Flor Silvestre

Flor Silvestre was a Mexican singer and actress who was one of the most prominent and successful performers of Mexican and Latin American music, and a star of classic Mexican films during the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Her more than 70-year career included stage productions, radio programs, records, films, television programs, comics and rodeo shows. Famed for her melodious voice and unique singing style, she was a notable interpreter of the ranchera, bolero, bolero ranchero, and huapango genres. She recorded more than 300 songs for three labels: Columbia, RCA Víctor, and Musart. She also participated in her husband Antonio Aguilar's musical rodeo shows. Flor Silvestre appeared in more than seventy films between 1950 and 1990. Beautiful and statuesque, she became one of the leading stars of the "golden age" of the Mexican film industry. Her most notable films include Raquel's Shoeshiner (1957), with Cantinflas; The Soldiers of Pancho Villa (1959), with María Félix; and The Important Man (1961), which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. She was also a cinematic symbol of the Mexican Revolution, due to her portrayals of soldaderas in films such as ¡Viva la soldadera! (1960), Lauro Puñales (1969), and Benjamín Argumedo el rebelde (1979). She was the mother of singers and actors Antonio Aguilar Jr. and Pepe Aguilar, and the grandmother of singers Leonardo Aguilar and Ángela Aguilar. She received numerous awards and honors for her artistic career, such as the Eduardo Arozamena Medal and a star on the Plaza de las Estrellas in Mexico City.