<Tr> <Th> Occupation </Th> <Td> Actor, Stand - up comedian </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Years active </Th> <Td> 1980 - 1995 </Td> </Tr> <P> Rick Aviles (October 14, 1952--March 17, 1995) was an American stand - up comedian and actor of Puerto Rican descent, best remembered for portraying the villainous Willie Lopez in the film Ghost . </P> <P> In the 1970s and 1980s, Aviles worked as a stand - up comedian on the Greenwich Village night - club circuit in New York . In 1981, he landed the role of Mad Dog in the film The Cannonball Run . He went on to act in fourteen more film productions . In 1987, Aviles landed a small part as the maintenance man in the film The Secret of My Success, starring Michael J. Fox . That same year he became the host of It's Showtime at the Apollo, and continued as host until 1991 . </P>

Who played willie lopez in the movie ghost