Gilda Galán (January 16, 1917 – June 21, 2009) was a Puerto Rican actress, comedian, writer, composer, scriptwriter and poet.[1] The veteran actress, whose career spanned decades, enjoyed one of the longest careers in the history of the Puerto Rican entertainment industry.[1]
Gilda Galán | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 16, 1917 |
| Died | June 21, 2009 (aged 92) |
| Occupations |
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Life
editGilda Galán was born in Guayama, Puerto Rico, in 1917.[1]
Galán died on Sunday afternoon, June 21, 2009, at 1:06 P.M.[1] at El Hogar Alivio Dorado in Carolina, Puerto Rico at the age of 92.[2] Galan had been in declining health during the last six months of her life.[2]
Career
editGalán began working at WKAQ (AM) radio in San Juan in 1948 following her graduation from high school.[1] She worked as a programming and writer at WKAQ, as well as a comedic and dramatic voice actress on the air for the station.[1] It was at WKAQ that Galan created her first well known character, La Abuelita or Grandma, and she would continue to play similar roles on television later in her career.[1] She also wrote scripts for comedian and producer, Tommy Muñiz, who performed at WKAQ.[1]
One of Galán's best known roles was as the character, Agnes, in the play Los Soles Truncos by playwright René Marqués.[2] Galan debuted as Agnes in Los Soles Truncos as part of the first inaugural Festival de Teatro Puertorriqueño at the Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña in 1958.[1] Her work in Los Soles Truncos catapulted Galán to fame within her profession.[1]
Galán later performed as Bernarda in the play La Casa de Bernarda Alba (The House of Bernarda Alba) by Spanish dramatist Federico García Lorca.[1] Her particular production of Bernarda Alba was directed by Dean Zayas.[2]
In 1967, Galán began appearing in a political satire program, "Se alquilan habitaciones", as the popular main character, Marunga.[1][2] It was one of the first examples of political satire on Puerto Rican television.[1] The controversial show, which was created and written by political satire humorist Alberto Gonzalez,[3] was pulled from broadcast on several occasions.[1]
Galán continued to work in television roles similar to her character, Marunga, throughout the 1970s.[1]
Galán's other television roles included the comedy, El Beauty, as well as El diario de una mujer, Cuentos de la abuelita and Todo el año es Navidad.[1] Her career in television and theater continued into the 2000s.
See also
edit- List of Puerto Ricans
- Helena Montalban - who worked with Galan on several theatrical productions
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Rodriguez, Jorge (June 23, 2009). "Fallece primera actriz Gilda Galán". El Vocero. Archived from the original on July 4, 2009. Retrieved July 21, 2009.
- ^ a b c d e Santiago, Amary (June 22, 2009). "Fallece la actriz Gilda Galán". Primera Hora. Retrieved July 21, 2009.
- ^ http://www.albertogonzalez-politicalsatirehumorist.com%7CAlberto Gonzalez, Political Satire Humorist Memorial Website
External links
edit- Gilda Galán at IMDb