Actor Alfonso Mejía, best known for his lead role of Pedro in Luis Buñuel’s 1950 landmark film Los olvidados, died yesterday at the age of 87 of natural causes in Chihuahua, Mexico, where he lived. After a successful career in Mexican cinema during the fifties and sixties, participating in almost 30 films, he retired completely from acting.
Born November 16, 1934, in Mexico City, he was cast in the role of Pedro at the age of 15, after some friends convinced him to audition for the part. Los olvidados, also known internationally for its alternate title The Young and the Damned, is a gripping portrait of Mexico City’s slums.
It tells the story of Jaibo, who after he runs away from a reformatory school, meets with a gang of street boys to plan several assaults. Pedro, one of the gang members who is always searching for his mother’s love and care, gives shelter to “Ojitos.” a farm boy abandoned in the street. The destinies of the main characters come dramatically together when Jaibo, in front of Pedro, murders the guy who supposedly betrayed him.
Los olvidados caused controversy in Mexico upon its commercial release, and was attacked by the local press for its raw depiction of poverty and for its negative portrait of the country. Nevertheless, the film was met to critical acclaim at the 1951 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Best Director Award, and was later reappraised in Mexico. The film ended winning 11 Ariel Awards, and Mejía received the Ariel for Best Child Actor.
Following the success of the film, Mejía acted in numerous other films including La bienamada (1951) by Emilio Fernández, Mi esposa y la otra (1952) by Alfredo B. Crevenna, Mañana serán hombres (1961) by Alejandro Galindo, Tarahumara by Luis Alcoriza (1965), and Por mis pistolas (1968) by Miguel M. Delgado starring Mario Moreno, Cantinflas.
Mejía received two other Ariel nominations for Best Young Actor for Padre nuestro (1954) by Emilio Gómez Muriel, and El túnel (1956) by Chano Urueta. His last film was Rubí (1970) by Carlos Enrique Taboada. He retired from acting and moved to Chihuahua, where he worked as a television producer for a local network.
