Iron Eyes Cody Biography

Iron Eyes Cody was an Italian-American actor best known for playing Native Americans in Hollywood movies, most notably in Bob Hope's 1948 film ‘The Paleface’. He also portrayed a Native American in one of the nation’s most recognized TV public service campaigns, "Keep America Beautiful". Born Espera Oscar de Corti to two first-generation Italian immigrants, Cody moved to California as a young man, changing his name "DeCorti" to "Corti" and eventually Cody. He began working as an actor, usually presenting himself as a Native American. He appeared in over 200 movies and worked until his death. In 1936, Cody married American archaeologist Bertha Parker. The couple adopted two sons and remained together until Bertha's death in 1978. The actor himself died in January 1999 after suffering from mesothelioma, a rare type of cancer, at the age of 94. After his death, it was revealed that Cody had Sicilian ancestry and was not of Native American heritage at all.