The pop legacy of “Chabelo”
The cataphyxia. In his television program there was a dynamic in which the contestant, upon winning a prize, could agree to exchange what he had won for a mystery box. The word “cataphyxia” is popularly used to make an exchange of the possible prize.
filmography. Xavier López as an actor was part of more than 20 films in which he participated in his character of “Chabelo” as the protagonist. The boy faced different adventures, some in the company of “Pepito”, the famous character of children’s jokes. Due to his talent as an actor he also did dubbing, one of his most recent appearances was in Coconut , where he gave a voice to one of the policemen in the kingdom of the dead; in addition to participating in Chicken Little .
Chabelo and his marketing. There is a group of brands that are unthinkable without the personality of the actor. Although the Troncoso Furniture chain is only located in Mexico City and the metropolitan area, his fame was evident throughout the country for being one of the advertisers of his program. Candy brands such as Sonrics, Vero, Duvalin and Gamesa cookies were part of the scenery and spirit of his challenges on television. Being a children’s program, toy manufacturers knew that this was the right place to show them, such is the case of Apache, which with its variety of bicycles, the popular avalanche and tricycles is a clear element that marked Mexican childhoods.
The voice. The style that López created with his emblematic character of the 13-year-old boy wearing overalls and sometimes even a cap. However, his way of speaking with a shrill and congested tone is a benchmark for Mexican comedy and the creation of this character that first saw the light of day in 1954. Listening to López Rodríguez with his real voice in interviews was very contrasting. , being a mature man’s voice, with gravity that had little to do with that of his iconic television character.
“Family” contests. Every Sunday his television program has been broadcast nationally since 1967, offering entertainment and fun to millions of viewers. Although it was even said that his program was “the longest commercial in the world”, since each of his contests came to be sponsored by brands of sweets, toys and of course, the famous Troncoso Furniture.
Among his most memorable competitions that required a certain level of skill we remember: “The crazy ladder”; “Relays” riding an Apache avalanche; “Funki Punki”, a contest to find out the characteristics and prices of Gamesa products, and all without going to commercials, do you remember? “Las Basculas”, where two families competed to calculate the weight of the other team, among many others that excited everyone.
Undoubtedly millions of Mexicans have in their day to day many of these moments that they lived on the screens with the work of the actor, producer and presenter Xavier López “Chabelo”.