Comedian Roberto Gómez Bolaños, best know as "Chespirito", died on Friday at the age of 85 in the company of his family in Cancun, Mexico.
Gómez Bolaños was a big sports fan. You have to remember his talks about his beloved Club América, and we shouldn't forget his role as El Chavo del Ocho (The Boy from No. 8) and his traditional "I want to be Enrique Borja [forward for soccer club América in the 1970s]". He was such a passionate fan of América that he even had the chance to be a part of the team as his character, El Chanfle.
The comedian's dreams came true, scoring big goals wearing the América uniform at his home, the Azteca Stadium, even though, obviously, he was playing the role of El Chanfle, América's water boy. Every match, he dreamed of performing incredible feats as a forward for the Eagles.
In the Mexican soccer league, one can recall how Chilean Sebastián González, "Chamagol," would celebrate a goal after scoring when he played for Atlante. He would imitate one of the many characters made famous by Gómez Bolaños. In fact, he was so well loved throughout the world that Brazilian soccer star Neymar once dressed up as "Quico," a character from famous television show "El Chavo del 8," a program in which Bolaños played the part of El Chavo.
It was no surprise, then, to see many from the soccer world, such as Club America, Mexico's Carlos Vela and Brazilian star Ronaldinho pay tribute to "Chespirito".
Gracias por llenarnos la vida de alegría, siempre te recordaremos por tu gran corazón Azulcrema. Descansa en Paz @ChespiritoRGB
— Club América (@CF_America) November 28, 2014
Club America: "Thank you for filling our lives with joy, we will always remember you for your great Azulcrema heart."
El hat trick de hoy, lo dedico a la memoria de chespirito 😞. QEPD. pic.twitter.com/bIHzNzPe7f
— carlos vela (@11carlosV) November 28, 2014
Carlos Vela: "My hat trick today, I dedicate to memory of Chespirito."
Descanse em Paz, Eterno Chaves e Chapolin! grande mexicano que fez parte da minha infância e de muitos brasileiros! 👏 pic.twitter.com/NGhDvvca2f
— Ronaldinho Gaúcho (@10Ronaldinho) November 28, 2014
Ronaldinho: "Rest in Peace Eternal Chavo and Chapolin! A great Mexican who was part of my childhood and of many Brazilians!"
Unforgettable characters
Gómez Bolaños' characters were famous around the world because language was never a barrier to understanding the humor.
Born on Feb. 21, 1929, Chespirito grew up in Mexico City, and from a young age he showed a fondness for soccer.
Although he had studied engineering, from 1950 on he worked as a scriptwriter, writing hundreds of comedic episodes and more than 20 films. Thanks to his creativity and a long list of scripts, he was dubbed Chespirito, which means "Little Shakespeare."
In an interview given in 2001, Gómez Bolaños explained that Laurel and Hardy and Cantinflas were his biggest inspirations. Internationally, "El Chapulin Colorado" ("The Red Grasshopper") was first broadcast in Guatemala and went on to become popular throughout Central America.
In 2004, Gómez Bolaños announced his marriage to Florinda Meza, who was also part of the cast and who had been his partner since 1977. The couple had no children. However, Gómez Bolaños had six children from his previous marriage to Graciela Fernández.
Among Chespirito's other successes there were two performances at Madison Square Garden, more than 3,200 performances of his work "11 and 12" and his memoir "El Diario del Chavo del 8" (The Chavo's Diary).