarena Story" (NBC, 1990), "The Burning Season" (HBO, 1994), and as one of the narrators of "The West" (PBS, 1996).