María Conchita Alonso

María Concepción Alonso Bustillo (born June 29, 1955), better known as María Conchita Alonso, is a Cuban-born Venezuelan-American actress, singer, and beauty pageant titleholder who represented Venezuela at Miss World 1975 and placed in the top seven. She is most known to international audiences for playing Amber Mendez in the 1987 action thriller '' The Running Man''.

She has participated in film and television productions, and was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award as Best Leading Actress in 1996 for her role in ''Caught''. As a singer, she has received several gold and platinum records, and has been nominated for three Grammy Awards.

Alonso was the first Latin American actress not born in the United States to star in a musical on Broadway, with '' Kiss of the Spider Woman'' at the Broadhurst Theatre (1995).

Early life

María Conchita Alonso was born in Cienfuegos, Cuba, on June 29, 1955, to Ricardo Alonso and Conchita Bustillo. Her family moved to Venezuela when she was five years old in 1962 after the Cuban Revolution. She was crowned Miss Teenager World in 1971. She was runner up for Miss Venezuela in 1975, and became a top seven runner-up in the Miss World pageant later that year, which was won by Puerto Rico's Wilnelia Merced.

Career

Alonso's first gold album and number one song on the charts was '' Love Maniac'', released in 1979 under the name Ámbar. After that followed her second number-one "The Witch" and soon after "Dangerous Rhythm". For what is considered her best known song, she was asked by Giorgio Moroder to write the lyrics in Spanish and sing "Vamos a Bailar" which he had written for the soundtrack of the film '' Scarface''. The song instantly became a classic among Spanish speakers, despite failing to garner major attention outside of Cuba where it was recorded. Her two albums with Ámbar and her solo debut were recorded in English. Her second album, '' María Conchita'', in 1984, made her an international singing star in the Spanish-speaking market, and garnered her first of three Grammy Award nominations (1985, 1988, 1994).

Alonso sang the United States national anthem at the FIFA UNICEF charity match on July 27, 1986, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, in front of a crowd of 57,539. The game was between the “Rest of the World” and “The Americas” which featured Diego Maradona only one month after his successful 1986 World Cup win.

Alonso made her Hollywood film debut in '' Moscow on the Hudson'' (1984) with Robin Williams, and also starred in '' Touch and Go'' (1986), '' Extreme Prejudice'' (1987), '' The Running Man'' (1987), ''Colors'' (1988), '' Vampire's Kiss'' (1989), ''Predator 2'' (1990) and '' The House of the Spirits'' (1993).

In 1995, she became the first Latin-born actresses to star in a Broadway show, playing Aurora in '' Kiss of the Spider Woman''. She later acted in the romantic comedies ''Chasing Papi'' (2003) and ''The Last Guy on Earth'' (2006).

Alonso was cast to play Lucía, the mother of Gabrielle Solis, on the ABC series ''Desperate Housewives''. The episode aired on February 19, 2006. She was in the Latin version, '' Amas de Casa Desesperadas'', for Univision Network. She was a guest star in the live-action film of the comic book '' El Muerto'' and appeared in the film '' Material Girls'' (2006).

Alonso hosted VH1's '' ¡Viva Hollywood!'' on April 13, 2008, with Carlos Ponce. She portrayed Sam in the werewolf horror film ''Wolf Moon'', directed by Dana Mennie.

Alonso appeared in Rob Zombie's '' The Lords of Salem,'' released in 2013. Her latest film, a fantasy short titled ''The Secret of Joy'', features her alongside fellow Venezuelan actor Carlos Antonio León, Spanish actress Laura Bayonas, and Brazilian actress Ana Carolina Da Fonseca in a story that aims to bring awareness about pediatric cancer.

Maria Conchita signed with management firm All Parts Move in 2023. She is currently (2025) touring extensively as part of the 'Despechadas' tour in Mexico, with solo performances and a cabaret style show called 'Sin Verguenza', which goes into her life and her ups and downs. A new 'Tropical' - a first for her - album is scheduled for release in the fall of 2025, produced by Latin Grammy winning producer Fabian Rincon, with a first single 'Acariciame Salsa' out June 27, 2025.

Political views

Alonso has often spoken in support of LGBT rights and in appreciation of her LGBT fans, stating, "I was very much supported by the community when I first came out with my music". In a 2004 article, she compared herself to Cher in terms of her connection to LGBT culture.

Alonso was an outspoken critic of Cuba's Fidel Castro and Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, whom she described as a "dictator"-like "Hitler""All those people are Chavistas, all those people are ''controlled'' by Chavez ... So they say what Chavez wants them to say ... No, he was ''not'' elected democratically. The first time he ''was'' elected democratically, but the last two time the referendum and this last month of December, he was ''not''." ''Hannity & Colmes'', Fox News. June 2007. and whose voters and supporters she described as "terrorists." She appeared on Sean Hannity's '' Hannity's America'' on May 6, 2007, ''Hannity & Colmes'' on June 1, 2007 and Bill O'Reilly's ''The O'Reilly Factor'' on August 13, 2007, and March 11, 2009.

Alonso issued an "Open Letter to Sean Penn" (the two had played lovers in the 1988 movie ''Colors'') online on March 29, 2010, regarding his support of Hugo Chávez. She used a point-by-point refrain of "WHY" in her letter questioning various issues occurring in Venezuela. In December 2011, she got into a heated exchange with Penn at a Los Angeles airport during which Penn called her a pig and she responded by calling Penn a communist.

In 2008, Alonso endorsed the US presidential campaign of Republican nominee John McCain, writing:

In an August 2012 Spreecast interview, Alonso stated her opposition to Obama's re-election, saying that if reelected, he would take steps to make the United States become more like Venezuela under the Chávez government.

In January 2014, Alonso resigned from a San Francisco production of ''The Vagina Monologues'' after appearing in an advertisement for Republican candidate for Governor Tim Donnelly.

In mid-2016, Alonso stated that she supported neither Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump nor Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in the U.S. election. Despite this, however, she would go on to support Trump and then endorse him in the 2020 presidential election.

Filmography

Discography

Studio Albums
* '' Love Maniac'' (1979)
* ''The Witch'' (1980)
* ''Dangerous Rhythm'' (1982)
* ''Te Amo/I Love You'' (1983)
* '' María Conchita'' (1984)
* ''O Ella, o Yo'' (1985)
* '' Mírame'' (1987)
* ''Hazme Sentir'' (1990)
* ''Imagíname'' (1992)
* ''Boleros (Alejandra)'' (1994)
* ''Amor De Madrugada'' (2016)
* ''Lléname de Ti'' (2020)

Live Albums
* ''En Vivo en México'' (1992)

Compilation Albums
* ''Lo mejor de'' (1986)
* ''Grandes éxitos'' (1989)
* ''Súper hits'' (1991)
* ''De colección'' (1994)
* ''Hoy y siempre'' (1997)
* ''Lo mejor de María Conchita Alonso'' (2000)
* ''La más completa colección'' (2005)
* ''Grandes éxitos/Greatest hits'' (2006)
* ''16 Éxitos de oro'' (2012)
* ''Reina Eterna '' (2017)

Singles

References

External links

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María Conchita Alonso
at Discogs

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alonso, Maria Conchita
1957 births
Living people
A&M Records artists
American anti-communists
American beauty pageant winners
American entertainers of Cuban descent
American people of Asturian descent
California Republicans
Columbia Records artists
Cuban anti-communists
Cuban emigrants to Venezuela
Exiles of the Cuban Revolution in the United States
Hispanic and Latino American actresses
La Academia judges
Venezuelan LGBTQ rights activists
Miss World 1975 delegates
Opposition to Fidel Castro
People from Cienfuegos
Polydor Records artists
Venezuelan anti-communists
Venezuelan emigrants to the United States
20th-century Venezuelan women singers
Venezuelan film actresses
Venezuelan musical theatre actresses
Venezuelan television actresses
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
20th-century American women singers
20th-century American singers
21st-century American women singers
21st-century American singers
20th-century Venezuelan actresses
21st-century Venezuelan actresses
Women in Latin music
Latino conservatism in the United States