Frank González, who was the voice of Elpidio Valdés, passes away

April 9, 2021

The renowned Cuban actor in radio, television, theater, and cinema Frank González, National Television Prize 2019, passed away in the early morning hours today in this capital, at the age of 73.

According to a press release shared by the National Council of Performing Arts, González stood out not only as an exceptional actor, but for his gift of vocalizing the most diverse characters, becoming a master of dubbing.

As a creator of voices that will be remembered forever, it is enough to mention Colonel mambí Elpidio Valdés, the most popular animated character in Cuba, indicates the institution, and adds that he not only had the ability to change his voice, but he brought life to the characters based on a caricature.

Frank discovered his passion for the performing arts during Military Service, a period in which he participated in several festivals; in 1967 he entered the Cuban Institute of Radio and Television and took a course with the great actress and director Martha Jiménez Oropesa, to whom, according to what he confessed in an interview, he owed his mastery of voice, diction, and the phonetic apparatus.

In radio he entered through the front door, recording novels, plays, stories, and police dramas; in Television he recorded more than fourteen adventures and participated in telenovelas, series, plays, and stories.

He performed in theater under the direction of Raquel Revuelta, in Teatro Estudio, and in cinema he was in coproductions and Cuban feature films such as Se Permuta, Baraguá, En Tres y Dos, and Dolly Back, Coral Prize at the Havana Latin American Film Festival.

When Frank González died, he held the National Television Prize, the Distinction for Cuban Culture, the ACTUAR Prize for lifetime achievement, the Radio Microphone, and the CARICATO Prize for acting, granted by the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba.