Iron Eyes Cody

Iron Eyes Cody (born Espera Oscar de Corti, April 3, 1904 – January 4, 1999) was an American actor who portrayed Native Americans in Hollywood films. Cody's film roles included the role of Chief Iron Eyes in Bob Hope's The Paleface (1948). He also played a Native American shedding a tear about pollution in one of the most well-known television public service announcements in the United States. Living in Hollywood, Cody began to insist--even in his private life--that he was Native American.

Over time, he claimed membership in several different tribes. Although a 1996 newspaper report revealed that Cody was Italian-American and that his purported Native American identity was self-created, Cody denied the report.