Carmen Belén Richardson (September 14, 1930 − August 9, 2012) was a Puerto Rican actress and comedian.

Early years

Richardson was born in Santurce. Her parents felt that she had a special talent for acting at an early age and in 1939 when she was nine years old they had her audition for a child's role in a radio soap opera on the WNEL Radio Station. The people at the station were so impressed with her that they hired her on the spot. She attended the Central High School of Santurce where she actively participated in her school plays. On one occasion when she was 14 years old, Juan Ramón Jiménez, the Spanish Nobel Prize winner, was present for one of her presentations. He was impressed by what he saw to the point that he offered to pay Richardson's university tuition.

Puerto Rican television pioneer

Richardson enrolled at the University of Puerto Rico where she studied Dramatic Arts. In 1954, after she graduated, Puerto Rican television pioneer and producer Tommy Muñiz, offered her a role in his new program El Colegio de la Alegria. She played the part of "Lirio Blanco", a funny, extremely tall girl who could open her eyes in amazement extremely wide. Thus, Richardson became the second black Puerto Rican actress in Puerto Rico's television industry, after Rita Delgado, in 1955. Néstor Muñiz was who recommended Richardson to his brother, who was looking for actors to play students in this sketch. Muñiz was skeptical that at such a young age and with a background in drama she was well suited with comedy, but she won the role in an audition. A gesture where she opens her eyes wide was noted by Néstor Muñiz when he visited the radio studio was noted as a potential comedy bit.

Telenovelas

In 1972, she played a supporting role in the telenovela El silencio nos condena. In 1980, Richardson went to Mexico and was hired by Chilean director Valentin Pimstein, to work in soap operas. During the three years that she spent in Mexico, she acted in:

  • El Maleficio (1983),
  • Guadalupe (1984) as Dominga,
  • Soledad (1981),
  • Amalia Batista (1983) and
  • El Hogar que yo Robe (1981) as Fernanda, alongside Mexican actors Juan Ferrara and Angélica María. On September 3, 1995, she made a return to the role in a special edition of El Colegío de la Alegría titled Cuarenta años no son na reprising his role. On February 3, 1997, she participated in Los 75 años de don Tommy, a special dedicated to Muñiz's career. Richardson died on August 9, 2012, at HIMA hospital in Caguas, Puerto Rico at the age of 81. She was buried at Borinquen Memorial Park in Carolina, Puerto Rico. Richardson had two biological daughters: Migbel and Eda; and an adoptive daughter: Waleska.

See also

  • List of Puerto Ricans
  • List of Puerto Ricans of African descent
  • History of women in Puerto Rico

References

Citations

Bibliography

  • Popular Culture