Manuel Leal (born June 8, 1939), better known as Tinieblas ("Darkness"), is 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 ...
.
Professional wrestling career
Tinieblas began as a
body builder and
stunt man
A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...
who was spotted by luchadores
Black Shadow and
Dory Dixon
Dorrel "Dory" Dixon (born February 1, 1935) is a Jamaican retired professional wrestler who worked for the majority of his career in Mexico, where he eventually became a Mexican citizen. He is currently a pastor for the Seventh-day Adventist Churc ...
. Impressed by Leal's physique they convinced him to begin a career as a "
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 ...
". In 1968, ''"Lucha Libre"'' magazine editor Valente Pérez, came up with the idea of a character that would act as a rival for luchador
Mil Mascaras
Mil, mil, or MIL may refer to:
Places
* Mil, Syria, a village in Syria
* Mil, Azerbaijan, a municipality in Beylagan Rayon
* Mil, Markazi, a village in Markazi Province, Iran
* Metropolitan area of Milan ( IATA code: MIL), Italy
* Mill Hill Br ...
. He created a character with a faceless hood and named him "Tinieblas" (''Darkness''). Perez selected the former body builder turned luchador to wrestle as that character. Tinieblas debuted as a face on August 20, 1971. He would become a large draw in Mexico and toured internationally. Tinieblas was also one of the first luchadores to tour Japan in 1974. He wrestled at 80 years old on August 18, 2019.
Comic series
''Tinieblas'' was the second luchador (after
El Santo) to have a comic book series based on his character. His first comic book was printed between 1976 and 1979. In 1991, a second series titled, "Tinieblas, El Hijo de la Noche" (''Tinieblas, Son of the Night'') was created. It was printed until 1995. The ''Tinieblas'' comic series was relaunched in the year 2000.
Film career
Tinieblas also made appearances in
luchador film
Luchador films (or ''Lucha Libre films'') are Mexican professional wrestling/ action/science-fiction/ horror films starring some of the most popular masked luchadores in Lucha Libre. The luchadores are portrayed as superheroes engaging in battle ...
s. In 1971, he starred as a member of a squadron of masked superheroes in the film '"Los Campeones Justicieros"' (The Champions of Justice). Membership in the Champions of Justice included such legendary Mexican wrestling figures as
Mil Mascaras
Mil, mil, or MIL may refer to:
Places
* Mil, Syria, a village in Syria
* Mil, Azerbaijan, a municipality in Beylagan Rayon
* Mil, Markazi, a village in Markazi Province, Iran
* Metropolitan area of Milan ( IATA code: MIL), Italy
* Mill Hill Br ...
,
Blue Demon
Alejandro Muñoz Moreno (April 24, 1922 – December 16, 2000), better known by the ring name Blue Demon (''Demonio Azul'' in Spanish), was a Mexican film actor and ''luchador enmascarado'' (Spanish for masked professional wrestler). Blue Demo ...
, El
Rayo de Jalisco Sr.
Máximino Linares Moreno (November 22, 1932 – July 19, 2018) was a Mexican ''luchador'' (professional wrestler) and lucha film star, better known under the ring name Rayo de Jalisco ("The Lightning Bolt from Jalisco"). He is considered to ...
, El Medico Asesino, El Fantasma Blanco and Superzan. He guest-starred in many low-budget foreign series, such as Vendetta and Rederiet.
Legacy
Tinieblas debuted at a relatively old age of 32, so he never reached the same physical peak as many other popular luchadores of his generation. However, his character remains popular with young lucha libre fans, primarily due to his appearance in comic books and films. Tinieblas still wrestles occasionally and has appeared alongside his son
Tinieblas Jr.
Videogames
The 2D wrestling
arcade game ''
Saturday Night Slam Masters
''Saturday Night Slam Masters'', known in Japan as , is a 1993 pro wrestling arcade game released for the CP System by Capcom. The game features character designs by manga artist Tetsuo Hara, famous for ''Fist of the North Star''.
The game was f ...
'' released by Japanese game company
Capcom in 1993 featured a
final boss character called "El Escorpión" (''The Scorpion''), whose appearance was inspired by ''Tinieblas''. The character's name in the original Japanese edition of the game was "The Astro" (アストロ, ''Asutoro'').
Filmography
* ''Los Campeones justicieros'' (''The Champions of Justice'') (1971) (credited)
* ''Superzan el invencible'' (''Superzan the Invincible'') (1971)
* ''Una rosa sobre el ring'' (''A Rose in the Ring'') (1973) co-starring Mil Mascaras
* ''El Castillo de las momias de Guanajuato'' (''The Castle of the Mummies of Guanajuato'') (1973)
* ''Leyendas macabras de la colonia'' (''Macabre Legends of the Colony'') (1974) (co-starring Mil Mascaras)
* '' Las Momias de San Ángel'' (''The Mummies of San Angel'') (1975)
* ''El Investigador Capulina'' (''Investigator Capulina'') (1975)
* ''El Puño de la muerte'' (''Santo in "Fist of Death"'') (1982) co-starring Santo
* ''La Furia de las karatecas'' (''Santo in "Fury of the Karate Experts"'') (1982) co-starring Santo
Championships and accomplishments
*
World Wrestling Association
The World Wrestling Association (WWA) (Asociación Mundial de Lucha Libre in Spanish) is a lucha libre promotion based in the Tijuana-area of Mexico. It was founded in 1986 by Benjamin Mora Jr.. It featured some of Mexico's best ''luchadores'' a ...
**
WWA World Heavyweight Championship
The World Wrestling All-Stars (WWA) World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Wrestling All-Stars. It was the primary championship in the WWA. The title was sanctioned by WWA as their world ...
(
1 time)
''Lucha de Apuesta'' record
Footnotes
References
;General sources - Championship Information
*
;General sources - Career
*
*
*
;Specific
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tinieblas
1939 births
Living people
Mexican male professional wrestlers
Professional wrestlers from Mexico City
20th-century professional wrestlers
21st-century professional wrestlers