For a whole month, the San Antonio Public Library, the SA Public Library Foundation, and KLRN are presenting Cantinflas Retro: A Mario Moreno Centennial Retrospective, an exhibition of photographs and some of the films starred by Mario Moreno "Cantinflas" (1911-1993), the great Mexican comic.
Did Charles Chaplin actually said "Cantinflas is the greatest comedian alive!" after watching one of his Mexican films, as is widely reported? It's hard to tell, and good luck trying to find the actual source of the quote. But guess what: whether Chaplin said it or not, it's irrelevant: Cantinflas was the greatest comic produced in Mexico and the most international funnyman the Spanish-speaking world ever produced.
Just like some in the English world are still debating who the greatest comedian in history was (Chaplin or Buster Keaton), in Mexico some believe the immensely talented Tin-Tan (Germán Valdés) was the better comedian, but I respectfully disagree: Tin-Tan was to Cantinflas what the Rolling Stones were to the Beatles, but Cantinflas was the man, and no Latino comic was ever able to combine physical comedy, histrionics, sentiment, and drama better than Cantinflas. More than just creating a style, he even invented a word accepted into the official dictionary of the Spanish Royal Academy: the verb "cantinflear" (to Cantinflas). Cantinflas was an improv master and, unless you speak Spanish, you won't be able to fully grasp his amazing rhythm and timing. The guy was a natural, and his long ad-lib monologues during which he uttered a lot of words without actually saying anything were memorable and put him in a league all of his own. Here's Cantinflas in Soy un prófugo (1946) explaining his compadre all about "the theory of the atom." Don't worry about the words: listen to his rhythm.
Unfortunately, most of the films to be shown don't have English subtitles and the ones in English (Pepe and Around the World in 80 Days) not only are not a good representation of what Cantinflas was all about — they're plain bad. If you speak Spanish, go see them all. If you only speak English but are a serious student of the art of comedic timing, I recommend El bombero atómico and El bolero de Raquel.
Each film will be screened for free at a different branch of the library, and here's the schedule. Good luck, and enjoy the ride. — Enrique Lopetegui
La vuelta al mundo en 80 días (Around the World in 80 Days) (1956)
5:30pm Mon, Sep 17
Westfall
6111 Rosedale Ct.
(210) 207-9220
Si yo fuera diputado (1952)
6:30pm Tue, Sep 18
Central
600 Soledad
(210) 207-2500
Romeo y Julieta (1943)
Noon Sat, Sep 22
Maverick
8700 Mystic Park
(210) 207-9060
Su Excelencia (1966)
1pm Sat, Sep 22
Collin Garden
200 N. Park
(210) 207-9120
El Circo (1943)
2pm Sat, Sep 22
Great Northwest
9050 Wellwood
(210) 207-9210
Pepe (1960)
5:30pm Mon, Sep 24
Thousand Oaks
4618 Thousand Oaks
(210) 207-9190
Also:
Los Tres Mosqueteros (1942)
2:30pm Sat, Sep 29
Johnston
6307 Sun Valley
(210) 207-9240
El Padrecito (1964)
2:30pm Sat, Sep 29
McCreless
1023 Ada St.
(210) 207-9170
El Bolero de Raquel (1957)
3pm Sat, Sep 29
Landa
233 Bushnell
(210) 207-9090
Gran Hotel (1944)
5:30pm Mon, Oct 1
Igo
13330 Kyle Seale Pkwy
(210) 207-9080
El Mago (1949)
6:30pm Tue, Oct 2
Central
600 Soledad
(210) 207-2500
El Analfabeto (1961)
5:30pm Thu, Oct 4
Parman
20735 Wilderness Oak
(210) 207-2703
El Extra (1962)
6pm Thu, Oct 4
Cody
11441 Vance Jackson
(210) 207-9100
El Profe (1971)
1pm Sat, Oct 6
Tobin
4134 Harry Wurzbach
(210) 207-9040
Caballero a la medida (1954)
2pm Sat, Oct 6
Mission
3134 Roosevelt Ave.
(210) 207-2704
El barrendero (1982)
2pm Sat, Oct 6
Las Palmas
515 Castroville Rd.
(210) 207-9200
Sube y baja (1959)
6pm Wed, Oct 10
Pan American
1122 W. Pyron Ave.
(210) 207-9150
El bombero atómico (1952)
2pm Thu, Oct 11
Bazan
2200 W. Commerce
(210) 207-9160
El señor fotógrafo (1953)
2pm Sat, Oct 13
Cortez
2803 Hunter Blvd.
(210) 207-9130
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