Jorge Raúl Porcel de Peralta (; 7 September 1936 – 16 May 2006), known as Jorge Porcel, was an Argentine comedy actor and television host. He was nicknamed ''El Gordo de América'' (''America's Fat Guy''). Porcel is considered, along with

Alberto Olmedo Alberto Olmedo (24 August 1933 – 5 March 1988) was an Argentine comedian and actor, popularly regarded as one of the most important comedians in the history of his country, for his outstanding work in television, cinema and theater. Olmedo w ...

, one of Argentina's greatest comic actors of the twentieth century.

Film career

Porcel worked in 49 movies, starting with 1962's ''Disloque en Mar del Plata'', and ending with '' Carlito's Way'' (1993). Many of these 49 movies were collaborations with Olmedo. Among the movies they did together was 1986's ''Rambito y Rambón: Primera Misión''. (''Little Rambo and Big Rambo: First Mission'') Many of Porcel and Olmedo's movies in the 1970s and 1980s were adult-oriented comedies. Conservative Argentine authorities rated these movies as PM-18 (age 18 and above), except for some movies planned for family audiences, which had "tamer" content. These movies are considered to be the pinnacle of Argentina's sexy comedy movie genre. Most of these movies were directed by

Gerardo Sofovich Gerardo Andrés Sofovich (March 18, 1937 – March 8, 2015) was an Argentine businessman, dramaturge, television host and presenter, comedian, scriptwriter, and director. He was the producer of '' Polémica en el bar'' and ''La noche del Domin ...

or his brother Hugo. Porcel virtually stopped appearing in these movies after the accidental death of Olmedo, which left him clinically depressed.

Films

Television career

Porcel had many hit TV shows as well, including ''Operación Ja Ja'' (both the 1960s original and the 1980s remake) and ''

Polémica en el bar ''Polémica en el bar'' was an Argentine TV series, starred by Gerardo Sofovich. Premise ''Polémica en el bar'' features a group of comedians gathered in a bar, seated around a round table. They engage in discussions on various topics including ...

'' (Debate at the Café), where he had celebrated moments of comedy with fellow comedian Juan Carlos Altavista. Most of these TV efforts were linked to the Sofovich brothers. He also did ''Las Gatitas Y Ratones de Porcel'' (Little Cats & Mice of Porcel). After he retired from filming movies in Argentina, he moved to

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, where he starred in a risqué late-night variety show named ''A la cama con Porcel'' (''To Bed with Porcel'') on the Telemundo network, and was given a cameo in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

production Carlito's Way. ''A La Pasta con Porcel'' is a restaurant in

Miami Beach Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean an ...

opened by Porcel and named after his popular television show. Porcel's health deteriorated with time, due to his struggles with

obesity Obesity is a medical condition, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess Adipose tissue, body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classifi ...

and

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

, to the point of ending up using a

wheelchair A wheelchair is a mobilized form of chair using two or more wheels, a footrest, and an armrest usually cushioned. It is used when walking is difficult or impossible to do due to illnesses, injury, disabilities, or age-related health conditio ...

in his later years. He toured during 1999 through

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

to promote his autobiography ''Laughs, Applause and Tears''. By this time, he had also become a

born again To be born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelical Christianity, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is d ...

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

. Porcel died in a

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

after a

gallbladder In vertebrates, the gallbladder, also known as the cholecyst, is a small hollow Organ (anatomy), organ where bile is stored and concentrated before it is released into the small intestine. In humans, the pear-shaped gallbladder lies beneath t ...

surgery at the age of 69. His body was flown to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and buried at the Chacarita Cemetery.

Music

In 1980 he recorded a bolero record called ''Pure heart'' (Spanish: Puro Corazón (1980)) . Jorge Porcel loved music and in his shows he used to sing boleros, as in Las gatitas y ratones de Porcel (Porcel's kittens and mice) (where he was frequently accompanied by piano player Mike Rivas) and at ''¿Lo viste a Porcel? (Have you seen Porcel).'' With his character Don Mateo he took part in a record from the show Operacióm Ja-Já (Operation Ha ha) singing along with Rolo Puente,

Leo Dan Leopoldo Dante Tévez (known as Leo Dan; March 22, 1942 – January 1, 2025) was an Argentine composer and singer. He recorded more than 20 albums during his long career during the late 20th century between Argentina and Mexico. Life and care ...

's hit «Libre, solterito y sin nadie» (Free, single and with nobody).

Comics

In 1970's decade, for several years, Cielosur Editora published several magazines dedicated to TV characters, as Piluso, Minguito and El Gordo Porcel. ''Las aventuras del Gordo Porcel'' (The adventures of Porcel the Fat Man) was the title of the one dedicated to Jorge. The usual play -with drawings by Francisco Mazza- consisted of el Gordo getting in trouble and several confusions, during the time in between the feasts of food prepared by his mother, who he lived with. Other frequent characters are his girlfriend and his dog Banana, who had his own comic.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Porcel, Jorge 1936 births Male actors from Buenos Aires Argentine male film actors Argentine male television actors Argentine evangelicals 2006 deaths Burials at La Chacarita Cemetery 20th-century Argentine comedians