Pedro Infante Biography

Fast Facts

• Won a Silver Bear from the Berlin International Film Festival for Best Actor for "Tizoc" in 1957
• His most popular film, 1948's "We the Poor," was the biggest hit in Mexican film history
• Won an Ariel Award for Best Actor for "La vida no vale nada" in 1956
• Formed his own band at the age of 16 and began performing on the radio in Mexico City two years later
• Made his screen acting debut in the short film "El organillero" in 1939
• Worked in the fishing industry and in construction before becoming an actor
• Quote: "(On surviving his first plane crash in 1949): "You see that I was right? Of course I felt something․ But death can do nothing against me․""
• Recorded about 350 Spanish-language songs during his career, including "Amorcito Corazon," which was his favorite
• Best known as an actor and singer who is regarded as one of the greatest actors of Mexican cinema and an idol to the Latin American people
• Upon news of his death in 1957, the government had to declare a national day of mourning for hundreds of thousands of grief-stricken Mexicans, and one newspaper headline read, "His Death Was Like a Bomb in Everyone's Heart․"