Miguel Ángel Fuentes/Video recording/Via El Universal
The closure in 2023 brings with it the deaths of some celebrities. One of them is Miguel Ángel Fuentes, a Mexican actor who died at his home in Mexico City at the age of 70.
Fuentes was one of those actors that the public immediately recognized, but many did not know his name. He wasn't an actor who excelled in leading roles. His career was based on appearances as a supporting actor and extra. However, his presence in the picture as a supporting actor was just as important as that of the stars who directed him being one of the Mexicans asked internationally to appear in some foreign productions.
He started working in cinema in the mid-70s. During this time he stood out as Pancracio in the adaptation of the novel The ones below by Mariano Azuela. The film adaptation was directed by Servando González in 1978. He was also part of the cast that supported the performance of Cepillín in the film Milagro en el circo (Alejandro Galindo, 1979) with his character of Hercules.
It was in the 80s when he had his breakthrough and his big moment as an actor. In 1980 it appeared in two major titles from those years: The big water, by Servando González and Dying at dawn, by Julian Pastor. His physical features and height gradually caught the attention of producers as he had a very cinematic profile.
Since Fuentes possessed a face that symbolized both evil and good, he had to play both villains and good-natured men. He was even considered the Mexican twin of Richard Kiel, a Hollywood actor who became famous for playing the role of Great White Shark The spy who loved me (Lewis Gilbert, 1977) and Mondraker (Lewis Gilbert, 1979), Both films belong to the James Bond saga.
In 1982, he was part of the cast of Fitzcarraldo, a film by Werner Herzog that is considered one of the best in the history of cinema. For this work, Herzog was awarded best director at the Cannes Film Festival. There Fuentes plays Cholo, the mechanic who accompanies Fitzcarraldo (Klaus Kinski) in his obsession to build an opera house in the jungle. He shared the credits with Claudia Cardinale herself.
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This international promotion motivated him to receive offers from Hollywood, opposite Richard Harris in The Triumph of a Man Called Horse (John Hough, 1983) and Charles Bronson in Savage Justice (J. Lee Thompson, 1984). to appear. He received invitations from Europe to take part in the German series On axis in 1987.
Meanwhile, a comedy television show in Mexico put him on the map with viewers nationwide. It was Ambrosio's Carbine, one of the most popular and viewed content by the public between the 70s and 80s. In 1983 he was given the opportunity to join the cast of the sketches of gulp, the parody version of Hulk, the incredible man with Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno in the USA.
Miguel Ángel Fuentes, “the Mexican Hulk”, who appeared in La carabina de Ambrosio/Recording of one of the episodes of the show/Via YouTube
César Costa acted as Bruce Banner and impersonated Bixby. Each time he transformed into the green monster, Miguel Ángel Fuentes took on this persona in clear imitation of Ferrigno. Because the audience didn't know his name, They referred to him as “the Mexican Hulk,” a nickname used when talking about him today.
Gulp's sketches were a hit. In this way, and although little attention was paid to this aspect, the actor showed that he could also appear in comedy, a genre that complemented his journey with melodrama, action and westerns.
The last episode of Ambrosio's Carbine was broadcast in 1987, the year in which Miguel Ángel Fuentes found a place in soap operas with short roles. At first he did it seduction (1986-1987) to continue carousel (1989). That was the trend in later decades, with him alternating brief appearances between soap operas and films, usually with bodyguard or police characters.