Rivera is of
Mexican descent. He is the oldest sibling in his family, with four younger brothers and three younger sisters. He was raised in
Elysian Valley also known as Frogtown, a neighborhood of
Los Angeles, California. Rivera suffered from
stuttering as a youth. In the third grade, he was cast as the titular character in a school theatre production of
Rumpelstiltskin. Rivera noticed he did not stutter once during his performance on stage. Shortly after, he confessed to his father he wanted to be an actor, to which his father replied that acting was only for "rich white people." At 18 years old in 1979, Rivera enlisted in the U.S. Army. ==Career==