HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Memín Pinguín was a Mexican comic book character. He was created in 1943 by writer Yolanda Vargas Dulché. Alberto Cabrera took over drawing from 1953 until 1962, followed by Sixto Valencia Burgos. The original series had 372 chapters printed in sepia, and it has been republished in 1952 and 1961. In 1988 it was re-edited colorized, and in 2004 was re-edited again. Valencia worked on the reissues over the years, updating the drawings (clothes, settings and backgrounds) for the re-edits. It contains
comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...
and
soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
elements. However, since 2008 Valencia no longer works on the comic, having departed publishing house Editorial Vid. In addition to
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, ''Memín'' remains a popular magazine in the
Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...
,
Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
,
Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
,
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
,
Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...
,
Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
,
Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...
, and other countries. At its peak, it had a weekly circulation of one and a half million issues in Mexico.


Characters

The stories were partially based on recollection of the childhood adventures of Yolanda Vargas Dulché in the Colonia Guerrero near downtown
Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
. The character of Memín Pinguín was inspired by
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
n children seen by the author Yolanda Vargas Dulché on her travels. ''Memín'' is an alteration of ''Memo'', the shortened form of ''Guillermo'', her husband's name; ''Pinguín'' comes from ''pingo'' (roughly meaning mischievous, in an affectionate tone). Memín is a restless boy who is not a very good student, not because of a lack of intelligence, but for not being able to pay attention (he is surprisingly good at arithmetic). He helps his mother working in the street, selling newspapers, and as a shoe shine boy. Memín reflects the life of a poor Mexican boy in Mexico City. Memín and his mother are the only Afro-Mexican characters. Memín is accompanied in his adventures by a group of three loyal friends: ;Carlos "Carlangas" Arozamena: A shrewd curly-haired boy who was abandoned by his rich father and was raised by his
working class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...
mother. He likes to solve things with his fists, and rarely shows fear. He's a tough boy with a heart of gold. He is not as intelligent as Ernestillo but he manages to get the best scores in a private school test when he moved to live with his father. He thinks his mother has an honest job until he realizes she worked as a "Fichera" (dancer in night clubs) and got involved in a fight that leaves his mother bullet injured and Carlangas in jail due to almost killing her aggressor. His mother lately reencounter with Carlos Arozamena Sr., and while they fail to reconcile they decide to bring Carlangas a better future sending him to live with his father, but Carlos got homesick and came back to his mother's side. Finally his parents got married again, but not after Carlos Sr. got bankrupt and really learn to appreciate true love than things. ;Ernesto "Ernestillo" Vargas: The intelligent and hard working one. His mother died when he was young and has since been raised by his father, an
alcoholic Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World Hea ...
carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenter ...
. Ernestillo is so poor he has no shoes. Later, with the help of Ricardo and his friends, he has better clothes and helps his father to overcome his alcoholism and an accident that almost left him without a leg. He acts as the voice of reason of the group but sometimes he is not patient enough to send a "coscorrón" (noogie) to Memín. He is Memín's best friend and was involved in one of Memín's dreams when both go to China. ;Ricardo "Riquillo" Arcaraz: A blond rich boy who has traveled around the world. His father decided it would be better for him to attend a public school; a
self-made man A self-made man is a person whose success is of their own making. Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, has been described as the greatest exemplar of the self-made man. Inspired by Franklin's autobiography, Fr ...
, he thinks his son was being pampered too much at
private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...
s. At first he had significant troubles fitting in, until some incidents after school led to create a bond with Memín and his friends, to the point of standing up to his mother to defend them . He learns the value of work from Memín, as well as the realities and hardships of life. For a while, he even works as a shoeshine boy with Memín. When his parents tried to get a divorce, he ran away to Guadalajara to live with his godmother, but Memín, who accompanied him, left a note to Eufrosina, leading Ricardo's parents to them. Other prominent characters as listed: ;Eufrosina: She is the hot-tempered but charming mother of Memín that makes a living by taking in washing the clothes of her neighbors. She also likes to cook, specially the "tortas de miel" (bread with honey) that Memín loves to eat. However, when she got angry to Memín punishes him by hitting his butt with a table with a nail attached. Her main stories were concerned to adopt a pretty girl that was abandoned in a park while Memín was playing even the poverty of the family; later she tries to get a job in New York City but not without having Memín lost and then confronting Memín homesick attitude after an unfortunate job in a mansion. A more memorable story puts her sick and with the need of a kidney transplant after suffering because of Memín cheating his notes in school. ;Trifon: An obese boy that comes from the North of Mexico. In his first appearance is picked on by Memín because of his
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 ...
to the point to have Memín jumping over his stomach. Later, he got severely ill while Memín decided to not take Communion; however Memín is not able to make Trifon realize he is acting bad even after slapping him in the face. Later, Memín got really repentant when he learns about Trifon's illness and got scared when he did not find him after his Communion, just to know that he is cured. Lately is a prominent character in the Memín's adventure in Monterrey and Texas, because he helps Memín and his friends to get some hospitality from his aunt Canuta. In a later adventure, he dies bringing an uproar among fans and pushing the creator to avoid killing another characters. ;Professor Romero: The teacher of Memín's class, he is a very comprehensive teacher while also very strict, going to the extreme to punish Memín sometimes due to his laziness. However, he manages to help his students to help Ernestillo and his father to overcome the alcoholic problems of Ernestillo's father. Some stories later, Memín was punished to study with the lower grade kids and while doing this makes a mischief that pushes the teacher really angry so she went to Professor Romero's classroom to complain about it; however Romero stands for Memín and, in the process, the teachers fell in love and they are married later. During their honeymoon they find Memín's gang lost after they follow a fake treasure map and manages to bring them back to their parents. Later adventures were involved around Memín's incapability to study. Although ''Memín'' is a comedy comic, it resembles soap operas in that the comic's story is a continuous one. Every week, the newest publication of ''Memín'' begins where the last publication had left off. In addition, because of the elements involved in the comic magazine's story, such as
poverty Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse Biophysical environmen ...
, parental abandonment,
death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...
and
alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...
, often there are dramatic moments in the magazine as well. Based on the popularity of Memín, Yolanda and her husband Don Guillermo de la Parra were able to found Editorial Vid, a comics publishing company that eventually published hundreds of titles of Mexican comics, some of them written by Yolanda and her husband. Some of these titles also had stories related to black people, such as "Rarotonga", "Majestad Negra", and "Carne de Ébano", but only Memín was set in Mexico.


Racial issues

While Memín suffers a degree of
racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...
taunting, especially in the first issues, the characters mocking him are depicted as either cruel or ignorant. As the story progresses, his race becomes less of an issue. In an earlier story, Memín and his friends go to Ricardo's house after the then spoiled kid decides to make them to take a bath because of a mud fight they were involved. While bathing Memín forgets a soap bar and walked outside the bathroom without caring to dress, just to walk in front of Ricardo's mother that, scared, began to scream that a chimp was in her house, Memín, not catching the offense, really thinks that there is a chimp in the house and both began running scared, the woman from Memín, himself from the supposed chimp. In one famous issue, Memín, having read that Cleopatra VII of Egypt took
milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfeeding, breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. ...
baths to lighten her
skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different ...
, tries the same treatment. His mother weeps with sorrow that her son would want to change his skin color. A repentant Memín decides to be proud of his race and color to honor his good mother. In another, Memín decides not to receive Communion at his church, after a cruel boy tells him blacks are not allowed in
Heaven Heaven, or the Heavens, is a common Religious cosmology, religious cosmological or supernatural place where beings such as deity, deities, angels, souls, saints, or Veneration of the dead, venerated ancestors are said to originate, be throne, ...
, pointing to the lack of black
angels An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...
in religious paintings as proof (this was inspired by a popular song "Angelitos negros" that asked the same question and a popular Mexican motion picture of 1948 of the same name). Memín reasons that, since he is going to
Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location or state in the afterlife in which souls are subjected to punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history sometimes depict hells as eternal destinations, such as Christianity and I ...
anyway, he can get away with any mischief he wants. This prompted some
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
priests A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, ...
to
boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent resistance, nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for Morality, moral, society, social, politics, political, or Environmenta ...
the magazine. After sales plummeted in response to the boycott, an issue was published in which Memín's friends, with the aid of the church priest, paint one of the angels in the church black; Memín returns to church and dreams of becoming an angel. In yet another adventure called "Líos Gordos" Memín and his friends travel to
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
to play
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
. They go for a chocolate
milkshake A milkshake (sometimes simply called a shake) is a sweet beverage made by blending milk, ice cream, and flavorings or sweeteners such as butterscotch, caramel sauce, chocolate syrup, or fruit syrup into a thick, sweet, cold mixture. It may ...
, but the place refuses service to Memín, because it doesn't serve "Negroes". His friends stand up for him, get into a fight, and end up in jail. In a later adventure, Memín and Eufrosina decide to work in New York City but Memín gets lost in the process and begins working for a Mexican family where a blind girl begins to bring affection to her new employee. She thinks that he is blond and white because of his cheerful attitude (inspired by Marianela from Benito Perez Galdos). Later, Memín meets her cousin, a spoiled kid who he begins to have some fights. Finally, the girl is cured of her condition, but Memín, scared to be seen by the girl, decides to retire from the house while the girl misses her cousin with Memín. Some days later, she frees Memín and his mother from jail and reveals that she learned about the truth and explains all the masquerade to Eufrosina's dismay. Finally, Memín and his friends went along a millionaire to Africa, where the most racial details were put in hot place, first Memín got a motherly friendship with a female gorilla, that later tends to be very useful for the kids to save the millionaire to be killed by his ambitious son. Later, they got trapped by cannibals that thought that Memín is a gift from the gods because of his bald condition and they named him King, just to be captured by slave traders (that freed Memín's friends in the process) and, while Memín was suffering in the ship, his friends finally freed him not without having a very angry Memín punching everyone (including his friends) due to their bad attitude over black people.


Memín in popular culture

As a result of the character's fame, Memín has appeared in other magazines. In 1965, he gave a lengthy interview for the magazine '' Contenido'', where he appeared in a tuxedo. In addition, he was considered one of the most famous members of the Mexican Scout Association, and included in the cover of their magazine in June 1995 to coincide with the publication of the "History of Mexican Comics" stamps by the Mexican Postal Service.


Controversy

''Memín'' was criticized on its first runs (1960–1970), but the critics were more concerned with his popularity, since intellectuals of that time had a very low opinion of comics in general. The average age of the comic reader in Mexico was higher than in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, about 18 instead of 13,''Not Just for Children: The Mexican Comic Book in the Late 1960s and 1970s'' by Harold E. Hinds, Jr. and Charles M. Tatum so some argue the content of comics had a very strong influence on Mexican society. ''Memín'' was read mostly by poor and middle-class Mexicans. Some of the critics touch upon the racial aspects, but this topic was mostly ignored. Critics were more concerned with the stereotypical treatment of certain social themes and the values the stories typically reflect, which more or less echo the ideals of a Catholic middle class. Yolanda was very sensitive to critics, since they reflect heavily on sales. As Harold Hinds comments in his book ''Not just for children'', the study of these comics is important to understand Mexican society. In June 2005, as part of a "History of Mexican Comics" series, the Mexican Postal Service (SEPOMEX) issued a series of postage stamps featuring the character of Memín. The stamps were deemed offensive by a number of
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
community groups and
politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
s in the United States, including Jesse Jackson, prompting the Mexican government to assert that Memín had done a lot to oppose racism and that the stereotypical
Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...
' character Speedy Gonzales was never interpreted as offensive in Mexico. LULAC and NCLR,
Hispanic Americans Hispanic and Latino Americans are Americans who have a Spaniards, Spanish or Latin Americans, Latin American background, culture, or family origin. This demographic group includes all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino (demonym), ...
civil rights organizations, also issued statements calling the stamps racist. The charges of racism stem from the manner in which Pinguín and his mother are rendered, in the style of "darky iconography" (a form which, in the United States, has its roots in
blackface Blackface is the practice of performers using burned cork, shoe polish, or theatrical makeup to portray a caricature of black people on stage or in entertainment. Scholarship on the origins or definition of blackface vary with some taking a glo ...
and the American
minstrel show The minstrel show, also called minstrelsy, was an American form of theater developed in the early 19th century. The shows were performed by mostly white actors wearing blackface makeup for the purpose of portraying racial stereotypes of Afr ...
tradition.) Early Mexican comic artists adopted this mode of depicting people of African descent which had become commonplace around the world. Memín and his mother are depicted stereotypically as the "
pickaninny Pickaninny (also picaninny, piccaninny or pickininnie) is a racial slur for African-American children and a pejorative term for Aboriginal children of the Americas, Australia, and New Zealand. The origins of the term are disputed. Along with s ...
" and the " mammy", respectively. The dress and attitudes of Memín's mother are a caricature of Afro-Cuban women of the time and mirror Afrodiasporic clothing in various Latin American countries. Mexican Minister of Foreign Affairs Luis Ernesto Derbez declared to the press that "it is a total lack of knowledge of our culture; it looks to me that it is a total lack of respect to our culture that some people are making an issue out of this which does not resemble the reality." According to Mexican author
Enrique Krauze Enrique Krauze Kleinbort (born 16 September 1947) is a Mexican historian, essayist, editor, and entrepreneur. He has written more than twenty books, some of which are: ''Mexico: Biography of Power'', ''Redeemers'', and ''El pueblo soy yo'' (''I ...
, the difference of reactions to Memín Pinguín in the United States and Mexico stem from each nations history. Krauze claimed that due to
American history The history of the present-day United States began in roughly 15,000 BC with the arrival of Peopling of the Americas, the first people in the Americas. In the late 15th century, European colonization of the Americas, European colonization beg ...
being more fraught with racism than Mexico, including racist legislation such as the
Jim Crow laws The Jim Crow laws were U.S. state, state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, "Jim Crow (character), Ji ...
, Americans will perceive things in a far more racialized manner than Mexicans. He elaborated on this point by saying that although Mexico had racial issues of its own, acts such as the earlier abolition of slavery in Mexico caused Mexicans to view the comics from a less racialized perspective than the American populace. The criticism from United States officials was not only ridiculed by public opinion leaders in Mexico and by most of the Mexican population, but it also spurred interest in the stamps: from the day they were criticized, they were offered in
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...
auction sites for several times their face value, and Mexican
collectors Collector(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Collector (2011 film), ''Collector'' (2011 film), an Indian Malayalam film * Collector (2016 film), ''Collector'' (2016 film), a Russian film * Collectors (film), ''Collectors'' (film), a 2020 So ...
bought the full edition of 750,000 copies in a few days. Sales of the magazine increased, and the publisher decided to relaunch the series from the first issue alongside the current printing. Mexican intellectuals both from right and left have denounced this criticism as an attack on Mexico, and political magazines like '' Proceso'' have questioned the chain of events that led to the criticism, making this criticism, a political issue against México. In 2008, after complaints from an
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
shopper regarding what one news organization reported to be Memín's
simian The simians, anthropoids, or higher primates are an infraorder (Simiiformes ) of primates containing all animals traditionally called monkeys and apes. More precisely, they consist of the parvorders New World monkey, Platyrrhini (New World mon ...
-like appearance and his " Aunt Jemima-like mother," all Memín periodicals were pulled from
Wal-Mart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...
stores in Texas. This came after the latest issue titled "Memín para presidente" ("Memín for President") was being sold at locations with a large Hispanic population. In 2011, in one of the Mexican reprints of the comic, there is a picture involving Memín Pinguín walking alongside Michelle Obama. Memín says "and this job is one that African-Americans really want to do" poking fun on the 2005 comment of President Fox, but probably also telling the irony over the fact that an African-American was then the president of the United States (and that the latest issue of Memín Pinguín in USA was called Memín for president).


See also

*
Afro-Mexicans Afro-Mexicans (), also known as Black Mexicans (), are Mexicans of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. As a single population, Afro-Mexicans include individuals descended from both free and enslaved Africans who arrived to Mexi ...
*
Blackface Blackface is the practice of performers using burned cork, shoe polish, or theatrical makeup to portray a caricature of black people on stage or in entertainment. Scholarship on the origins or definition of blackface vary with some taking a glo ...
* Comics in Mexico * ''
Rarotonga Rarotonga is the largest and most populous of the Cook Islands. The island is volcanic, with an area of , and is home to almost 75% of the country's population, with 10,898 of a total population of 15,040. The Parliament of the Cook Islands, Coo ...
'' * ''
María Isabel María Isabel López Rodríguez (born 4 January 1995), known professionally as María Isabel, is a Spanish singer. She rose to prominence after she won the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2004 for with the song " Antes muerta que sencilla". ...
'' * '' Rubí'' * '' Yesenia'' * '' Gabriel y Gabriela'' * '' Alondra'' * '' El pecado de Oyuki''


References


External links

*
''The Pride in Memín Pinguín''
by Enrique Krauze, The Washington Post.
PublisherBackground information
{{DEFAULTSORT:Memin Pinguin 1943 comics debuts Anti-black racism in North America Race-related controversies in comics Comics about racism Humor comics Child characters in comics Child characters in advertising Male characters in comics Male characters in advertising Black people in comics Comics characters introduced in 1943 Mexican comics titles Mexican comics Magazines published in Mexico Magazines established in 1947 Mexican mascots Magazine mascots Racism in Mexico