Rudy Reyes (actor)

Rodolfo "Rudy" Reyes (actor) (born December 3, 1971 in Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base, Kansas City, Missouri) is a United States Marine, martial arts instructor, and actor. He is best known for portraying himself in the HBO TV series          "Generation Kill".

Early years
Reyes was born in 1971 to a United States Marine father en route to Vietnam. Reyes was raised by his grandparents until 1976 when both his grandmother and grandfather died in the same year. He spent the next few years being shuffled between relatives and eventually the Omaha Home for Boys. His childhood hero was Bruce Lee, and at 15 Reyes started studying kung fu. At 17 Reyes emancipated himself and took custody of his two younger brothers, after which he moved to Kansas City, Missouri. There, he continued to study and teach kung fu with his brothers. Both Rudy and one of his younger brothers, Michael, worked at Lucille's Restaurant in Westport (Kansas City, Missouri) in the 1990s.

Military career
In 1998 Reyes joined the United States Marine Corps and was ultimately selected for (and passed) Marine Recon training. He served in Afghanistan and took part in the Iraq war. Reyes served on the USS Dubuque and often led platoon PT sessions on ship.

Trainer, actor and writer
After leaving the military in 2005, Reyes became a fitness trainer at a gym in San Diego. His acting roles included playing himself in Generation Kill 2008 and the TV Series Apocalypse Man. In 2009, Reyes wrote a book titled: Hero Living: Seven Strides to Awaken Your Infinite Power with Angela Smith.