2014

S4.E1 ∙ Pelucas Carmella

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Wig making is a trade which in times past was synonymous with fashion and vanity; today, it is also a synonym for wellness, as women, men, boys, and girls have found in them a means of enhancing their beauty, but also a way to resume their lives bravely in the face of advancing age or illness or as a vehicle for the courage needed to express their differences in expressing and defining their sexuality. Pelucas Camella is also a synonym for legacy, tradition, and the certainty that what the firm makes has a reason for being. It is, then, a win-win relationship, a conviction that enhancing people's appearance will similarly enhance their self-assurance and peace of mind. Wigs help people achieve that fragile and much-desired balance between outer beauty and inner beauty.

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S4.E2 ∙ Nunca nos volveremos a ver. Salvador 'Rabito' Agüero.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

For Salvador Aguero, aka Rabito, music has been his companion from his early days, when his father took him to XEW. The impact of discovering big band drummer Jim Krupa and jazz rhythms motivated him to prepare for and gain admission to the Free School of Music. He spends countless hours studying and practicing music. Many hours of practice are needed to improvise and find the desired harmony, and between chords you form the jazz melody you seek, your own sound. As a professional drummer, Rabito has worked with prominent musicians like Frank Rosolino, Clare Fisher, Juan Garcia Esquivel, and Damaso Parez Prado, among others. Two jazz greats, Dave Brubek and Oscar Peterson, hired him to play in recording sessions. His collaboration with Chilo Moran, in 1962, was special, attaining a level of excellence which made them the first jazz ensemble to perform at Mexico City's famed Fine Arts Palace. Nostalgia is also part of Rabito, who dreams of dedicating a jazz piece to his inseparable partner who, over a span of sixty years, accompanied him at home and from gig to gig.

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S4.E3 ∙ Dicha, fortuna y felicidad. Eloy Gómez.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Cuautempan was the village where Eloy learned what would be his vocation, is trade. When he was a young boy, a traveling bird fortune teller handed him three cards which showed him his mission in life. In time, suitcase in hand and with his three canaries, Lucero, Paquito, and Toño, he traveled over most of Mexico. His birds bring joy to people of all ages, young and old; he gives them three cards to learn their joy, fortune, and happiness. His children and grandchildren, who live in Chicago, visit him from time to time, and are his pride and joy. He is the famous Pajarito de Chapultepec and everyone calls him "My Friend."

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S4.E4 ∙ Yo ya me voy. Eliseo Torres Hormero

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

For more than fifty years, Eliseo Torres Cobian has made lasts for shoes. The pieces he makes are an invaluable tool for shoemakers in making any kind of footwear, because they imitate the dimensions and contours of the human foot. From experience, Eliseo knows that he needs to work with painstaking care so that customers can find shoes that fit right. Last making is an artisanal craft which demands rigor and precision in carving and measurement. The final process of fashioning a last includes attaching the insole, to guarantee the shape and size of the shoe. It is a trade which, according to historical record, dates from the Sixteenth Century, and in Don Eliseo finds its last practitioner in Mexico City.

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S4.E5 ∙ Un astillero en la ciudad. Leonardo Gabino.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Leonardo Gabino Torres and his family practice the trade of building Mexico's traditional canal boats or trajineras. Historically, in Mexico the boats have been used for varied purposes, providing transportation for plants and flowers, or for entire families who need to move about in the canals daily, taking children to school or to get to work raising crops on the artificial island gardens known as chinampas. Xochimilco's canals and colorful boats also invite countless visitors to imagine and enjoy, in one-hour intervals, the lacustrine Mexico of pre-Hispanic times. For his proven experience and responsibility, boat owners seek out Leonardo Gabino, for the symmetry of his woodwork, peerless choice of materials, and sustainable caulking made from strips of braided coconut husk. Exuberant decoration in red, white, blue, and green paint transforms the Cuemanco docks into a mosaic of colors.

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S4.E6 ∙ Quebrantadero. Daniel Sánchez.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

I have always loved being around horses, and my whole family always liked fine horses. For Daniel, Paloma and Papa have been faithful companions; they start their days together waking at five o'clock in the morning to work in the fields, getting them ready for planting. He describes how both horses have been near death, but fortunately pulled through. He recalls how he and his brothers broke broncos, and neighbors, aware of how hard the job could be, admired and respected them. Taming a horse, he explains, requires will, patience, and courage. You need to stay with the horse through the entire process, and to give them confidence everything must be done gently and slowly. Pictures of his children and grandchildren always bring a smile to his face, and today his grandchildren are growing up, as time moves inexorably forward. At the end of the day he unwinds with tacos of spiced meat in corn tortillas and watches TV, while Paloma and Papa are rewarded with cool water on their backs and a dinner of corn.

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S4.E7 ∙ El secreto de los escarabajos. Aldi de Oyarzabal

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Aldi de Oyarzabal Salcedo was fascinated by beetles from his first encounter with them, when he imagined that they kept secrets. And through them, he found the tenacity and the persistence to achieve the desired image, color, and texture in his illustrations. Personal and professional experiences, like living on countless islands, or studying the blue-crowned motmot, have led him to understand that the concept of beauty is associated with rhythm, harmony, and symmetry, encompassing even the imperfection in nature. He stresses that, although it is often right in front of us, it goes unnoticed. In the illustrator, the unimaginable forms of beetles inspire a capacity for endless amazement, and by extension the ability to convey esthetic enjoyment in his drawings.

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S4.E8 ∙ Un clásico no pasa de moda. Jorge Ramos.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Don Carlos knows from experience that any car, from any model year, if properly repaired, can work which is why he hand his son Angel share their enthusiasm for restoring antique cars. Restoring classic cars requires not only dedication, but a special passion for repairing doors, windows, and body parts which in some cases have to be hand crafted, because they are no longer made. The art of restoring classic cars continues to be passed down from generation to generation like the continuation of an endless piece of music. Each car in the shop has unique qualities Carlos affirms, but he shows them all the same affection. From time to time, the family enjoys participating in rallies, events at which work becomes play and restorers set aside the daily grind and indulge in their true pleasure.

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S4.E9 ∙ De aquí a la eternidad. Pablo Rodríguez.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Pablo Juan came to Mexico City as a child, and every day he brought lunch to his father, who worked in a graveyard. He clearly recalls how, after school, he and his would offer their services cleaning gravesites. Over time, he worked digging graves, mending tombstones, and tending the grounds. From time to time, he shares the stories and legends of the graveyard: the dead man dressed as a charro enveloped in flames, the welder a group of young girls saw, or a coffin from which the body was missing. Apparitions, ghosts, memories which blur the lines between fact and fiction. He has no unfinished business in this life and only begs pardon if he was unable to guide anyone, because he knows his day will also come.

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S4.E10 ∙ Una vida entregada al cine. Lorenzo Mondragón.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Starting when he was a teenager he worked with his father in a mattress factory, but Lorenzo Eduardo Armando Mondragon y Ochoa always knew his true vocation was in the movies. He got his start working the box office at the former Cine Versailles. After a short time, he was put in charge operating the lights, curtains, and audio during and after intermission in the theater. In a twist of fate, which hardly anyone understands, he came to Cine Laboratorio, where he learned the jobs of positive reviewer and later film developer. On countless occasions, he worked around the clock to meet the demands of his new occupation. The training he received and the good relations he formed with Kodak's advisor to the laboratory allowed him to expand and refine his knowledge of developing, taking into account the points of view of the cameraman and the director, which he complemented with frequent visits to film sets. This was one of the reasons why leading film directors sought him out. However, the rapid development of technology and the passing of time ultimately marked the end of a forty-eight-year career of excellence, meticulousness, and uncompromising quality.

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S4.E11 ∙ De la resurrección. Enrique Cervantes.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Not long ago, girls found endless enjoyment in playing with dolls, and when they broke, their parents went running to have them repaired at the Doll Hospital, bringing them back home good as new, without a scratch. Enrique Cervantes Rojas has enjoyed fixing all kinds of dolls in his workshop, or hospital. He knows that the experience accumulated over many years has helped make countless girls happy again. However, with a note of sadness, he observes how girls today no longer enjoy playing with dolls, and now most of his customers are older people, who have kept their dolls for years and take them to be repaired, or collectors.

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S4.E12 ∙ El hombre de Rosa. Ismael Zarazúa.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

The game ends when the clock marks ninety minutes, although sometimes play is shortened by prior agreement among the players. I have red and yellow cards, but I try not to use them and encourage teams to play cleanly. From start to finish, I run around urging the players on both sides to strive to play their best, seeing how their faces invariably reflect their dedication, enjoyment, and passion for soccer. As referee, I have to make split-second decisions to mark or not mark violations. In the heat of competition, you always have to find solutions, and you accomplish that with patience, respect, and good management. Over the years in the profession, I have worked alongside some outstanding soccer players.

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S4.E13 ∙ El hombre que quiso olvidar. Ultiminio Ramos.

Wed, Dec 31, 1969

Ultiminio Ramos speaks in singsong and dances in the ring. The house at Compostela 16 in Matanzas, Cuba, is the birthplace of this young world champion, who made three successful title defenses. With nostalgia and grace, he recalls the time his opponent, "a real master of the corner," had to be hospitalized because he felt bad after the fight. Five days later, Davey Moore died, with many citing the metal ropes enclosing the ring and Matancero's powerful fists as causes of death. Through discipline in the gym, he forged his body, his spirit, and the heart to be the best, to be the most accurate. A forty-year record of friendship has served him well. His philosophy is simple, direct, and hard to forget: "to us, boxing is really beautiful, because it's give and take."

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