Manolete
 Monument to Manolete in front of the bullring in Linares | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Manuel Laureano Rodríguez Sánchez |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Born |
4 July 1917 Córdoba, Andalucia, Spain |
| Died |
29 August 1947 (aged 30) Linares, Andalucia, Spain |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Bullfighting |
| Position | Matador |
| Bullfighting career | |
| Début novillero | 1931 |
| Alternativa | 2 July 1939 |
| • Place | Real Maestranza de Sevilla |
| Confirmación | |
| • Godfather | Manuel Jiménez |
| • Witness | Rafael Vega de los Reyes |
Manuel Laureano Rodríguez Sánchez (4 July 1917 – 29 August 1947), better known as Manolete, was a Spanish bullfighter.
Career
He rose to prominence shortly after the Spanish Civil War and is considered by some to be the greatest bullfighter of all time. His style was sober and serious, with few concessions to the gallery, and he excelled at the suerte de matar — the kill. Manolete's contribution to bullfighting included being able to stand very still while the bull passed close to his body and, rather than giving the passes separately, he was able to remain in one spot and link four or five consecutive passes together into a compact series.
He popularized a pass with the muleta called the "Manoletina," which is normally given just before entering to kill with the sword. In addition to all of the major bullrings of Spain, he had very important triumphs in Plaza Mexico.
Death
He died in August 1947 following a goring in the upper right leg as he killed the fifth bull of the day, the Miura bull Islero, an event that left Spain in a state of shock. Manolete received his fatal goring in the town of Linares where he appeared alongside the up-and-coming matador Luis Miguel Dominguín, who, after Manolete's death, proclaimed himself Number One.
In response to Manolete's death, General Francisco Franco, then dictator of Spain, ordered three days of "national mourning", during which only funeral dirges were heard on the radio.
In popular culture
- The George A. Romero film, Land of the Dead featured a character named Manolete, who was named after the bullfighter.
- Crooked Fingers' 2005 album Dignity and Shame is loosely based in part on the life of Manolete.
- "Death of Manolete" is a 10,000 Maniacs song from the 1983 album Secrets of the I Ching.
- Manolete was cited as the greatest bullfighter in the Twilight Zone episode, "A Game of Pool".
- Salvador Dalí portrays Manolete in his famous double-image painting, "The Hallucinogenic Toreador", 1969, Salvador Dalí Museum, St. Petersburg, FL
- In the 35th episode of Los Serrano ("A Broken Heart"), a nervous Diego is taking it out on his middle son Guille, and even though Guille was innocent of the thing Diego blamed him for, Diego nevertheless says that Guille is guilty even for the death of Manolete.
See also
Publications
- Barnaby Conrad, The Death of Manolete, Phoenix Books, 2007. ISBN 1-59777-548-7
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Manolete. |
- Manolete at Spanish-Fiestas.com
- Manolete, Estrella Internacional La Cueva de Zaratustra