QUICK FACTS
BIOGRAPHY
Arturo García Rodríguez, better known as Arturo de Córdova, was born on May 7, 1907, in Mérida, Yucatán. Although he began his career as a journalist and was deputy director of the United Press agency in Santiago, Chile, Arturo is recognized as one of the leading actors in the so-called Golden Age of Mexican Cinema, participating in more than 100 feature films throughout his career. trajectory.
In 1933, he settled in Mexico City, where he obtained work as an announcer for the station XEW. His manly voice and impeccable diction led him to become one of the favorites of radio listeners, so film producers began to look for him to exploit his fame. He was the creator of the famous phrase, which would accompany him throughout his life, “that doesn’t have the slightest importance.”
He began his acting career in 1935, in the Mexican film Celos , directed by the Russian, exiled in Mexico, Arcady Boytler. Some time later he participated with the director Fernando de Fuentes in the film La Zandunga (1937), Ay, what times, Señor Don Simón (1941) and The Count of Montecristo (1941), until he was sought out by Hollywood producers.
From that moment on, Arturo de Córdova would participate in films in the United States (with a contract with Paramount Pictures) and in Mexico, highlighting his participation in For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943) directed by Sam Wood, Hostages (1943) by Frank Tuttle and The Blonde with Fire Hair (1945), by George Marshall. His typical image of a Latin heartthrob is especially notable in the films The Pirate and the Lady (1944), Masquerade in Mexico (1945) and Where Heroes Are Born (1945).
Although in the 40s, due to his role as a heroic heartthrob, his participation was limited to comedies and melodramas, directed by Fernando de Fuentes, Roberto Gavaldón and Antonio Momplet. Because his image began to age, the 50s meant a transformation in the actor, who took on important challenges, giving life to dark and strong characters, in films such as En la palma de la mano (1950), where he received an Ariel award as best actor and Him (1952), a film directed by Luis Buñuel.
In 1952, Arturo de Córdova was awarded the Ariel again for the film The Three Perfect Marrieds (1952). Shortly after, he took advantage of a comic image, in comedies such as The Stork Said Yes (1958), My Parents Get Divorced (1965) and , especially, The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales (1959), directed by Rogelio A. González, considered one of the actor’s masterpieces.
His last appearance on the big screen happened in 1970, alongside Mario Moreno “Cantinflas”, in the film El profe , with whom he formed a great friendship.
Arturo de Córdova died on November 3, 1973, next to his beloved, actress Marga López, leaving behind an indelible legacy in the history of Mexican cinema.
