Alfredo Ripstein
Encyclopedia
Alfredo Ripstein was a Mexican film producer. He is credited with helping shape Mexico's film industry in the period surrounding World War II.
Ripstein also helped start the careers of contemporary Mexican actors such as Gael García Bernal
and Salma Hayek
.
's army were the main customers of his parents' store. Ripstein's mother asked Villa for permission to close the store in order to give birth to Alfredo. Villa stopped by the store a few days later to see the newborn. "So the first man that ever carried my father was Pancho Villa", Ripstein's son Arturo told Los Angeles Times
reporter Reed Johnson.
Ripstein's family moved to Mexico City when he was 5 years old. Ripstein first worked as an accountant
and then was hired by Simon Wishnack's Filmex
company as a production manager and executive producer.
in 2002
. It was produced with his grandson, Daniel Birman. He also produced in 2004 BIRTH OF A PASSION, also with his grandson, Daniel Birman. In 2005 he executive produced THE RED QUEEN: A MAYAN MYSTERY for Discovery Channel
Ripstein had collaborated with his son Arturo
on several films, including the 1999
adaptation of Gabriel García Márquez
's novel No One Writes to the Colonel
and The Beginning and The End
, adapted from the novel by Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz
.
He produced more than 120 films.
at his home in the Polanco district of Mexico City. He was survived by his wife and son, two daughters, seven grandchildren and six great-grandchildren at the time of his death.
Ripstein also helped start the careers of contemporary Mexican actors such as Gael García Bernal
Gael García Bernal
Gael García Bernal is a Mexican film actor and director.-Early life:García Bernal was born in Guadalajara, Mexico, the son of Patricia Bernal, an actress and former model, and José Ángel García, an actor and director. His stepfather is Sergio Yazbek, whom his mother married when García Bernal was...
and Salma Hayek
Salma Hayek
Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez de Pinault is a Mexican film actress, director and producer. She received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her role as Frida Kahlo in the film Frida.-Early life:...
.
Early life
Ripstein's father was a Polish merchant in Parral. Members of Pancho VillaPancho Villa
José Doroteo Arango Arámbula – better known by his pseudonym Francisco Villa or its hypocorism Pancho Villa – was one of the most prominent Mexican Revolutionary generals....
's army were the main customers of his parents' store. Ripstein's mother asked Villa for permission to close the store in order to give birth to Alfredo. Villa stopped by the store a few days later to see the newborn. "So the first man that ever carried my father was Pancho Villa", Ripstein's son Arturo told Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reporter Reed Johnson.
Ripstein's family moved to Mexico City when he was 5 years old. Ripstein first worked as an accountant
Accountant
An accountant is a practitioner of accountancy or accounting , which is the measurement, disclosure or provision of assurance about financial information that helps managers, investors, tax authorities and others make decisions about allocating resources.The Big Four auditors are the largest...
and then was hired by Simon Wishnack's Filmex
Filmex
Filmex was an annual Los Angeles film festival held in the 1970s and early 1980s. It was the predecessor of the American Film Institute's Los Angeles International Film Festival...
company as a production manager and executive producer.
Career
Ripstein opened his own company, Alameda Films, in 1948. One of his final feature films was El Crimen del Padre AmaroEl crimen del Padre Amaro
El crimen del padre Amaro is a 2002 film directed by Carlos Carrera. It is loosely based on the novel O Crime do Padre Amaro by 19th-century Portuguese writer José Maria de Eça de Queiroz....
in 2002
2002 in film
The year 2002 in film involved some significant events. The first significant releases of sequels took place between The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, Men in Black II, Analyze That, Spy Kids 2: The Island of...
. It was produced with his grandson, Daniel Birman. He also produced in 2004 BIRTH OF A PASSION, also with his grandson, Daniel Birman. In 2005 he executive produced THE RED QUEEN: A MAYAN MYSTERY for Discovery Channel
Ripstein had collaborated with his son Arturo
Arturo Ripstein
Arturo Ripstein y Rosen is a Mexican film director.-Life and career:Ripstein got his break into movies working as an uncredited assistant director for Luis Buñuel. In 1965, he directed his first feature, Tiempo de Morir...
on several films, including the 1999
1999 in film
The year 1999 in film involved several noteworthy events and has been called "The Year That Changed Movies". Several significant feature films, including Stanley Kubrick's final film Eyes Wide Shut, Pedro Almodóvar's first Oscar-winning film All About My Mother, science fiction The Matrix, Deep...
adaptation of Gabriel García Márquez
Gabriel García Márquez
Gabriel José de la Concordia García Márquez is a Colombian novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter and journalist, known affectionately as Gabo throughout Latin America. He is considered one of the most significant authors of the 20th century. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in...
's novel No One Writes to the Colonel
No One Writes to the Colonel
No One Writes to the Colonel is a novella written by the Colombian novelist and Nobel Prize winner Gabriel García Márquez. It also gives its name to a short story collection.-Plot summary:...
and The Beginning and The End
The Beginning and the End
The Beginning and the End may refer to:*Alpha and Omega , an appellation of God in the book of Revelation*The Beginning and the End , by Bizzy Bone*"The Beginning and the End", a song by Isis from the album Oceanic...
, adapted from the novel by Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz
Naguib Mahfouz
Naguib Mahfouz was an Egyptian writer who won the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature. He is regarded as one of the first contemporary writers of Arabic literature, along with Tawfiq el-Hakim, to explore themes of existentialism. He published over 50 novels, over 350 short stories, dozens of movie...
.
He produced more than 120 films.
Death
Ripstein died of respiratory failureRespiratory failure
The term respiratory failure, in medicine, is used to describe inadequate gas exchange by the respiratory system, with the result that arterial oxygen and/or carbon dioxide levels cannot be maintained within their normal ranges. A drop in blood oxygenation is known as hypoxemia; a rise in arterial...
at his home in the Polanco district of Mexico City. He was survived by his wife and son, two daughters, seven grandchildren and six great-grandchildren at the time of his death.