Juan Alvarado Ibarra (January 7, 1915 - February 3, 2003) was a Mexican ''

luchador Lucha libre (, meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term used in Latin America for professional wrestling. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has developed into a unique form ...

'', or

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

, better known under the ring name Shadito Cruz. Best known as the patriarch of the Alvarado wrestling family that includes six of Alvarado's sons and many of his grandchildren, Cruz achieved little success as a wrestler but became a well respected trainer. He trained members of his own family as well as a large number of non-family members

Professional wrestling career

Early in his career Juan Alvarado was given the nickname "Shadito" due to his physical resemblance to luchador Black Shadow, which stuck with him as a ring name. His wrestling career as Shadito Cruz was not very notable, partially because Cruz was physically very small. At the time of his peak years ''Lucha Libre'' focused more on the Welterweight and Middleweight divisions. In 1975 he decided to try a different ring character as he took the name of a Frank Sinatra movie

The Man with the Golden Arm ''The Man with the Golden Arm'' is a 1955 American drama film with elements of film noir directed by Otto Preminger, based on the novel of the same name by Nelson Algren. Starring Frank Sinatra, Eleanor Parker, Kim Novak, Arnold Stang and ...

and became "El Hombre del Brazo de Oro" for a few months. When his son Jesús Alvarado Nieves made his debut in 1975n Shadito Cruz gave the ring character to his son and instead of wrestling decided on training young wrestlers instead, including most of his six sons for their professional wrestling careers as well as become a referee. Over the years six of Alvarado's sons became professional wrestlers, all using the word "Brazo" in their ring names.

Death

Alvarado died on February 3, 2003 as a consequence of his Alzheimer's disease.

The Alvarado family

The Alvarado wrestling family spans three generations starting with Shadito Cruz followed by his six sons and a third-generation of wrestlers that started working in the late 1990s. Daniel Alvarado Nieves, the youngest Alvarado sibling, wrestled as "Shadito Cruz, Jr." early in his career before using the ring name "Brazo de Platino" (Platinum Arm). On February 17, 2013, the Alvarado family held a special '' Homenaje a Shadito Cruz'' ("Homage to Shadito Cruz") show, featuring the ''La Copa Shadito Cruz''

tag team Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...

tournament. The show honored both Cruz and his wife Ana Nieves and the family traditions they had inspired. † = deceased

Wrestlers trained

*Angel O Demonio * Averno * Axxel *Babe Face *

Bracito de Oro Roberto Rodriguez Aguirre is a Mexican ''Luchador'', or professional wrestler. He works for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) in their ''Mini-Estrella'' division under the name Bracito de Oro (Spanish for "Little Golden Arm"). Aguirre's rea ...

*Brazo de Oro *Brazo de Plata *Brazo de Platino *El Brazo *

La Comandante Norma Martínez (born April 23, 1978), known by the ring name La Comandante, is a Mexican ''luchadora'', or female professional wrestler currently working for the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) portr ...

*La Máscara *

Máscara Sagrada Máscara Sagrada (born November 6, 1959) is a Mexican ''Luchador enmascarado'' (or masked professional wrestler) who has worked for every major Mexican wrestling promotion over the last 20 years. His ring name is Spanish for "Sacred Mask" and is ...

*Máximo *Rey Persa *Shu El Guerrero *Súper Brazo *TNT

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cruz, Shadito 2003 deaths Masked wrestlers Mexican male professional wrestlers Deaths from dementia in Mexico Deaths from Alzheimer's disease Professional wrestling referees Professional wrestling trainers 1915 births Alvarado wrestling family Professional wrestlers from Mexico City