Francisco Martínez Soria (December 18, 1902 – February 26, 1982) better known as Paco Martínez Soria was a Spanish actor. He was born in

Tarazona Tarazona is a town and municipality in the Tarazona y el Moncayo comarca, province of Zaragoza (province), Zaragoza, in Aragon, Spain. It is the capital of the Tarazona y el Moncayo Aragonese comarca. It is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Dio ...

Zaragoza Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

Biography

Although he was born in Tarazona, he was only five when his family moved to

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, where he went to school. He worked as a clerk and then as a salesperson. At the same time he participated in performances of local theatre groups in

Gràcia Gràcia (), meaning "grace" (in English), is a district of the Mediterranean city of Barcelona, in the northeastern autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. It comprises the ''barris'' (neighborhoods) of Vila de Gràcia, Vallcarca i els Pe ...

. During the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

he left his work and focused on theatre as an amateur actor. In 1938 he debuted in Teatro Fontalba with the theatre company of

Rafael López Somoza Rafael may refer to: * Rafael (given name) or Raphael, a name of Hebrew origin * Rafael, California Fiction * ''Rafael'' (TV series), a Mexican telenovela * ''Rafaël'' (film), a 2018 Dutch film People * Rafael (footballer, born 1978) ( ...

with the work ''Antonio pasó el infierno'' (Antonio goes to hell). Two years later he founded his own theatre company with which he worked during the 1940s from Teatro Urquinaona and in the 1950s from Talía theatre. In 1934 he collaborated as an

extra Extra, Xtra, or The Extra may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * The Extra (1962 film), ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film * The Extra (2005 film), ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film Literature * Extra (newspaper), ...

in the black and white comedy ''Sereno'' with director Ignacio F. Iquino. He continued working with Iquino in eleven more films. He got his first leading role in 1938 in the comedy ''Paquete, el fotógrafo público número uno'' (Paquete, the number one public photographer). He continued playing supporting roles in many films until 1944 when he returned to theatre as an actor and entrepreneur. His name achieved some fame between 1942 and 1944, when he was named director and first actor in the theatre company of Teatro de la Zarzuela. He returned to cinema in the rolesstudd in 1950s. In 1965 he was very successful with the film ''

La ciudad no es para mí La ciudad no es para mí () is a 1966 Spanish comedy film directed by Pedro Lazaga and based on the play of the same name by Fernando Lázaro Carreter published under the pen name Fernando Ángel Lozano. It stars Paco Martínez Soria as Agust� ...

'' (The city is not for me) directed by

Pedro Lazaga Pedro Lazaga Sabater (3 October 1918 – 30 November 1979) was a Spanish film director and screenwriter. He directed more than 90 films between 1948 and 1979. Selected filmography * '' The Black Siren'' (1947) * ''María Morena ''Mar ...

. From that moment on, his screen character as an affectionate country bumpkin did not cease to appear in films until his death with his friend

Biography

Filmography

External links