Ilka Tanya Payan

Ilka Tanya Payan (1943-1996) was a Dominican actress, attorney, and AIDS activist. She appeared in the 1991 video Sesame Street Home Video Visits the Firehouse as Delores, a kindly neighbor who offers Marge and Mr. Monster a place to stay while their house is repaired.

Payan starred on the US-produced telenovela Angelica, Mi Vida as the villainous Carmen Delia, and was active in the New York Spanish-language theater community. Concerned that she wouldn't be able to make a living from acting alone, she earned her law degree in 1981, specializing in immigration law. Her other credits included a guest spot on Hill Street Blues and parts in Scarface (with Michelle Pfeiffer and F. Murray Abraham) and the TV movie Florida Straits (with Raul Julia).