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Raúl Rafael Carlos Juliá y Arcelay (March 9, 1940 – October 24, 1994) was a Puerto Rican actor. He was known for his intense and varied roles on stage and screen. He started his career in the Public Theatre before transitioning to film. He received numerous accolades including a Drama Desk Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and nominations for four Tony Awards. In 2017, The Daily Telegraph named him one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination.
Born in San Juan, he took an interest in acting while still in school and pursued the career upon completion of his studies. After performing locally for some time, he was convinced by actor and entertainment personality Orson Bean to move and work in New York City. Julia, who had been bilingual since his childhood, soon gained interest in Broadway and Off-Broadway plays. He performed in mobile projects, including the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater. Julia was eventually noticed by producer Joseph Papp, who offered him work in the New York Shakespeare Festival.
In 1978, he famously starred alongside Meryl Streep in an electric revival of Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew at the Delacorte Theater. He went on to receive four Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical nominations for Two Gentlemen of Verona (1972), Where's Charley? (1975), The Threepenny Opera (1977), and Nine (1982). Julia starred in the original Broadway production of Harold Pinter's Betrayal (1979). He also starred in revivals of Design for Living (1984), Othello (1991), and his final Broadway role Man of La Mancha (1994).
Julia gained prominence for his role as Gomez Addams in two film adaptations of The Addams Family. He received Golden Globe Award nominations for Tempest (1982), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), and Moon Over Parador (1988). He also is known for his film roles in The Panic in Needle Park (1971), One from the Heart (1982), The Morning After (1986), Romero (1989) and Presumed Innocent (1990). In 1994 Julia suffered several health afflictions, eventually dying after suffering a stroke. For his work in The Burning Season he was posthumously awarded the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Limited Series, Anthology Series or Television Motion Picture.