Gaspar Henaine (6 January 1927 – 30 September 2011), more commonly known by his pseudonym Capulina. (6 January 1927 – 30 September 2011), more commonly known as capulina, was a Mexican comedian, actor, singer, film producer, and screenwriter. He was best known for partnering with Marco Antonio Campos as the double act Viruta and Capulina and for his subsequent solo career. He was later given the nickname "El Rey del Humorismo Blanco" (The King of White Humor), due to his clean, innocent style of comedy.
| Gaspar Henaine (capulina) | |
|---|---|
 Gaspar Henaine «Capulina» in La sombra del otro (1957). | |
| Pseudonym | Capulina |
| Birth name | Gaspar Henaine y Pérez de León |
| Born | 6 January 1927 Chignahuapan, Puebla, Mexico |
| Died | 30 September 2011 (aged 84) Mexico City, Mexico |
| Medium | Film, television, theatre, music |
| Years active | 1943–1999 |
| Genres | Double act, slapstick |
| Spouse | María Elena Frías (married 1949–2011) |
Early life
editCapulina was born in Chignahuapan, Puebla, the son of Antonio Henaine Helú, a Lebanese businessman, and Concepción Pérez de León[1] (c. 1893 – 27 February 1983),[2] who was also born in Chignahuapan.[3] He and his family later moved to Mexico City. At age 10, he made his acting debut with a small part in Fernando de Fuentes' Allá en el rancho grande (1936).[4] He studied acting and later won the "best dramatic child actor" award bestowed by the academy he attended.[5][6] He started his musical career as one of the vocalists of the quartet Los Excéntricos del Ritmo.[4] Later, in 1946, he formed part of the trio Los Trincas. The trio was hugely successful and toured Mexico and some cities of the United States.[4]
Career
editViruta and Capulina
editThis section needs additional citations for verification. (October 2021) |
Capulina became famous across Latin America alongside his longtime professional partner, Marco Antonio Campos, as Viruta and Capulina. In 1951, they started filming together. The two comedians made 26 films. At first they imitated the comedy style of Laurel and Hardy, thanks to their physical resemblance to them. With time they developed their own characteristic comedy style. The main difference with Laurel and Hardy is that Viruta, the thin character, was also the intelligent and aggressive one, while Capulina, the portly character, was the fool and cowardly one.
In the peak of their popularity they had a television program called Cómicos y canciones,[7] where they alternated with other comedians and singers. Some of their sketches were written by a then unknown Roberto Gomez Bolaños who later gained legendary fame as comedian Chespirito.
Many rumors surfaced when the two co-workers stopped making films together; some suggested that Viruta felt underpaid, but Capulina attributed the separation to a feud between the two caused by lack of film jobs towards the end of their working relationship. Although he admitted that both he and Viruta felt some animosity against each other during their last six films together, Capulina also felt deep sorrow when Viruta died. A sufferer of three previous heart attacks, Viruta died after his fourth heart attack.
Later career
editCapulina made a total of 84 movies, 58 of them after separating from Viruta. He also has recorded 12 music albums. One of his most famous films was Santo contra Capulina (1969), where he co-starred with Mexican wrestling legend El Santo.
Most of the films where he starred shared the same theme, to generate an adventure based on Capulina getting in trouble due to a specific issue, added with his position as an incompetent and foolish person. For example, in El mundo de los aviones (1969), Capulina is a pilot that always fails to land his plane correctly, hitting some wall and encrusting a partner in the process. He is involved in an international fraud and he teams with his airline partners to prevent the robbery, not without several funny problems.
He went from being the same character in different situations and who confronts different kind of enemies like robbers, gangs, spies, and also vampires, monsters, and mummies, with the aid of adventurers, wrestlers (like El Santo) or unexpected powers.
The character of Capulina gained huge popularity and a very successful comic book series -with stories by comic artist Oscar González Guerrero and art by his son Oscar Gonzalez Loyo- was published in the seventies and early eighties.
Capulina's last film was Mi compadre Capulina (1989). He also made a television series, Las aventuras de Capulina (1989), where he struggled in different adventures with the help of wrestler Tinieblas and sidekick Alushe.
His telenovela debut in El diario de Daniela (1996) was also his last appearance.
Capulina was also a theatrical actor and stand-up comedian. He toured with his act until 1997, when he retired, claiming that he was feeling too old to go on.
Death
editHenaine died of complications with pneumonia and a gastric ulcer on September 30, 2011.
Selected filmography
edit| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1943 | Another Dawn | ||
| 1950 | When the Night Ends | as Los Trincas | |
| 1953 | Ahí vienen los gorrones | ||
| 1957 | La sombra del otro | ||
| 1958 | Se los chupó la bruja | Capulina | |
| 1958 | Viaje a la luna | Fireman | |
| 1958 | Los legionarios | Legionario Capulina | |
| 1958 | La odalisca No. 13 | Emir Ali Kaido | |
| 1958 | Muertos de miedo | Capulina | |
| 1958 | A sablazo limpio | Crispín Capulina | |
| 1959 | Angelitos del trapecio | Capulina | |
| 1960 | Los tigres del desierto | Capulina | |
| 1960 | Dos locos en escena | Capulina | |
| 1960 | Dos criados malcriados | Capulina | |
| 1960 | El dolor de pagar la renta | Capulina | |
| 1960 | Comedians and Songs | Capulina | |
| 1960 | Los desenfrenados | Capulina | |
| 1961 | Limosneros con garrote | Capulina | |
| 1961 | Un par... a todo dar | Capulina | |
| 1961 | Pegando con tubo | Teniente Capulina | |
| 1961 | Dos tontos y un loco | ||
| 1962 | Qué perra vida | Capulina | |
| 1962 | Cascabelito | Capulina | |
| 1962 | ¡En peligro de muerte! | ||
| 1963 | Los invisibles | ||
| 1963 | Barridos y regados | ||
| 1964 | Buenos días, Acapulco | Detective Capulina | |
| 1964 | Los astronautas | Capulina | |
| 1964 | La edad de piedra | ||
| 1965 | Los reyes del volante | ||
| 1966 | La vida de Pedro Infante | Capulina | |
| 1966 | Cada quién su lucha | Capulina | |
| 1966 | Dos meseros majaderos | ||
| 1966 | La batalla de los pasteles | ||
| 1966 | La cigüeña distraída | Capulina Palacios / Capulina Corrales | |
| 1967 | Detectives o ladrones..? (Dos agentes innocentes) | ||
| 1967 | Dos pintores pintorescos | Capulina | |
| 1967 | Un par de roba chicos | ||
| 1967 | El camino de los espantos | last Viruta y Capulina film | |
| 1968 | Operacion Carambola | ||
| 1968 | El Zangano | ||
| 1974 | El Carita | ||
| 1975 | El Investigador Capulina | ||
| 1981 | El naco más naco | ||
| 2015 | Selección Canina | Director Plateas (voice role) | Released 4 years after his death |
References
edit- ^ "Concepcion Perez de Leon - mentioned in the record of Juan Henaine Perez". FamilySearch. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
- ^ "Concepcion Perez - Mexico, Distrito Federal, Civil Registration". FamilySearch. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
- ^ Kuri Camacho, Ramón (2006). Chignahuapan: Sierra Norte de Puebla: voces y miradas de su historia, Volume 2. Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla. p. 71. ISBN 9688638986.
- ^ a b c Trujillo, Marina (27 March 1995). "Todavía hay "Capulina" para mucho". El Siglo de Torreón. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
- ^ "Los niños son lo más importante en su vida: Gaspar Henaine "Capulina"". El Siglo de Torreón. 6 December 1998. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ "Viruta y Capulina filmaran en el estudio de Walt Disney". La Opinión. 6 September 1962. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
- ^ "Cobran bien en la TV Viruta y Capulina". La Opinión. 29 September 1963. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
- ^ "El rey del humor blanco, 'Capulina', muere tras semanas internado". CNN México. 30 September 2011. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 23 October 2013.