Cuban. Too Cuban For You. Among Cubans, it was the recognition of one’s ethnic idiosyncrasies that enriched his popularity. Among others, it was being granted license to laugh at aspects of Cuban speech and culture which the audience already found funny. As anti-Castro as any of his exile compatriots, Alvarez Guedes summed up his critique of Fidel Castro in a simple vulgarity in Spanish: He was an S.O.B. Most Cuban-Americans would agree. “My best memories of Cuba make me sad,” he told El Nuevo Herald in 2007. “Cuba is a country that no longer exists, even if I was born there.” The roots of Alvarez Guedes’ humor are to be found in a Cuban music hall tradition known as teatro bufo, where ethnic types drawn from the Havana barrios acted out comedy skits that were Creole versions of comic theater from the 16th and 17th century Spanish traditions. According to the EnCaribe web page, Alvarez Guedes represented both el gallego—– a handlebar-moustached Spanish immigrant, whose physical appearance was that of Alvarez Guedes himself — and el negrito, a street-smart Afro-Cuban who relentlessly mocks el gallego. And his attitude is rooted in choteo, a disregard for any seriousness that Cuban intellectual life identifies as a major component of the island’s culture. But such academic wonderings would be dismissed by Alvarez Guedes, who in his radio show on Miami’s Clasica 92.3FM would urge his listeners, in the best tradition of choteo, to tirarlo todo a relajo — make a joke of everything. Alvarez Guedes wrote over 20 books, and his albums, alongside television presentations and stand-up comedy appearances have made him one of the most well-liked entertainers, both among the Hispanic public and fellow entertainers alike. Alvarez Guedes died on 30 July 2013 at his home in the Kendall neighborhood of Miami. Discography El dia que cayo Fidel Castro 1967 Álvarez Guedes 1 1975 Álvarez Guedes 2 1975 Álvarez Guedes 3 1976 Álvarez Guedes 4 1976 Álvarez Guedes 5 1977 Álvarez Guedes 6 1977 Álvarez Guedes 7 1978 Álvarez Guedes en Venezuela 1978 8 1978 Álvarez Guedes 10 1979 Vol 9 1979 Álvarez Guedes 11 1980 Álvarez Guedes 13 1981 Álvarez Guedes 15 1982 Álvarez Guedes 16 1983 12 1983 16 1983 Álvarez Guedes 17 1984 Álvarez Guedes 18 1985 20 1987 Vol 21 1989 References External links 1927 births 2013 deaths American entertainers of Cuban descent Cuban male comedians Cuban comedians