Alejandro Cordo Lugo

===BODY===
Actor in Cuban radio, television, film, and theater. Acting professor.

He trained at the Academia Libre de La Habana, founded by prestigious figures from Spanish theater such as José Rubia Barcia. His study companions included Antonio (Ñico) Hernández, Martínez Aparicio, Modesto Anteno, and Marisbel Sáenz, who later became among the founders of the Academia de Arte Dramático.

Before becoming a full-time actor, he worked in several positions: medical representative, sailor, swimming instructor, and professional boxer; these experiences served as inspiration for the multiple roles he developed throughout his career and consolidated the versatility for which he distinguished himself among Cuban actors. It is said that once Kid Chocolate, who greatly encouraged him, came to watch him box; but his opponent refused to fight, so Lugo, in desperation, lowered his arms and offered his face. Kid became angry, left the hall, and later told him: "Never do that, no good boxer offers his face to his opponent."

In the early 1940s, he began working at CMQ. His first leading role was as the character Diego Grillo in adventures written by José Ángel Buesa for the same network. He also worked in other adventures, such as Tarzan, where he played Wally and the monkey Chita.

In 1948, he participated in one of the most important radio novels ever produced in Cuba: El derecho de nacer, written by Santiago native Félix B. Caignet. The radio novel aired in April 1948 and remained on the air for more than a year, and through its broadcast, CMQ displaced the top-rated space Novela del aire, belonging to RHC Cadena Azul, which had enjoyed great popularity until then.

El derecho de nacer imposed a narrative style—whose cornerstone is "speaking in metaphor" as a means to reach the sensitivity of listeners—that rapidly spread throughout central and South America, where Caignet's series found an eager market. The leading roles were performed by an excellent cast, among which María Valero and Carlos Badías stood out. Although Lugo played only a supporting character in the 314 episodes of the novel, this served for the audience to become familiar with his voice and gain popularity, which later allowed him to obtain important roles in the network's main programs.

He recalled that it had been an honor for him to work with Rita Montaner in the radio program Mejor que me calle. Years later, exactly on May 31, 1957, they met again on the stage of the Arlequín theater in the comedy Fiebre de primavera, by Noel Coward. This was the last performance by "La Única," as she passed away months later.

On December 18, 1950, less than a month after television broadcasts began on the Island, when the first experimental broadcast of Channel 6 took place from the CMQ Televisión studios, Lugo debuted as the lead in an English detective story with a script by Marcos Behmaras.

His presentation took place in the space Tensión on Channel 6, and it was CMQ-TV's first police program. From that moment on, as the leading man of the CMQ Circuit's dramatic cast, he acted in novels, theater pieces, and various police programs.

In the space El humo del recuerdo, on CMQ-TV, he appeared for the first time as the legendary "Chinese doctor" of Cuban popular culture. He immortalized on screen this character who had the ability to save even the most seriously ill patient, although he could condemn them if he did not know the illness that afflicted them.

In theater, Lugo frequently shared the stage with the distinguished actress Violeta Casals. Among the most remembered works are: 24 rosas rojas, presented at the Arlequín hall, and Desviadero 23, a production of the Patronato del Teatro, for which he received the Thalía Trophy and the Antillana prize in 1956.

Special mention deserves La madre, which was selected as the most outstanding work of 1962 and the most-watched throughout the Republic. It was dedicated to the Cuban working class and had high social content, as it represented scenes from a literacy campaign similar to the one that had been carried out in Cuba the previous year (1961). Critics highlighted that the work possessed a modern revolutionary vision of the stage and appropriate use of all scenic resources. The music was composed by Leo Brouwer, and the work premiered at the Mella theater. After its box office success, they toured throughout the country, giving thirty-four performances; some took place in theater halls and others outdoors, in workplaces, tobacco factories, open spaces where actors related directly with workers. The goal of the group of actors was to encourage people to become more involved in cultural life and theater, and to participate in the workshops they offered.

Alejandro Lugo's filmography is extensive. A total of twenty-six films attest to the quality of this actor. Before 1959, he participated in seven films co-produced between Cuba and Mexico, among which Siete muertes a plazo fijo (1950) deserves to be highlighted, where he played the bandit "Siete caras" and shared the screen with actors such as Ernesto de Gali, Raquel Revuelta, Eduardo Casado, Rosendo Rossel, Maritza Rosales, Juan José Martínez Casado, Adolfo Otero, Gaspar de Santelices, and Manolo Coego. The film marks the beginning of a new genre, the Cuban-style thriller, a mystery plot mixed with comedy and musical scenes, to the rhythm of compositions by Osvaldo Farrés. Additionally, Lugo worked in Casta de Robles (1953), a rural drama written by Álvaro de Villa, with musical direction by Félix Guerrero, and direction by Spaniard Alfredo Fraile, who masterfully captured the beauty of Cuba's countryside. In this film, he shared the lead with Xonia Benguría, Ángel Espasande, Mexican David Silva, Santiago Ríos, Ricardo Dantes, and Antonia Valdés. In 1954, he filmed La mujer que se vendió, by Agustín Delgado, based on the script of a radio novel written by Félix B. Caignet. In 1957, he worked in El farol en la ventana, directed by Juan Orol, with Mary Esquivel.

With the creation of the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematográficos (ICAIC), he consolidated his participation in the medium, working in nineteen films, among which are Tulipa (1967), directed by Manuel Octavio Gómez, in which Dalia Anreus, Daisy Granados, and Omar Valdés also acted; Río Negro (1977), by Manuel Pérez Paredes, selected among the year's most significant films by Cuban critics and which received the Special Jury Prize at the Moscow International Film Festival (USSR, 1977); Retrato de Teresa (1979), by Pastor Vega, starring Daysi Granados and Adolfo Llauradó, and which received numerous awards at national and international competitions; Guardafronteras (1981); El señor presidente (1983); El corazón sobre la tierra (1984); Otra mujer (1986); En tres y dos (1986); and Visa USA (1986), directed by Lisandro Duque Naranjo, a Colombia-Cuba co-production.

In the 1960s, he created and directed the Escuela de Formación de Actores of the Instituto Cubano de Radio y Televisión (ICRT), with teachers such as Alden Knight and Alfredo Perojo, where actors of the caliber of Susana Pérez, Natacha Díaz, Yolanda Ruiz, Idelfonso Tamayo, and Irela Bravo, among others, were trained.

In 1960, he played "Enzio's son," a leading character in the novel by Félix Pita Rodríguez, Sombras del pasado, which was chosen as the best dramatized continuity program of the year. In 1961, with the character "Perico Piedrafina," he acted in Medea en el espejo, which was rated by critics as the best television program during July of that year.

He was always willing to share his knowledge with new generations; for example, in 1969 he taught dramatic acting workshops at Radio Cadena Agramonte.

His performances as "Lucas Fundora" in Tierra o sangre (rebroadcast in 1976); "Mister Danger" in Doña Bárbara; "El Chino," a security agent in Para empezar a vivir; and his characters in other series such as Julito el pescador and La frontera del deber are memorable. In 1982, he received the Medalla Alejo Carpentier in recognition of his outstanding achievements and his role in enriching national culture.

Alejandro Lugo died in 1996 in full command of his faculties. This was a great loss for Cuban performing arts. The farewell at the funeral was given by one of his closest friends, the distinguished actor Alden Knight, who stated: "We can never forget Lugo, as he simply liked to be called, the Lugo who runs every morning, like one of us, along the Havana waterfront; the one we knew internally, the one who cares about the well-being of his colleagues, the one with the broad smile, the one with the well-deserved laurel of joviality, authenticity, generosity."

Source: EnCaribe