Germán Genaro Cipriano Gomez Valdés Castillo (September 19, 1915 – June 29, 1973), better known as Tin-Tan, was an actor, singer and comedian who was born in Mexico City but was raised and began his career in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua. He often displayed the pachuco dress and employed pachuco slang in many of his movies, some with his brothers Manuel "El Loco" Valdés and Ramón Valdés. He made the language of the Mexican American pachucos famous in Mexico. A "caló" based in Spanglish, it was a mixture of Spanish and English in speech based on that of Mexican immigrants.

Life[link]

He usually acted with his "Carnal" (brother, from "hermano carnal", flesh brother, meaning two sons of the same mother, also has the meaning of "brother from another mother"), Marcelo Chávez, who also accompanied Tin-Tan with a guitar. He was a prominent figure during his golden years of movie making, from 1949. His 1948 movie, Calabacitas tiernas, a comedy, was chosen as one of the best in Mexican cinema^{[citation needed]}.

He has the record of having kissed the most actresses in his career^{[citation needed]}, some of them the beauties of their day. Some of his co-stars were Marga López, Rosita Quintana, Silvia Pinal, Amalia Aguilar, Meche Barba, Ana Bertha Lepe, Maria Antonieta Pons, Tongolele and many more. He also collaborated closely with actress and comedian Fannie Kauffman, who was also known as Vitola, during their careers.^[1][2]

He was also one of several people who were originally intended to be on the front cover of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band but were ultimately excluded.^{[citation needed]} He requested that Ringo swap him for a Mexican Tree, and he did.^{[citation needed]}

He was the voice of Baloo the bear and Thomas O'Malley the cat in the Spanish translation of the Disney films The Jungle Book and The Aristocats; both roles were originally voiced by Phil Harris.

Tin-Tan was the subject of the 2005 documentary, Ni Muy Muy… Ni Tan Tan… Simplemente Tin Tán, by Manuel Márquez and Carlos Valdés, son of the comedian.

Quotes[link]

An illustration of codeswitching word play: Hey Vato, how do you say "window" in English? (window appears verbatim in the original quote in Spanish).

Films[link]

Statue of Germán Valdés or Tin Tan on Genova Street in "Zona Rosa" of Mexico City.

• Acapulco 12-22 (1975)
• Noche de muerte (1975)
• La mafia amarilla (1975)
• La Disputa (1974)
• El capitán Mantarraya (1973)
• Las tarántulas (1973)
• Chanoc contra el tigre y el vampiro (1972)
• El increíble profesor Zovek (1972)
• En esta cama nadie duerme (1971)
• Trampa para una niña (1971)
• Los cacos (1971)
• Abel y el otro Caín (1971)
• El ogro (1971)
• Gregorio y su ángel (1970)
• Chanoc en las garras de las fieras (1970)
• El quelite (1970)
• Duelo en El Dorado (1969)
• Seis días para morir (1967)
• Viruta y Capulina (1967)
• Chanoc (1966)
• Loco por ellas (1966)
• El ángel y yo (1966)
• Especialista en chamacas (1965)
• Tintansón Crusoe (1965)
• Puerto Rico en carnaval (1965)
• Los fantasmas burlones (1965)
• Face of the Screaming Werewolf (1964)
• Tin-Tan el hombre mono (1963)
• Fuerte, audaz y valiente (1963)
• El tesoro del rey Salomón (1963)
• ¡En peligro de muerte! (1962)
• Pilotos de la muerte (1962)
• Viva Chihuahua (1961)
• Locura de terror (1961)
• ¡Suicídate, mi amor! (1961)
• El duende y yo (1961)
• El pandillero (1961)
• Tin-Tan y las modelos (1960)
• Rebelde sin casa (1960)
• Variedades de medianoche (1960)
• Vivir del cuento (1960)
• La casa del terror (1960)
• El fantasma de la opereta (1960)
• El violetero (1960)
• Una estrella y dos estrellados (1960)
• La tijera de oro (1960)
• Vagabundo y millonario (1959)
• Escuela de verano (1959)
• Dos fantasmas y una muchacha (1959)
• El que con niños se acuesta (1959)
• Ferias de México (1959)
• Tres lecciones de amor (1959)
• El cofre del pirata (1959)
• Paso a la juventud (1958)
• Música de siempre (1958)
• Quiero ser artista (1958)
• Viaje a la luna (1958)
• Refifi entre las mujeres (1958)
• Escuela para suegras (1958)
• Las mil y una noches (película) (1958)
• La odalisca No. 13 (1958)
• Locos peligrosos (1957)
• Teatro del crimen (1957)
• Las aventuras de Pito Pérez (1957)
• Los tres mosqueteros y medio (1957)
• El gato sin botas (1957)
• El campeón ciclista (1957)
• El médico de las locas (1956)
• El vividor (1956)
• El sultán descalzo (1956)
• Lo que le pasó a Sansón (1955)
• El barba azul (1955)
• El hombre inquieto (1954)
• El vizconde de Montecristo (1954)
• Me traes de un ala (1953)
• Reportaje (película) (1953)
• Dios los cría (1953)
• La isla de mujeres (1953)
• El mariachi desconocido (1953)
• El vagabundo (1953)
• Chucho el remendado (1952)
• El bello durmiente (1952)
• El ceniciento (1952)
• ¡¡¡Mátenme porque me muero!!! (1951)
• Cuando las mujeres mandan (1951)
• ¡Ay, amor, cómo me has puesto! (1951)
• El revoltoso (1951)
• Simbad el mareado (1950)
• También de dolor se canta (1950)
• La marca del zorrillo (1950)
• El rey del barrio (1950)
• Soy charro de levita (1949)
• Calabacitas tiernas (1949)
• No me defiendas, compadre (1949)
• Músico, poeta y loco (1948)
• Con la música por dentro (1947)
• El niño perdido (1947)
• Hay muertos que no hacen ruido (1946)
• Song of Mexico (1945)
• El hijo de su madre obediente (1945)
• Hotel de verano (1944)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Germán Valdés at IMDb
• (Spanish) Documentary film contents at TuCinePortal, Perla Schwartz.
• (Spanish) Así era Tin Tan at SuperMexicanos, Guillermo Aguilera.

v t e Cinema of Mexico Actors Directors Films A-Z Cinematographers Editors Producers Screenwriters Films by year 1896–1919 1920s 1930s 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Ángel Luis Alcaraz Acosta (born June 20, 1941 in Humacao, Puerto Rico) was a second baseman in Major League Baseball. Alcaraz was signed as a free agent by the Milwaukee Braves on January 1, 1959 and then traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers before the 1960 season. He spent several seasons in the minor leagues before making his Major League debut on September 13, 1967 for the Dodgers against the San Francisco Giants.

After two seasons in Los Angeles, he was purchased from the Dodgers by the Kansas City Royals on October 21, 1968. He played for the Royals for two more seasons and then was traded by the Royals to the Chicago White Sox on March 30, 1971 for Bobby Knoop.

External links[link]

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
• Baseball Almanac

This biographical article relating to a Puerto Rican baseball second baseman is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

José Pedro Infante Cruz (November 18, 1917^[1][2] – April 15, 1957), better known as Pedro Infante, is one of the most famous actors and singers of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema and is an idol of the Latinamerican people, together with Jorge Negrete and Javier Solís, who were styled the Tres Gallos Mexicanos (the Three Mexican Roosters). Infante was born in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico. He was raised in Guamúchil. He died on April 15, 1957, in Mérida, Yucatán, in a plane crash during a flight that he was piloting himself en route to Mexico City.

His film career began in 1939 with him appearing in more than 60 films, and starting in 1943, he recorded about 350 songs. For his performance in the movie Tizoc, he was awarded the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the 7th Berlin International Film Festival.^[3]

Childhood and early career[link]

Son of Delfino Infante García, who played the double bass in a band, and Refugio Cruz Aranda, he was the third of fifteen children, of which nine survived. Although the Infante Cruz family stayed for some time at Mazatlán, in the early 1919 they moved to Guamuchil. Later in 1920, they moved to Rosario, Sinaloa.

From teenager, Infante showed talent and affection for music. He managed to learn strings, wind, and percussion instruments in a short time. He was a guitar student of Carlos R. Hubbard.

His wife María Luisa León, who was somewhat well-off economically, convinced him of the need to move to Mexico City where they would find opportunities for this talented young man.

In Mexico City, he sang the songs of composers including Alberto Cervantes (Alberto Raúl Cervantes González [1]), José Alfredo Jiménez, Cuco Sánchez, Tomás Méndez, Rubén Fuentes, Salvador Flores Rivera (Chava Flores) and others. His first musical recording El Soldado Raso (The Soldier) was made on November 19, 1943, for the Peerless Records Company. Infante first appeared as an extra in the movie En un Burro Tres Baturros (Three Men from Aragon on a Donkey), literally translated as "On a Donkey, Three Baturros'"'. His career as an actor in leading roles started with La Feria de Las Flores (The Fair of Flowers), literally translated as "The Flower Carnival" in 1943. In that same year, a friend and neighbor of Infantes' wife, Carmen Barajas Sandoval, offered to introduce them to Jorge Negrete, a singer whom he admired. Barajas, who knew people in the business as she was the aunt of the child actress Angélica María, worked then at The Sindicat Of Workers of the Movies Production, S.T.P.C. (Workers of the Cinematographic Production Union). She succeeded in convincing Negrete to recommend Infante to the producer Ismael Rodríguez, and others. As a result, he was invited to appear in different pictures, such as Vuelve el Ametralladora (The Machine Gun Returns)

While married to María Luisa León, he met the dancer Lupita Torrentera, with whom he had three children, Graciela Margarita (b. 1947), Pedro Infante Jr. (March 31, 1950 - April 1, 2009) and Guadalupe Infante Torrentera (b. 1951), solidifying his reputation as a ladies' man. Irma Infante was born from his relationship with the young actress Irma Dorantes, whom he met when she was only 16 years of age. Irma Infante has had a career as an actress and a singer.

Actor[link]

His natural talent for acting was made evident in such pictures as:

• Tizoc, along with María Félix, which gained him the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the 7th Berlin International Film Festival.^[3]

• The massive migration from the countryside to the cities (mostly to Mexico City) during the 1940s fed the required labor force for rising manufacturing industries. This urbanization created the "working neighborhoods" and the culture of "la vecindad" (group of small apartments around a common patio), and found in Pedro Infante an identifiable icon for these, the new urban working class, with his character Pepe el Toro (Pepe the Bull) in the melodramatic trilogy made up of Nosotros los pobres, Ustedes los ricos, and Pepe el Toro (We the Poor, You the Rich, and Pepe the Bull), costarring with Evita Muñoz "Chachita".

• He worked with Sara García ("Mexico's grandmother") in many movies for Mexican cinema. Sara Garcia frequently played the role of his loving but "no nonsense" grandmother in their movies together, in which she constantly tried to get him to behave, but never succeeded.

• If that same urbanizing population had the nostalgia for the rural life, and with it the popularity of ranchera music and the idealized charro, it was not until he played the poor carpenter with a strong chilango (Mexico City) accent that Pedro Infante achieved a status, at least in Mexico, at the same level of celebrity such as Cantinflas, the Soler Brothers and even Jorge Negrete and María Félix. Despite that, he kept on playing the role of the charro and even the northern Mexican rancher (perhaps his most authentic character) in Ahí viene Martín Corona (Here comes Martín Corona) in 1951 and Los Hijos de María Morales (The Sons of María Morales) in 1952. When Jorge Negrete died in 1953, Pedro was no longer in the shadow of the international idol, even though Pedro was very affected by the disappearance of his idol. During his burial service some saw him slightly inebriated, a rare sight given that Infante was not a drinker.

• The Mexican child star María Eugenia Llamas, who was only four at the time, made her screen debut with him in the 1948 movie classic, "Los Tres Huastecos" ("The Three Men from Hausteca") as "La Tucita", a screen name she has used ever since.^[4] She played with him again under the sceen name La Tucita in his classic 1949 film comedy, "Dicen que Soy un Mujeriego" ("They Say I am a Womanizer").

• One of his better roles was that of Juventino Rosas in the movie "Sobre las Olas" ("Over the Waves"), based on the life of the Mexican waltz composer. Infante's natural musical abilities contributed to helping him to get into character.

• An important point in his career as an actor was winning the Ariel Award given by the Mexican Academy of Arts and Cinematographic Sciences for Best Actor for his role in La Vida No Vale Nada (Life is Worth Nothing, a line from the song Camino de Guanajuato).

Musical interpretations[link]

Waltzes, cha-cha-chas, rancheras and boleros placed him among the most popular singers of the mariachi and ranchera music.

Some of his most popular songs include: Amorcito Corazón (approximately My Little Love and Heart), Te Quiero Así (I Love You Like This), La Que Se Fue (She Who Left), Corazón (Heart), El Durazno (The Peach), Dulce Patria (Sweet Fatherland), Maldita Sea Mi Suerte (Cursed Be My Luck), Así Es La vida (Life Is Like This), Mañana Rosalía (Tomorrow Rosalía), Mi Cariñito (My Little Darling), Dicen Que Soy Mujeriego (They Say I Am A Womanizer), Carta a Eufemia (Letter to Eufemia), Nocturnal, Cien Años (Hundred Years), Flor Sin Retoño (Flower Without Sprout), Pénjamo, and ¿Qué Te Ha Dado Esa Mujer? (What Has That Woman Given You?). He sang "Mi Cariñito" to his frequent on screen grandmother, Sara Garcia, so many times in so many of their movies together, that it was played at her funeral.^[5]

The world famous song Bésame Mucho ("Kiss Me a Lot", or more loosely translated to get its elusive Spanish meaning closer to its English meaning, "Give Me a Lot of Kisses"), from the composer Consuelo Velázquez, was the only melody that he recorded in English and he interpreted it in the movie A Toda Máquina (ATM) (At Full Speed), with Luis Aguilar.

"Amorcito Corazón", by Manuel Esperón is one of Infante's most famous interpretations.

Infante was very often accompanied by the great musical ensembles of the time like the Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, Noé Fajardo's Orchestra, the Trío Calaveras and Antonio Bribiesca, among others.

By then, Pedro Infante had already created his characteristic mariachi shout

Death and homages[link]

Infante was a fanatic of aviation, a hobby that would lead to his death. According to Wilbert Alonzo-Cabrera, his biographer, the actor was piloting a Consolidated Aircraft X B-24-D (a variant of the B-24 Liberator), which had been converted from heavy bomber war airplane to air cargo in San Diego, California. The plane crashed 5 minutes after taking off from Mérida, Yucatán, in southeast Mexico.

The death of Pedro Infante on the morning of April 15, 1957, was announced by radio personality Humberto Rodríguez, of radio station XEMH of Mérida, after one of the firefighters discovered the bracelet engraved with the name "Pedro Infante", plus the winged insignia that symbolized his aviator license. This was around 8:15 am; at 11:12 am, Manuel Bernal, of Mexico City radio station XEW, gave the news saying: "this Monday, April 15, 1957, Pedro, our beloved Pedro...this has been confirmed, has died in a tragic accident in Mérida, Yucatán".

Year after year Pedro Infante attracts a great number of fans of every age to his shrine in the Panteón Jardín of Mexico City, as well as one at 54th through 87th streets in the center of Mérida. Pedro Infante died amongst friends: mechanic Marciano Bautista, and copilot Manuel Vidal. Many friends, family and fans still dress up as the characters that he played in film: Pedro Chávez, Pepe el Toro, Tizoc and a number of people incarnated from the Mexican culture that Infante symbolized. His fans honor him every year with a mass, honor guards, music and the songs made famous by the Idol of Guamúchil. Until now they have all been spontaneous, without any official authority or institution organizing them.^[6]

Four statues have been erected in his honor. The one in Mexico City was made out of thousands of bronze keys donated by his fans to a Mexico City TV station after a request by TV director Raúl Velasco. For the statue in Mérida another TV presenter (Manuel Pelayo) made a request and received keys. The third statue is in his birthplace, Mazatlán, Sinaloa. At the Paseo de Olas Altas at Mazatlán there is a statue of Pedro Infante on a motorcycle, in honor of his role in the movie A Toda Máquina ("ATM") with Luis Aguilar and "¿Qué te ha dado esa mujer?" also with Luis Aguilar, Rosita Arenas and Carmen Montejo. The fourth statue is in the town square of Guamúchil, his adopted home town.

The social phenomenon of Pedro Infante[link]

The Mexican idol died intestate. [2] Because of this, the main beneficiaries of his legacy have been the producers of the extremely successful movies in which he starred, as well as the "Peerless" music company [3] (now associated with Warner Music), and thanks to the large income his pictures and songs still generate, they are the ones who have contributed greatly to promoting and updating him.

He represented not only the fun-loving and partying charro, but also the urban hero of the working class, and it was this character that won him the love and admiration of the public in Mexico and other countries, such as Venezuela and Guatemala.^[7]

According to producer Jorge Madrid y Campos, who was also his legal representative, Pedro Infante's fame has increased greatly since his death. The presence of so many admirers at his shrine on the anniversary of his death is remarkable, as are the musical tributes from singers of the ranchera and mariachi genres that pay homage to him. As Mexican American author, Denise Chavez, in her book "Loving Pedro Infante" put it humorously, "If you're a [Mexican], and don't know who he is, you should be tied to a hot stove with a yucca rope and beaten with sharp dry corn husks as you stand in a vat of soggy fideos. If your racial and cultural background ethncity is Other, then it's about time you learned about the most famous of Mexican singers and actors."^[8]

Some fanatics even speculated that his death was faked.^[9] They believed in the possibility that he was living "in hiding" somewhere; there have also been cases, reported in the Mexican press, of people who claim to be Infante. These cases are similar, in a sense, to other famous deceased celebrities, such as Elvis Presley, Anastasia, 2pac, or Jim Morrison,with people claiming to be these individuals.

Filmography[link]

• El Organillero (The Organ Grinder) (1939)
• En Un Burro Tres Baturros (Three Men of Aragon on a Donkey) (1939)
• Puedes Irte De Mí (You Can Leave Me) (1940)
• Jesusita En Chihuahua (Jesusita in Chihuahua) (1942)
• La Razón De La Culpa (The Reason Of The Blame) (1942)
• La Feria De Las Flores (The Fair of Flowers) (1942)
• Arriba Las Mujeres (Up With The Women) (1943)
• Cuando Habla El Corazón (When The Heart Speaks) (1943)
• ¡Viva Mi Desgracia! (Long Live My Bad Luck!) (1943)
• Mexicanos al grito de guerra (Mexicans at the Cry of War) (1943)
• Escándalo De Estrellas (The Stars' Scandal) (1944)
• Cuando Lloran Los Valientes (When The Brave Weep) (1945)
• Si Me Han De Matar Mañana (If They Should Kill Me Tomorrow) (1946)
• Los Tres García (The Three Garcías) (1946)
• Vuelven Los García (The Garcías Return) (1946)
• Soy Charro De Rancho Grande (I Am a Charro Of Rancho Grande) (1947)
• Nosotros los pobres (We The Poor) (1947)
• La Barca De Oro (The Golden Boat) (1947)
• Cartas Marcadas (Marked Cards) (1947)
• Ustedes los ricos (You The Rich) (1948)
• Dicen Que Soy Mujeriego (They Say I'm A Womanizer) (1948)
• Los Tres Huastecos (The Three Huastecos) (1948)
• Angelitos Negros (Little Black Angels) (1948)
• No Desearás La Mujer De Tu Hijo (You Shall Not Covet Thy Son's Wife) (1949)
• La Oveja Negra (The Black Sheep) (1949)
• La Mujer Que Yo Perdí (The Woman That I Lost) (1949)
• El Seminarista (The Seminarian) (1949)
• Sobre Las Olas (Over The Waves) (1950)
• El Gavilán Pollero (The Chickenhawk) (1950)
• Las Mujeres De Mi General (My General's Women) (1950)
• También De Dolor Se Canta (Singing Also From Pain) (1950)
• Islas Marías (1950)
• A.T.M. A Toda Máquina! (At Full Speed) (1951)
• ¡¿Qué Te Ha Dado Esa Mujer?! (What Has That Woman Given You?) (1951)
• Ahí Viene Martín Corona (There Comes Martín Corona) (1951)
• Necesito Dinero (I Need Money) (1951)
• El Enamorado (The Lover) (1951)
• Un Rincón Cerca Del Cielo (A Place Near Heaven) (1952)
• Ahora Soy Rico (Now I Am Rich) (1952)
• Dos Tipos De Cuidado (Two Guys To Be Afraid Of) (1952)
• Por Ellas Aunque Mal Paguen (For Them Although They Pay Badly) (1952)
• Ansiedad (Anxiety) (1952)
• Sí, Mi Vida (Yes, My Dear) (1952)
• Había Una Vez Un Marido (There Once Was A Husband) (1952)
• Pepe el Toro (Pepe The Bull) (1952)
• Los Hijos De María Morales (The Sons Of María Morales) (1952)
• Gitana Tenías Que Ser (You Had To Be Gypsy) (1953)
• Reportaje (News Article) (1953)
• Cuidado Con El Amor (Beware With Love) (1954)
• Los Gavilanes (The Sparrowhawks) (1954)
• Pueblo, Canto Y Esperanza (People, Song And Hope) (1954)
• La Vida No Vale Nada (Life's Worth Nothing) (1954)
• Escuela De Vagabundos (School Of Vagabonds) (1954)
• El Mil Amores (The Thousands Lover) (1954)
• Escuela De Música (School Of Music) (1955)
• La Tercera Palabra (The Third Word) (1955)
• El Inocente (The Innocent) (1956)
• Pablo Y Carolina (Pablo And Carolina) (1956)
• Tizoc (1957)
• Escuela De Rateros (School Of Thieves) (1957)

References[link]

External links[link]

English

• Pedro Infante at the Internet Movie Database

Spanish

• Pedro Infante at ILCE
• Biography of Pedro Infante at Univisión

v t e Cinema of Mexico Actors Directors Films A-Z Cinematographers Editors Producers Screenwriters Films by year 1896–1919 1920s 1930s 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011