The Webb County Heritage Foundation will host an opening reception for “El Santo Contra El Horror,” an exhibit of vintage Mexican movie posters featuring world-renowned wrestler, “El Santo,” on Thursday, September 19 from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Villa Antigua Border Heritage Museum, 810 Zaragoza St. in Laredo.
Also referred to as the “Silver Mask,” El Santo is the most popular Mexican wrestler, a central figure in the Mexican wrestling movie genre, and the most successful Hispanic American comic strip superhero. El Santo’s movie persona represents righteousness, justice, loyalty, and courage. El Santo’s film career boasts 52 movies over 24 years (1958-1982), 30 of which are in the horror or science fiction genres. Eighteen directors fashioned the myth of a famous professional wrestler who embarks on dangerous missions in the service of justice with adventures that take place in Mexico, Spain, the U.S., Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Haiti, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic.
This exhibit brings together some of the best film posters featuring “El Santo” in Mexican cinema. All the posters are originals with dates of their film’s debut. They have been restored and mounted on canvas so that viewers may experience them as they appeared in movie theaters of the time. The international artwork, perhaps unfamiliar to many, allows an appreciation of the global popularity of this Mexican idol. The French and Italian posters are especially impressive because of their size, color, and quality.
This exhibit comes to Laredo on loan from the Mexican cinema poster collection of Freddy Peralta.
For more information, please contact the Webb County Heritage Foundation at (956) 727-0977 or visit www.webbheritage.org.
