Silverio Pérez (bullfighter)

Silverio Pérez (20 June 1915 — 2 September 2006) was a Mexican matador whose nickname was "The Pharaoh."

Pérez began his career in 1931, after his brother, Carmelo Pérez,was gored during a bullfight in Mexico by a bull named "Michin" from the ganaderia San Diego de los Padres He died weeks later in Spain as a consequence of that wound.

Silverio Pérez developed an enticing, slow style in the ring that attracted fans in both Mexico and Spain. One of his most legendary bullfights occurred in Mexico City in 1943, when Pérez killed the bull Tanguito in what was considered the matador's supreme performance. The crowd's cheer of "Olé!" reverberated for blocks around the ring. IN present days a sculpture of the bull decorates the entrance of the bullring After he retired he had an outstanding figuration as a politician and social leader,becoming Mayor of his town, Texcoco. In his golden years in bullfighting his nickname was The Pharaoh of Texcoco. Years later, in the peak of his role of political leadership, his story as the first man who passed from Pharaoh to Mayor gained fame.

Pérez retired from the ring in 1953. In the 1960s, a song titled Silverio was written in his honor by the top Mexican composer/singer,Agustín Lara, a Pasodoble,which gained universal acclaim Agustín Lara.

A statue of Pérez waving his cape at a bull stands on one of Mexico City's avenues.

Pérez died at his ranch in Pentecostes, east of Mexico City, of pneumonia.

References

• Staff and Wire Reports. (2006, September 10). Silverio Perez, 91; Mexican Matador Known as 'Pharaoh'. The Los Angeles Times