Sonia Manzano Video | Celebrity Interview and Paparazzi

Sonia Manzano (born June 12, 1950) is an American actress and writer. She is best known for playing Maria on Sesame Street since 1971. She also licenses her image to promote items of baby clothes and plates in Hispanic America. Manzano was born in Linwood, New Jersey. When she was very young, her family moved to the South Bronx. Her parents migrated to New York from Puerto Rico. Manzano attended the High School of Performing Arts, where she began her acting career. She attended Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on a scholarship. In her junior year, she came to New York to star in... MORE

Sonia Manzano (born June 12, 1950) is an American actress and writer. She is best known for playing Maria on Sesame Street since 1971. She also licenses her image to promote items of baby clothes and plates in Hispanic America. Manzano was born in Linwood, New Jersey. When she was very young, her family moved to the South Bronx. Her parents migrated to New York from Puerto Rico. Manzano attended the High School of Performing Arts, where she began her acting career. She attended Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on a scholarship. In her junior year, she came to New York to star in the original production of the off-Broadway show "Godspell". Manzano joined the production of Sesame Street in 1971, where she eventually began writing scripts for the series. She has won 15 Emmy Awards as part of the Sesame Street writing staff. Manzano has performed on the New York stage, in the critically acclaimed theatre pieces Vagina Monologues and "The Exonerated." She has written for the Peabody Award-winning children's series, "Little Bill," and has written a parenting column for the Sesame Workshop web site called "Talking Outloud". Manzano's children's book, "No Dogs Allowed," published LESS