Memo Aguirre
Encyclopedia
Juan Guillermo Aguirre (born 1951), better known as Memo Aguirre, is a famous Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an singer whose voice has been heard all over Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
, particularly during the opening acts of superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
shows during the 1980s. He is famous for singing the Latin American He-Man
He-Man
He-Man is a fictional heroic character featured in the Masters of the Universe media franchise. In most variations, he is the alter ego of Prince Adam...
theme song for the animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe is an American animated television series produced by Filmation based on Mattel's successful toy line Masters of the Universe...
.
When Memo Aguirre was a teen, he participated in a group named "Los Sacros". The group did not enjoy much success, and Aguirre moved to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1971, setting in San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
.
Aguirre arrived at the States with dreams of becoming a very famous singer. He suffered for a long period there, sometimes even singing on street corners to live off passers by's donations. He would later on debut on the somewhat better scenario of San Francisco bar
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
s, becoming a regular there and earning better money for his work.
Aguirre's luck really changed for the better, however, when he was signed by a company named Sound Connection Studios during the middle 1970s. Superhero cartoon shows were becoming increasingly popular in Latin America, and cartoon producers needed someone to voice over, at least, some of the most popular superhero television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
series.
Aguirre sang the Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
versions of opening songs for shows such as Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
, Captain America
Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
, Captain Future
Captain Future
Captain Future is a science fictional hero pulp character originally published in self-titled American pulp magazines during the 1940s and early 50s.-Origins:...
, Little Lulu
Little Lulu
"Little Lulu" is the nickname for Lulu Moppett, a comic strip character created in the mid-1930s by Marjorie Henderson Buell. The character debuted in The Saturday Evening Post on February 23, 1935 in a single panel, appearing as a flower girl at a wedding and strewing the aisle with banana peels...
, and Spider-Woman
Spider-Woman
Spider-Woman is the codename of several fictional characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics.-Publication history:Marvel Comics' then-publisher Stan Lee, said in 1978, shortly after Spider-Woman's debut in Marvel Spotlight #32 Spider-Woman is the codename of several fictional characters...
. During the early to middle 1980s, some of these shows went to have tremendous success in Latin America and Aguirre's voice intimately identified with them. He also sang for Filmation
Filmation
Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1963...
's Sport Billy
Sport Billy
Sport Billy is a 1979 animated television cartoon made by Filmation Associates, initially for broadcast in Germany. In 1982, Filmation carried the show over to the United States for syndication, and as a summer replacement in NBC's Saturday morning children's programming...
and the He-Man
He-Man
He-Man is a fictional heroic character featured in the Masters of the Universe media franchise. In most variations, he is the alter ego of Prince Adam...
theme song in Latin America.
Aguirre at that time was living well, collecting money from each country that showed the above mentioned shows. But, ironically, he was not as well known as his voice, not even in home country of Chile.
Because those cartoon shows were shown in such countries like Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
and many other Latin American countries, many children and young adults of those areas could identify his voice, but not his name or his face.
During 2004, under the name of "Capitán Memo" (Captain Memo) he released "El Regreso de los Robots" (The Return of the Robots) CD which contains many old songs that were composed by him. Although aged, these songs will be new to the general public, as he had never had a chance to perform them in front of a large audience.
That year also, he met former Miss Universe
Miss Universe
Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
Alicia Machado
Alicia Machado
Yoseph Alicia Machado Fajardo is an actress, singer and former Miss Universe. She was the fourth woman from Venezuela to capture the Miss Universe crown.-Career:...
during a Chilean television show. The former beauty queen expressed her admiration towards Aguirre, even singing a few lines from the "Capitan Futuro" song, to show him that she remembers that particular contribution of his.