Sara García facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sara García
García in No basta ser madre (1937)
Born	Sara García Hidalgo (1895-09-08)8 September 1895 Orizaba,Veracruz Mexico
Died	21 November 1980(1980-11-21) (aged 85) Mexico City, Mexico
Resting place	Panteón Español Mexico City
Other names	La Abuelita de México
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1917–1980
Spouse(s)	Fernando Ibáñez ​ ​ (m. 1918; div. 1923)​
Children	María Fernanda Ibáñez

Sara García Hidalgo (born September 8, 1895 – died November 21, 1980) was a famous actress from Mexico. She became very well-known during the "Golden Age of Mexican cinema". This was a time when Mexican movies were very popular.

During the 1940s and 1950s, Sara García often played the role of a strong but kind grandmother in many Mexican films. Later in her career, she also acted in Mexican TV shows called telenovelas. People in Mexico remember her by her special nickname, La Abuelita de México, which means "Mexico's Grandmother".

Early Life and Career Beginnings

Growing Up in Mexico (1895–1917)

The house where Sara García was born in Orizaba, Veracruz.

Sara García Hidalgo was born on September 8, 1895, in Orizaba, Veracruz, Mexico. Her parents, Isidoro García Ruiz and Felipa Hidalgo de Ruiz, were from Andalusia, Spain. They had moved to Veracruz from Havana, Cuba. Sara was the only one of their eleven children who survived.

In 1900, a big storm caused the Santa Catarina river to flood. The bridge that Sara used to cross to school was destroyed. Her father, Isidoro, thought he had lost his daughter. This worry made him very sick. Sara's mother, Felipa, sold her business and moved the family to Mexico City. Sadly, Sara's father passed away soon after they arrived.

When Sara was 9, she went to a special school called Las Vizcaínas. In 1905, a sickness called typhus spread in Mexico. Sara got sick, and then her mother, Felipa, also got sick and died. Sara stayed at the school under the care of the director, Cecilia Mallet. Sara was a good student and behaved well, which allowed her to stay. The director saw that Sara loved art and encouraged her to paint. Sara also became a teacher and had her students perform plays.

Starting Her Acting Journey (1917)

Sara began her acting career at age 22 while she was still a teacher. One day, she visited the new Azteca Films studios. She was fascinated by everything she saw. She started to think about acting, even if it was just in the theater.

An actor from Azteca Films noticed her interest. He invited her to be in her first movie, En defensa Propia ("In Self-Defense"), in 1917. After this, she started trying out for roles in the theater. Her clear speaking and strong voice helped her become part of important theater groups of that time.

The Golden Age of Mexican Cinema

Becoming "Mexico's Grandmother" (1918–1947)

In 1918, Sara married Fernando Ibáñez. They traveled around Mexico and Central America for their theater work. In Tepic, Sara gave birth to their daughter, Fernanda Mercedes. Sara decided to stop touring to take care of her daughter. This made Fernando unhappy, and he started other relationships. Sara divorced him and left with Fernanda. Years later, Fernando became ill, and Sara took care of him until he died in 1932.

Sara became very successful in theater and soon started getting roles in movies. Her daughter, Fernanda, also acted in a movie called "La madrina del diablo" (1937). In this film, she played the girlfriend of actor Jorge Negrete. Jorge Negrete tried to date Fernanda, but Sara did not approve. The romance ended, and Fernanda married an engineer in 1938. She moved away, but sadly, she died from typhoid fever in 1940. Sara was very strong and continued her career for 40 more years after her daughter's death.

Sara García in Los tres García (1947).

Sara García was very dedicated to her acting. When she was 40, she decided to have her teeth removed. She did this so her mouth would look like an older woman's. She wanted to play roles as caring older ladies more realistically.

Actress Emma Roldán suggested Sara García for the role of Doña Panchita, an old woman, in the 1940 film Allá en el trópico ("There in the Tropics"). The director, Fernando de Fuentes, thought Sara was too young. But Emma Roldán said, "Sara is an actress, and actresses don't have an age." For her screen test, Sara wore a special wig. When the director saw her, he was amazed. Her wig, her missing teeth, and her acting made her look exactly like an old woman. In this film, Allá en el trópico, Sara García earned her famous nickname, la Abuelita de México (Mexico's Grandmother).

Sara García playing her grandmother role in the film La abuelita (1942).

In 1942, Sara García acted with Joaquín Pardavé in El baisano Jalil. This was a comedy about a Lebanese immigrant family in Mexico City. She also starred with Pardavé in a similar comedy, El barchante Neguib (1945).

She then appeared in many films with other big stars of Mexican cinema, like Cantinflas, Jorge Negrete, and Germán Valdés "Tin-Tan". She often played the grandmother of the famous Mexican actor Pedro Infante. One of her most famous films with him was Los tres García (1947). In this movie, she played a strong, funny, and bossy grandmother to Pedro Infante and other actors.

Later Films and TV Shows (1947–1980)

Sara García in a publicity photo, around 1950.

Sara García continued to work with Joaquín Pardavé in films like "El ropavejero" (1947) and "Azahares para tu boda" (1950). She also showed her funny side in movies like Doña Clarines (1951), where she made fun of her own grandmother character. She did this again in Las señoritas Vivanco (1959) and El proceso de las señoritas Vivanco (1961).

In the 1960s, she worked in both movies and television. She appeared in many telenovelas, such as "A Face in the Past" (1960) and "La Duquesa" (1966). In "La Duquesa," she played a lottery ticket seller who wins a lot of money. She uses the money to get her daughter back, who she had given up to rich relatives.

In the 1970s, her grandmother character appeared in films like "Fin de fiesta" (1972) and "Mecánica Nacional" (1972). Even when her characters used strong language, it was still charming because it came from "Mexico's Grandmother." She also played Nana Tomasita in the long-running telenovela Mundo de juguete (1974).

Personal Life

During her time at Las Vizcaínas school, Sara met Rosario González Cuenca. Years later, after Sara divorced Fernando Ibáñez, they met again. Rosario was also divorced, and they started living together. Rosario acted as an aunt to Sara's daughter, Fernanda. Sara lived the rest of her life with Rosario.

Sara really liked Pedro Infante, one of her co-stars. However, she did not like Jorge Negrete because he had been interested in her daughter, Fernanda. Many friends said Sara was a very strict mother-in-law and did not approve of Jorge and Fernanda's relationship.

Later Years and Passing

The mausoleum of Sara García and her daughter María Fernanda Ibáñez in Mexico City.

Sara García had her own TV show in 1951 called Media hora con Abuelita, but it was canceled. She returned to television in 1960 with a role in Un rostro en el pasado. This was the first of eight telenovelas she acted in. These included Mundo de juguete in 1974, which was one of the longest-running telenovelas ever. She also appeared in Viviana with Lucía Méndez in 1978.

On November 21, 1980, Sara García passed away in Mexico City at the age of 85. She had a cardiac arrest (heart attack) caused by pneumonia. A few days before, she had been in the hospital after falling down the stairs at her home.

Sara García was buried next to her daughter in a special tomb at the Panteón Español cemetery in Mexico City. During her burial, the song "Mi Cariñito" ("My Little Darling") was played. This was a song that Pedro Infante often sang to Sara in movies. It is said that the singer Lucha Villa sang it at Sara's funeral.

Legacy

Sara García became a symbol of a grandmother in Mexico because of her many roles as a grandma in movies. In 1973, she allowed the chocolate company La Azteca to use her image on their traditional Abuelita chocolate product. Later, in 1995, the Nestlé company bought La Azteca. Nestlé continues to use Sara García's image on the same chocolate brand today.

Filmography

Telenovelas

Television Shows

Documentaries

Mexican Cinema Films

Sara García in La abuelita (1942)

United States Cinema Films

Sara García with Liliane Montevecchi in The Living Idol (1957).

Italian Cinema Films

Spanish Cinema Films

See also

In Spanish: Sara García para niños