Turned on to marijuana at the age of 8 by an uncle

Served nine years in California's toughest prisons for armed robbery and selling narcotics

Became undefeated boxing champ at San Quentin in spite of being a heroin addict and alcoholic at the time

Joined Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous

Paroled

Prowess as a speaker made him a star on the AA and NA circuit

Feature film debut in "Runaway Train"; paid $380 a day to teach Eric Roberts to box, and to fight him in film

Returned to San Quentin, playing a convict in Taylor Hackford's prison drama "Bound By Honor"; experience put him on a therapist's couch, diagnosed with post-traumatic stress syndrome

Awarded a much-needed furlough from prison films to play an Echo Park junkie in Allison Anders' "Mi Vida Loca/My Crazy Life"

Landed role of Certain Doom, the dagger-throwing assassin, in Robert Rodriguez's "Desperado"

Originally hired as a consultant for Michael Mann's "Heat"; had always wanted to rob an armored car in life, and Mann let him do it as an actor

Portrayed Razor Charlie in Rodriguez's "From Dusk Till Dawn"

Third film with Jon Voight, "Anaconda" (also appeared with Voight in "Runaway Train" and "Heat")

Played Johnny 23, the third most psychotic member of the planeload of escaped convicts, in "Con-Air"

Appeared in "The Replacement Killers," starring Mira Sorvino and Chow Yun-Fat

Producing debut with "The Animal Factory"; debuted at Sundance

Formed Starburst, a production company; announced debut project "Devil's Punchbowl"

Cast as Machete in "Spy Kids 2: The Island Of Lost Dreams"

Appeared in the action film "xXx" with Vin Diesel

Portrayed Cucuy in "Once Upon A Time In Mexico"

Cast as a 12-step veteran, opposite Maggie Gyllenhaal in "Sherrybaby"

Cast with Snoop Dogg in the animated feature, "Hood of Horror"

Cast in Rob Zombie's remake of the classic horror film "Halloween"