Luisa Vehil (November 12, 1912, in

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

– October 24, 1991, in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

) was an

an theater and movie actress who had a notable career in Argentina during the

Golden Age of Argentine cinema The Golden Age of Argentine cinema (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Época de Oro del cine argentino'' or other equivalent names), sometimes known interchangeably as the broader classical or classical-industrial period (Spanish: ''período clásico- ...

. She was an iconic figure in the Argentine theatre scene.

Biography

Luisa Vehil was born in 1912 in

, she belongs to an eight generation dynasty of actors originally from

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

; daughter and granddaughter of theatre players. Her brothers were Paquita and Juan. She was also the aunt of actors

Miguel Ángel Solá Miguel Ángel Solá Vehil (born May 14, 1950) is an Argentine actor who has made over 60 film appearances in film and TV in Argentina since 1973. He is traditionally typecast in villain roles. Biography Born in Buenos Aires, Solá belongs to th ...

and

Mónica Vehil Monica is a female given name with many variant forms, including Mónica (Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), Mônica (Brazilian Portuguese), Monique (French), Monika (German, Indian, Lithuanian), Moonika (Estonia), and Mónika (Hungarian). His ...

. Luisa moved to

, Argentina at an early age, and starred in her first movie in 1933, ''

Los tres berretines ''Los tres berretines'' (''The Three Whims'') is a 1933 Argentine black and white comedy film, the first film made by the newly formed Lumiton film studio, and one of the first sound films made in Argentina. Along with ''¡Tango!'', released that s ...

'', directed by

Enrique Telémaco Susini Enrique Telémaco Susini (January 31, 1891 – July 4, 1972) was an Argentine entrepreneur and media pioneer. In 1920, Susini led the effort for the first radio broadcast in Argentina, and subsequently established one of the earliest regular radi ...

. It was the second Argentine talk movie. She went on to appear in other minor 'talkies' throughout the '30s, working in

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Arge ...

-oriented films by famed tango writer Manuel Romero and Eduardo Morera. Opposite to

Juan Perón Juan Domingo Perón (, , ; 8 October 1895 – 1 July 1974) was an Argentine military officer and Statesman (politician), statesman who served as the History of Argentina (1946-1955), 29th president of Argentina from 1946 to Revolución Libertad ...

regime she suffered an attack when playing the leading role in the play '' Fascination''. Vehil's next big role was in '' Pampa bárbara'', an epic western directed by

Lucas Demare Lucas Demare (July 14, 1910 – September 6, 1981) was an Argentina, Argentine film director, screenwriter, and film producer notable for his work during the Golden Age of Argentine cinema, classical era of Argentine cinema and beyond. Biogr ...

and

Hugo Fregonese Hugo Geronimo Fregonese (8 April 1908 – 11 January 1987) was an Argentine film director and screenwriter who worked both in Hollywood and his home country during the Golden Age of Argentine cinema, classical era of Argentine cinema.''Cine Na ...

. It was her second and last screen appearance throughout the '40s; likewise, she acted in film once per decade – once in the '50s ('' En la ardiente oscuridad'', by

Daniel Tinayre Daniel Tinayre (14 September 1910 – 24 October 1994) was a French-born Argentine film director, screenwriter and film producer notable for his work during the Golden Age of Argentine cinema, classical era of Argentine cinema (1930s–1950s) a ...

, 1958) and once in the '60s (''El bote, el río y la gente'', 1960). Nevertheless, her main activity was the theater where she was regarded as one of the ''Grand-Dames'' of the national scene, a revered and iconic figure. She played Mary Stuart, Juana La Loca,

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish writer of novels, plays, short stories, and poems. Writing in both English and French, his literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal, and Tragicomedy, tra ...

Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marsha ...

, ''Madame Desmortes'' in

Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; ; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist and screenwriter whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ...

L'Invitation au Château ''Invitation to the Castle'' () is a 1947 satirical play by the French playwright Jean Anouilh. It was adapted in 1950 by Christopher Fry as ''Ring Round the Moon''. The play concerns twins, a cold, manipulative playboy Hugo, and his sensitive brot ...

and L'Alouette (The Lark),

Alejandro Casona Alejandro Rodríguez Álvarez, known as Alejandro Casona (23 March 1903 – 17 September 1965) was a Spanish poet and playwright born in Besullo, Spain, a member of the Generation of '27. Casona received his bachelor's degree in Gijon and l ...

's ''Los árboles mueren de pie'', etc. Between 1964 and 1967 she directed the Argentina's National Comedy and was also a member of the National Fund for Arts. She made a comeback in the '70s, appearing in films by

Juan Bautista Stagnaro ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish language, Spanish and Manx language, Manx versions of ''John (given name), John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-spea ...

Alejandro Doria Alejandro Doria (November 1, 1936 – June 17, 2009) was a noted Argentine cinema and television director. Life and work Born in Buenos Aires on November 1, 1936, Alejandro Doria first worked for Argentine television in 1965 as a writer for ...

and

Luis Saslavsky Luis Saslavsky (April 21, 1903 – March 20, 1995) was an Argentine film director, screenwriter and film producer, notable for his work during the classical era of Argentine cinema. Personal life Saskavsky was born in Rosario, Santa Fe, Argenti ...

. She would work with Doria one more time in 1982, in ''Los pasajeros del jardín''. Turning to TV, Vehil starred in the hour-long program ''Navidad en el año 2000'' in 1981 and hosted the show ''Las 24 horas'' from 1982 to 1985. Her last acting performance was in ''

Kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...

'' (1989), a controversial film by

Jorge Polaco Jorge Polaco (20 November 1946 – 20 February 2014) was an Argentine film director and screenwriter. His 1987 film '' En el nombre del hijo'' won Best Film at the 1988 Festroia International Film Festival in Setúbal, Portugal. Career After ...

, censored one day short from its release (the first case of censorship in the country following the end of the

Dirty War The Dirty War () is the name used by the military junta or National Reorganization Process, civic-military dictatorship of Argentina () for its period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983. During this campaign, military and secu ...

six years prior). Luisa Vehil was honored as an "Illustrious Citizen of the City of Buenos Aires" in 1990. In 1981 she received the ''Platinum'' and ''Diamond''

Konex Award Konex Foundation Awards, or simply Konex Awards, are cultural awards from the Konex Foundation honouring Argentine cultural personalities. History and purpose Konex Awards are granted by the Konex Foundation, created in 1980 in Argentina. The p ...

.Konex Awards
web site for Luisa Vehil. She died from natural causes on October 24, 1991.

Selected filmography

* '' Savage Pampas'' (1945)

References

External links

*
Oficial Argentine Theater Files

Konex Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vehil, Luisa 1912 births 1991 deaths Actresses from Montevideo Uruguayan expatriate actresses in Argentina Uruguayan people of Catalan descent Illustrious Citizens of Buenos Aires Uruguayan film actresses Uruguayan stage actresses 20th-century Uruguayan actresses