Mexican actress Sasha Montenegro passed away yesterday at the age of 78 in the city of Cuernavaca. She suffered a stroke resulting from lung cancer. Born Aleksandra Aćimović Popović on January 20, 1946, in Bari, Italy, Montenegro rose to prominence as one of Mexico's most popular movie actresses in the seventies and eighties, working in around seventy productions, and leaving an indelible mark on the country's popular culture.
Her mother hailed from an aristocratic family in Montenegro, while her father worked for the British Intelligence Service. Montenegro relocated to Argentina with her family during her upbringing before later settling in Mexico, where she pursued her acting career.
Making her debut in the 1972 movie Un sueño de amor by Rubén Galindo, Montenegro quickly gained traction in the industry, appearing in numerous films, including several lucha libre movies alongside superstar El Santo, such as Santo vs. the Killers from Other Worlds / Santo contra los asesinos de otros mundos (1973) and Santo vs. Black Magic Woman / Santo contra la magia negra (1973).
In 1975, she starred in the landmark erotic movie Bellas de noche (Beauties by Night), directed by Miguel M. Delgado, which kickstarted the mainstream genre of Mexican sex comedies known as 'ficheras,' flourishing throughout the seventies and eighties.
Montenegro became an icon for these sex comedies, featuring in numerous productions such as Noches de cabaret (1978), Las cariñosas (1979), Muñecas de medianoche (1979), La pulquería (1981), and Noche de Califas (1987). Other notable cinematic titles include Fe, esperanza y caridad (1974), Llámenme Mike (1979), and Pedro Navaja (1984).
In the eighties, she began a relationship with former Mexican President José López Portillo while he was still married to Carmen Romano, with whom he had three children. After obtaining a divorce from Romano, López Portillo and Montenegro married in 2000 following Romano's death. Montenegro is survived by her children Nabila and Alejandro.
