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Juan Valdez Hangs Up His Serape

Juan_valdez_as_played_by_carlos_sanchezThe Colombian coffee icon - Juan Valdez - is retiring.

Carlos Sanchez, 71, has been playing Sr. Valdez for some 37 years.  The role was first created in 1959 and played by Cuban-American actor José Duval for 10 years before Sánchez took over.  At the time, Sanchez ran a small printing workshop.

From the article:

The fictional Juan Valdez, one of the most recognizable Colombians ever, portrays a positive alter-ego to the image of narco-traffickers.

"I feel like a flag representing the country when I'm outside of Colombia," Sánchez told reporters proudly, his eyes watering at times from the memories of a lifetime in the limelight.

But he added that he feels he's grown too old and too heavy to continue a grueling schedule promoting the world's second-largest coffee-producing nation.

Sanchez's faithful mule, Conchita, could not be reached for comment about the upcoming retirement.

June 02, 2006 |

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