# Merlin Santana
**Merlin Santana** (1976 – November 9, 2002) was an American actor best known for his role as Romeo Santana on the WB sitcom *The Steve Harvey Show* and for playing Stanley, one of Rudy Huxtable's admirers, on *The Cosby Show*.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1976, New York City, to parents from the Dominican Republic[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/) |
| Died | November 9, 2002, Los Angeles, California, homicide by gunshot, age 26[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/) |
| Signature role | Romeo Santana on *The Steve Harvey Show* (1996–2002), for which he received two NAACP Image Award nominations as a supporting actor[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-11-me-santana11-story.html) |
| Early work | Advertising model from age 3; Stanley on *The Cosby Show*; co-starred in the sitcom *Getting By*[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/) |
| Film | *Showtime* (2002) with Robert De Niro and Eddie Murphy; *Flossin* (2001); *Play'd: A Hip Hop Story* (2002)[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/merlin_santana) |
| Final role | Dante Aldente on the UPN series *Half & Half* (2002)[4](https://blackartstory.org/2020/11/02/profile-merlin-santana-1976-2002/) |
| Burial | St. Raymond's Cemetery, Bronx, New York[5](https://www.nndb.com/people/292/000108965/) |
## Early life and start in show business
Santana was born in New York to parents from the [Dominican Republic](https://www.edgepedia.org/dominican-republic). According to his IMDb biography, his mother, Lea Santana, pushed him into a showbusiness career to keep him off the streets and out of trouble[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/). He began working as an advertising model for a fast-food chain at age 3[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/); Rotten Tomatoes dates the start of that modeling work to 1979[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/merlin_santana). His first movie appearance was as an extra in [Woody Allen](https://www.edgepedia.org/woody-allen)'s *The Purple Rose of Cairo*[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-11-me-santana11-story.html).
## Television career
**Breakthrough roles.** Santana became noticed as Stanley, one of Rudy Huxtable's admirers, on the hit NBC sitcom *The Cosby Show*, appearing from 1991 to 1992[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/) • [5](https://www.nndb.com/people/292/000108965/). He co-starred in the short-lived sitcom *Getting By* (1993–94) as Marcus Dixon, alongside [Cindy Williams](https://www.edgepedia.org/cindy-williams) and [Telma Hopkins](https://www.edgepedia.org/telma-hopkins)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/) • [5](https://www.nndb.com/people/292/000108965/). His other early television credits included *Major Dad*, *Law & Order* (as Ronald Griggs, 1990), *Sister, Sister* (as Joey, 1994), *Hangin' with Mr. Cooper* (as Calvin, 1992), *Street Gear* (as Derick Davis, 1994–95), *Under One Roof*, and the TV movie *In the Line of Duty: Street War*[5](https://www.nndb.com/people/292/000108965/) • [6](https://flicklist.tv/people/merlin-santana).
**Romeo Santana.** His best-known role was the smooth-talking high school ladies' man Romeo Santana on *The Steve Harvey Show*, which ran from 1996 to 2002[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/) • [2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-11-me-santana11-story.html). The Los Angeles Times reported that he was nominated twice for [NAACP Image Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/naacp-image-awards) as a supporting actor on the series[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-11-me-santana11-story.html). He also played Ohagi on UPN's *[Moesha](https://www.edgepedia.org/moesha)* across seasons 1 and 4 (1996–99)[5](https://www.nndb.com/people/292/000108965/).
## Film work
In the 1990s Santana shifted toward more dramatic roles on television, appearing on *NYPD Blue* (as Warren, 1996)[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/merlin_santana). His film credits include the independent feature *Flossin* (2001), directed by [Todd Bridges](https://www.edgepedia.org/todd-bridges), in which he played Jermaine[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/merlin_santana), and the [Robert De Niro](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-de-niro) action movie *Showtime* (2002), in which he played Hector alongside [Eddie Murphy](https://www.edgepedia.org/eddie-murphy)[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/merlin_santana). He played Mayhem in the VH1 TV movie *Play'd: A Hip Hop Story* (2002), opposite Toni Braxton[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/merlin_santana) • [4](https://blackartstory.org/2020/11/02/profile-merlin-santana-1976-2002/). His last film role was the 2003 comedy *The Blues*, with Deon Richmond, released after his death[4](https://blackartstory.org/2020/11/02/profile-merlin-santana-1976-2002/).
## Death
Santana was shot to death on the morning of Saturday, November 9, 2002, as he sat in the passenger seat of a parked car driven by a friend in the 3800 block of Victoria Avenue in [South Los Angeles](https://www.edgepedia.org/south-los-angeles). The driver was not injured and drove about a half-mile to Crenshaw and Exposition boulevards, where he flagged down two officers; paramedics found Santana dead. Police said they did not know the motive[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-11-me-santana11-story.html). He was 26 years old and lived in North Hollywood[2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-11-me-santana11-story.html).
Police arrested a teenage girl the following Monday and were seeking two men in connection with the shooting. Sources said Santana and a friend had been at a nearby home with the girl, whom he had met recently, and that she returned outside the residence about 2:45 a.m. accompanied by two men in a car; as Santana and his friend got into another vehicle to leave, one of the men shot him in the head[7](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-12-me-santana12-story.html). IMDb reports that two 20-year-old men and a 15-year-old girl were arrested, the men a week after the girl[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/).
His final television acting role was as Dante Aldente on the UPN series *Half & Half* in 2002[4](https://blackartstory.org/2020/11/02/profile-merlin-santana-1976-2002/) • [8](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-121587/filmographie/). He was buried at St. Raymond's Cemetery in the Bronx[5](https://www.nndb.com/people/292/000108965/).
## Legacy
Santana's death at 26 cut short a career that had already spanned modeling, sitcom comedy, and dramatic television[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/) • [2](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-11-me-santana11-story.html). Retrospective profiles describe him as a charismatic Afro-Latino performer of 1990s and early 2000s television and film[9](https://dooekpo.com/merlin-santana-movies-and-tv-shows-studio-mix/), and note his Dominican heritage as part of his identity[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/merlin_santana).
## References
1. [Merlin Santana Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0763332/bio/)
2. [Sitcom Actor Shot to Death in Parked Car, Los Angeles Times, November 11, 2002](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-11-me-santana11-story.html)
3. [Merlin Santana Movies & TV Shows List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/merlin_santana)
4. [Profile: Merlin Santana (1976-2002), Black Art Story](https://blackartstory.org/2020/11/02/profile-merlin-santana-1976-2002/)
5. [Merlin Santana, NNDB](https://www.nndb.com/people/292/000108965/)
6. [Merlin Santana, FlickList.tv](https://flicklist.tv/people/merlin-santana)
7. [Girl Held, 2 Men Sought in Actor's Killing, Los Angeles Times, November 12, 2002](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-12-me-santana12-story.html)
8. [Merlin Santana Filmographie, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-121587/filmographie/)
9. [Merlin Santana Movies and TV Shows, dooekpo.com](https://dooekpo.com/merlin-santana-movies-and-tv-shows-studio-mix/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames Ro to Sa*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license