Alonzo Torquemada

Alonzo Torquemada is a fictional character on the HBO drama "Oz", played by Bobby Cannavale.

Character overview

"Prisoner #03T323. Convicted February 6, 2003 - Assault in the first degree. Sentence: 10 years, up for parole in six."

He is a Puerto Rican one-eyed homosexual who owns several gay night clubs and is also a major dealer of the designer drug known as D-Tabs. He is sent to prison for throwing acid in the face of a drag queen outside his club. He is sexually obsessed with Latino inmate Miguel Alvarez upon his arrival. In an interview in Advocate magazine, Cannavale said, "I happened to be reading "Disco Bloodbath" by James St. James because I had worked at the Tunnel years earlier and was kind of fascinated by [club owner] Peter Gatien, so I was deep into it when I started thinking about this character. I had this idea to combine a Michael Alig/James St. James type with Peter Gatien, so he could come in and run the show."

eason 6

Torquemada comes into Oz admired by the homosexual inmates. He immediately sets his sights on inmate Alvarez, whom he wants to be his "numero dos." Torquemada is also the distributor and manufactorer of a new designer drug called "destiny," or "D-Tabs," a pill form of heroinFact|date=July 2007, which seem to have Ecstasy-like effects, and are extremely popular at gay night clubs. Torquemada intends to own Oz with D-Tabs and gets Italian leader Chucky Pancamo to help him push them in. Pancamo's nephew Angelo apparently worked at Torquemada's clubs distributing the drugs. Carmen Guerra is given some D-Tabs and he begins dancing to some techno and ripping off his own skin in the process. Torquemada presses Alvarez further to help him as he realizes that Unit Manager Tim McManus trusts Alvarez enough to search him less than the other prisoners. Alvarez still says no as he wants to make parole and wants nothing to do with Alonzo. Shortly afterwards Torquemada moves into Alvarez's cell. Alvarez explains once more that he refuses to have sex with Torquemada, who then claims that he is in fact a virgin and does not want to have sex with Alvarez, but rather wants to "be" Alvarez. Alvarez then gives into Torquemada's seductions after taking some D-Tabs, looking down as Torquemada slowly begins to touch his chest. Torquemada looks almost saddened that Alvarez gave into temptation and took the drug, or perhaps that Alvarez needed to be drugged to permit his advances. The rest of what happens is up to the viewer to determine; it's unclear if Torquemada is truly a virgin voyeur, or if he just said that to catch Alvarez off-guard, but later for a brief moment we see Alvarez standing in the cell with a seated Torquemada touching his leg.