Santo Vs. The Head Hunters. 1968
Window Card
Santo Vs. Frankenstein's Daughter,
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El Santo
"The Saint"
"The Saint"
El Emascarado de Plata (The silver
Masked Man) marked his screen debut in 1952, however despite the film's
success it would be almost nine years later before El Santo returned,
beginning an uninterrupted twenty year run of righting wrongs and
destroying monsters in the best superhero tradition.
Just as Batman patrolled Gotham in his batmobile and maintained a
batcave haven, Santo tooled around in his sporty Bentley and owned a
hacienda equipped with a crime lab.
One of his more memorable films, Santo Contra las Mujeres Vampiro
(Santo Vs. the Vampire Women, 1962) pitted the luchador against the
seductive charms of Lorena Velasquez
Although Santo was constantly
beset by the hot tamale du jour, neither feminine pulchritude nor the
evils of alcohol and tobacco ever tarnished his character.
Living the part on and off the screen, Huerta rarely removed his
facemask and strict secrecy was always maintained on his film sets. Only a
handful of people actually knew his true identity.
Close associates claim his face was tender and that his ears were
permanently pressed against his head due to the constriction of the
mask.
In the early 1980's, with wrestling films on the wane, Santo retired,
publicly unmasking himself. Accomplishing what no foe could, Huerta, ended
a decades old mystery.
Before his death in 1984 of a heart attack, he handed down the silver mask
to his son, El Hijo de Santo. Following a funeral procession attended by
thousands, Huerta was buried outside of Mexico City in the
Mausoleo del Angel. A commemorative plaque depicting El Emascarado de Plata
adorns his crypt.
Rudolfo Huerta, born 1918, spent over 40 years as a professional
wrestler, starring in over 60 films. While still a young boy, Huerta moved to
Mexico City and quickly fell in love with lucha libere, free fighting. In
the late 1930's he appeared in small venues as Murcielago II posing as the
villian against the more popular hero wrestlers. Following the suggestion of
his promoter, Huerta changed his name to El Santo and donned a silver mask,
evolving into an honorable and courageous champion of justice.