Andrés Mazariegos Vázquez (; 25 July 1932 – 17 June 2022), known professionally as Andrés Vázquez "El Nono", was a Spanish

bullfighter A bullfighter or matador () is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter, and describe all the performers in the activ ...

. Among his influences in tauromachy were

Juan Belmonte Juan Belmonte García (14 April 1892 – 8 April 1962) was a Spanish bullfighter. He fought in a record number of bull fights and was responsible for changing the art of bullfighting. He had minor deformities in his legs which forced him to de ...

Domingo Ortega Domingo Ortega (February 25, 1906 – May 8, 1988) was a Spanish matador. Conrad 1961, p.173 Born Domingo López Ortega in Borox, Toledo, he was the son of a farmer, and grew up helping with farm work. During months when there was no work on the ...

and

Antonio Bienvenida Antonio Mejías Jiménez (; 25 June 1922 – 7 October 1975), better known as Antonio Bienvenida (), was a Venezuelan-born Spanish bullfighter who belonged to the Bienvenida bullfighting dynasty. Eleven times he came out, borne on his fellow bu ...

. He was awarded the

Order of Beneficence The Order of Beneficence () is an order of Greece which was established in 1975 by law no.106/1975, using the same name and same insignia as that of the order instituted in the previous governance of the Kingdom of Greece, although a separate o ...

in 1975, and ten times he came out of the Great Gate at

Las Ventas The Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas, known simply as Las Ventas , is the largest bullfighting ring in Spain, located in the Guindalera quarter of the Salamanca district of Madrid. It was inaugurated on June 17, 1931. Its seating capacity of 23,798, ...

. He had great success fighting bulls from the Victorino ranch.

Bullfighting career

Vázquez made his début with horses on 18 July 1960 in Guijuelo. His career was fraught with the sorrow of a hard beginning in the

bullfighting Bullfighting is a physical contest that involves a bullfighter attempting to subdue, immobilize, or kill a bull, usually according to a set of rules, guidelines, or cultural expectations. There are several variations, including some forms wh ...

world. "The obstacles, the dust, the hardness of the bullfights without stabbing (by

picador A ''picador'' (; pl. ''picadores'') is one of the pair of horse-mounted bullfighters in a Spanish-style bullfight that jab the bull with a lance. They perform in the ''tercio de varas'', which is the first of the three stages in a stylized bull ...

es) in those ''capeas'' marked a path in which, above the calamities, bullfighting was found." He forged himself as a bullfighter, glimpsing success at Las Ventas, which alternated with some very hard beginnings marked by economic hardship and a goring in the leg that almost crippled him. After much effort on Vázquez's part, and after financial hardships, he took the alternativa. He received it from ''maestro'' Gregorio Sánchez on 19 May 1962 with Mondeño (Juan García Jiménez) standing as witness, and with bulls supplied by Benítez Cubero. He came out through the Great Gate at Las Ventas on two occasions: one in 1962 and the other in 1966. Among his personal friends were

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

and fellow bullfighter Antonio Ordóñez Araujo, who was his neighbour on the Calle Serrano in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

. On several occasions, Vázquez took the

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

to his hometown, Villalpando, in the province of Zamora. The documentary ''Orson Welles in Spain'' (1963) by

Albert and David Maysles Albert Maysles (November 26, 1926 – March 5, 2015) and his brother David Maysles (January 10, 1931 – January 3, 1987; ) were an American documentary filmmaking team known for their work in the Direct Cinema style. Their best-known films in ...

is about how Welles speaks to potential investors in a project to make a film about the bullfighting world that would star a bullfighter inspired by Vázquez. Vázquez himself took part in

José María Forqué José María Forqué Galindo (8 March 1923 – 17 March 1995) was a Spanish screenwriter and film director. Biography He was the father of the actress Verónica Forqué and the director Álvaro Forqué. He died on 17 March 1995 in Madrid ...

's film ''Yo he visto a la muerte'' ("I Have Seen Death"; 1967), which starred Luis Miguel Dominguín and Antonio Bienvenida, and in which, besides playing himself, "El Nono", as he was known from the ''capeas'', he also appeared indulging in his other great passion:

Flamenco Flamenco () is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the Gitanos, gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and Region of Murcia, ...

. On 7 October 1967, Vázquez became one of the last bullfighters to appear at

A Coruña A Coruña (; ; also informally called just Coruña; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality in Galicia, Spain. It is Galicia's second largest city, behind Vigo. The city is the provincial capital of the province ...

's old bullring, the other two on the bill for the charitable bullfights that day being Joaquín Bernadó and Juan García Jiménez ("Mondeño"). The bulls were supplied by Carmen González Ordóñez. A Coruña did not have another bullfighting venue until 1991. The most significant years of Vázquez's bullfighting life were bound with the birth of Victorino Martín Andrés's

bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not Castration, castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e. cows proper), bulls have long been an important symbol cattle in r ...

ranch, and a highlight of which was his bullfight on 10 August 1969, in which he was substituting for

Antoñete Antonio Chenel Albadalejo (; 24 June 1932 – 22 October 2011), professionally and popularly known as Antoñete (), was a Spanish bullfighter. His family had no background in bullfighting beyond Antoñete's father having been a ''monosabio'' (a ...

, when he cut both ears from the famous bull ''Baratero'', which heightened his status as a bullfighter. It led to his third trip in his career out through the Great Gate. On 3 May 1970 at Las Ventas, Vázquez shut himself in with six bulls from Victorino Martín's ranch – the first in history to do so – marking a milestone that put him among the bullfighters who drew the aficionados' greatest interest, because he combined both the classic bullfighter's qualities and the fighting power with the most difficult bulls. Vázquez again went out through the bullring's Great Gate in 1970, three times, a merit that he shares with

Paquirri Francisco Rivera Pérez (; 5 March 1948 – 26 September 1984), better known as Paquirri (), was a Spanish bullfighter. He died after being gored by a Spanish Fighting Bull, bull named Avispado at the Pozoblanco bullring. During his career, he ...

(1969), Luguillano, and Carnicerito de Úbeda (1967). He was a model of sobriety with flashes of grace. Besides his ''media verónica'', he bore a powerful left, a tempered right, and an orthodox sword, techniques of a now vanished breed of bullfighter, but which in essence Vázquez still embodies. He had further trips out through the Great Gate in 1971, 1974, and 1977. In 1975, he was awarded the

. Sculptor Luis Sanguino has made a bronze bust of Vázquez which can be seen at the ''Museo Taurino de Madrid'' (a bullfighting museum) at the

bullring A bullring is an arena where bullfighting is performed. Bullrings are often associated with the Iberian Peninsula, but they can also be found through Iberian America and in a few Spanish and Portuguese ex-colonies in Africa. Bullrings are ...

in Madrid.

Later life and death

In 2012, Vázquez celebrated his eightieth birthday with a bullfight at the Zamora bullring, where he fought a yearling bull from the Victorino ranch, cutting both his ears and his tail off as trophies, and thus also becoming the first octogenarian to accomplish this feat. He appeared in Juan Figueroa's film ''Sobrenatural'' (2016; it was released under the name ''Supernatural'' in English). Vázquez lived in Villalpando, his birthplace, until his death. He died on 17 June 2022 at the Benavente Hospital in the province of Zamora after having been admitted two months earlier for a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

References

Bibliography

* Agapito Modroño Alonso, ''Andres Vazquez. Memorias de Un Torero'', 2002. Edited by Modroño Alonso, Agapito. * Pedro M. Azofra,''Toreros que aplaudió la mayoría: Manolete, El Litri, Chamaco, Andrés Vázquez'', 1986, Graf.Pevisa)

External links

Welles in Spain (1963) Albert and David Maysles. Youtube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vazquez, Andres 1932 births 2022 deaths Spanish bullfighters Male actors from Castile and León People from the Province of Zamora