Alejandro Flores

Alejandro Flores Pinaud
Flores in 1927
Born(1896-02-09)February 9, 1896
Santiago, Chile
DiedJanuary 6, 1962(1962-01-06) (aged 65)
Chile
OccupationsPoet, playwright, actor
Writing career
Notable awardsNational Prize of Art of Chile

Alejandro Flores Pinaud (1896–1962) was a Chilean poet, dramatist and actor. In 1946, the Chilean government distinguished his career with the National Art Award.

Early life

Flores became interested in theater at a young age. He was educated at Patrocinio de San José and San Pedro Nolasco schools. He did not do well in school and was expelled from the San Bernardo Non-Commissioned Officer School.

Career

Flores was invited to join the Chilean Theater Company in 1915.

In 1917 he went on tour in Peru and Argentina with Enrique Baguena, Arturo Buhrle, Mario Padin and Bernardo Jambrina.

He began writing several lyrical pieces and in 1919 he staged one, "El derrumbe" ("The Collapse") in Santiago. He was not only the creator of the script, but he played the lead role. The play was successful earning him fame in Chile and Argentina. Two years later, his "Malhaya tu corazón" ("Curse your heart"), repeated the success of his debut feature.

In 1922, he worked for the Mario Padín Company in Argentina. That same year he married the Argentinian actress Carmen Moreno Jofré.

In 1930 he started in Norte y Sur, Chile's first sound film.

He was a devoted admirer of the heroes of the Chilean War of Independence and became a collector of objects linked to these heroes. One of the specific manifestations of this sentiment was the creation of the Museum of the Patria Vieja, in a central house of Rancagua, where he resided for some years. This museum opened its doors on October 24, 1950. The president at the time, Gabriel González Videla, and a good set of authorities and respectable neighbors of the city attended its inauguration. They sold the house and its collection two years later to the government of Chile. It became part of the Rancagua Regional Museum.

Flores was the author of two successful books of poetry.

Influence

In his book, 'The dance of reality', Alejandro Jodorowsky evokes his namesake Alejandro Flores in whose troupe he worked for a short time. The latter taught him the power of the name: 'It was the first time that someone told me that if we exalted our name it became the most powerful amulet... Alejandro Flores is a sound amulet that fills theatres... Go and inseminate your own name, learn to love it, to exalt it, to discover what treasures it contains.'

Selected works

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Alejandro Flores Pinaud (1946)" (in Spanish). Carabineros de Chile Historical Museum. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 Vargas Badilla, José (1996). "Centenario de nacimiento el actor Alejandro Flores" (PDF) (in Spanish). Biblioteca Nacional Digital de Chile. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Fleming, Raymundo (6 January 2025). "Efemérides: El 06 de enero de 1962 muere el actor, escritor y poeta Alejandro Flores" (in Spanish). BioBioChile. Retrieved 20 June 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Rancagua Regional Museum" (in Spanish). Registro Museos Chile. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  5. ↑ "En un día como hoy". El Rancagüino (in Spanish). 6 January 1981. p. 5. Retrieved 20 June 2026.
  6. ↑ Jodorowsky, Alexandro (2002). La danse de la réalité. Paris: Albin Michel. ISBN 2-226-13203-1. OCLC 51492627.