Luis Saguar, an actor who projected a congenial sense of menace and a co-founder of Campo Santo, the resident theater company at Intersection for the Arts, died Wednesday evening at Seton Medical Center in Daly City.

The 52-year-old stage and film actor had been diagnosed with liver cancer just a few weeks ago, Intersection Executive Director Deborah Cullinan said.

"Luis was a creative force at Intersection for over 15 years," Cullinan said. "He was an inspired actor, mentor, writer, teacher and community hero. He created a vision for theater that has infused every layer of our programs."

Born in San Francisco and raised in Daly City, Mr. Saguar played roles ranging from wise elders to creepy addicts and offbeat sidekicks, but he excelled at cloaking an eerie, unpredictable menace in the gritty reality of the streets. It was a world he knew well, having fallen into the culture of hard drugs in his teens and having served time in the juvenile system for a robbery conviction at 15 - a world he portrayed in his play "Hotel Angulo" at Intersection in 2001.

"Luis was the real deal," Campo co-founder and longtime colleague Sean San José said. "He was endlessly present, real and in the now. People pulled up in their seats when he came out onstage because he was right there, with you, real. He wasn't afraid to bare his scars."

Though he didn't begin acting until he was almost 30, Mr. Saguar's weathered features became a familiar presence on many Bay Area stages, from Thick Description and Campo Santo to the Magic Theatre, American Conservatory Theater, TheatreWorks and El Teatro Campesino. He also appeared in some 20 films, including "The Zodiac" and the 2005 "Fun with Dick and Jane," as well as numerous TV shows ("The Shield," "Nash Bridges," "Midnight Caller").

He attracted wide attention as one of the corrupt lawyer brothers in the world premiere of Octavio Solis' landmark "Santos & Santos" and performed in works as varied as those of Shakespeare and Sartre. But he specialized in new plays. As a company member, Mr. Saguar participated in Campo's collaborative process, developing new works by such writers as Solis, Philip Kan Gotanda, Naomi Iizuka, Greg Sarris, Denis Johnson and Jessica Hagedorn.

Mr. Saguar's last role was as a gruff, violent father who reveals surprising depths in the West Coast premiere of Solis' "Lydia" at Marin Theatre Company in April.

He is survived by his wife, Nancy; their 2-year-old daughter, Carmela; his brothers, Pablo Saguar and Frank Arambarri; sister, Gloria Flore; and three nephews and a niece. A celebration of Mr. Saguar's life is being planned for a date to be announced. A fund has been established to help his family at www.theintersection .org.