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Alejandro Muñoz Moreno
Mask of Blue Demon
Statistics
Ring name(s)	Blue Demon (Demonio Azul), El Manotas (The Big Handed One), The Professor[1] Tosco Muñoz
Born	April 24, 1922 Rinconada, Nuevo León, Mexico
Died	December 16, 2000 (aged 78)
Trained by	Rolando Vera
Debut	March 12, 1948
Retired	1988

Alejandro Muñoz Moreno (April 24, 1922 – December 16, 2000), better known as Blue Demon (Demonio Azul), was a Mexican luchador (professional wrestler) who was widely considered to be one of the greatest Mexican wrestlers of his time. He was affectionately referred to as "Blue" and was known for his signature blue wrestling mask.

Biography

Early life

Alejandro Muñoz Moreno was born April 24, 1922 in Rinconada, Nuevo León Mexico.^[2] He was the child of farmers and was the fifth of twelve children. At a young age, Alejandro dropped out of school and moved to Monterrey, where his uncle gave him a job working on the National Railroad. His co-workers there gave him the nickname 'Manotas', referring to his large, powerful hands.

Wrestling career

A chance meeting with the famous Mexican wrestler Rolando Vera piqued his interest in Lucha Libre, Vera even offering to tutor him and help him start a career. He began wrestling without a mask in Laredo, Texas. His first match was against Chema Lopez on March 12, 1948, a match which he won handily. Adopting the mask and persona of The Blue Demon, he headed back to Mexico to start a real career. His first appearance as The Blue Demon was in Mexico City in September 1948, where he fought Benny Arcilla. Blue began his career in the ring as a rudo. From there, he formed a famous team with another well-known masked luchador named The Black Shadow, and the two became known as Los Hermanos Shadow over the next few years.

In 1952, the famous wrestler Santo beat and unmasked The Black Shadow in the ring, which triggered Blue's decision to become a técnico in the ring, as well as a legendary feud between The Blue Demon and Santo that culminated in Blue's beating Santo in a well-publicized series of matches in 1952 and again in 1953. In 1953, he won the NWA World Welterweight Championship from Santo, and held it until 1958. Their rivalry never really ended in later years, although they appeared together in a series of horror films, since Santo always remembered his defeat at the Blue Demon's hands.^[3]

During the 1960s, one of Blue Demon's greatest rivals was Rayo de Jalisco. In 1988, the year he retired, Blue Demon finally beat Jalisco in a mask-vs-mask match, taking the mask of another of Mexico's wrestling legends.^[4]

Film career

A portrait of Blue Demon by Lourdes Grobet.

Blue Demon first appeared in cameos in a couple of luchador films made in 1961, where he was one of several wrestlers who appeared in the background. But in 1964, Enrique Vergara, the producer of the then-successful Santo movies, decided to diversify by allowing the 42-year-old Blue Demon to star in a series of luchador films of his own. The plots of the Blue Demon films are thought to be extremely similar to those of Santo's films. Santo was asking for a salary increase at the time and Vergara wanted to cultivate a second movie star.

From 1964 to 1977, Blue Demon starred in a total of 25 luchador films, and more recently was the subject of a feature-length Mexican documentary entitled Blue Demon, the Champion (1989). Of those 25 films, Santo co-starred with him in nine of them, though the two were never good friends in real life. In three of his films, Blue Demon starred as the leader of a squadron of masked superheroes known as Los Campeones Justicieros (The Champions of Justice). Membership in the Champions included such legendary Mexican wrestling figures as Mil Máscaras, Tinieblas, El Rayo de Jalisco, El Medico Asesino, El Fantasma Blanco, El Avispon Escarlata and Superzan.

Retirement and death

Blue Demon retired from the ring in 1988 at the Monterrey Arena, where he appeared in a final match, teaming up with his son, Blue Demon Jr., who has had a successful career of his own.

The Blue Demon died just before noon on Saturday, December 16, 2000 from natural causes. Apparently Blue Demon suffered a fatal heart attack on a park bench near a subway kiosk while on his way home from his regular morning training session at The Blue Demon Instituto Atletico, where he enjoyed teaching others his fighting skills. Although an attempt was made to get him to a hospital, he was unable to be revived. Blue Demon was buried wearing his trademark blue mask, the mask he never removed in public as he always kept his true identity a secret.

In wrestling

• Finishing and signature moves

• Octopus stretch

Championships and accomplishments

• Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre

• Mexican National Welterweight Championship (3 times)
• NWA World Welterweight Championship (2 times)

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)

Filmography

1964

• Blue Demon
  (El Demonio Azul)
• Blue Demon contra el poder satánico
  (Blue Demon vs Satanic Power) Santo had a cameo appearance in this film

1966

• Blue Demon en la sombra del murciélago
  (Blue Demon in "Shadow of The Bat")
• Blue Demon contra las aranas infernales
  (Blue Demon vs The Infernal Spiders) (BD's last B&W film)
• Blue Demon contra cerebros infernales
  (Blue Demon vs The Infernal Brains) (BD's first Color film)
• Blue Demon contra las diabólicas
  (Blue Demon vs The Diabolical Women)

1967

• Blue Demon destructor de espías
  (Blue Demon, Destroyer of Spies)
• Blue Demon en pasaporte a la muerte
  (Blue Demon in "Passport To Death")

1968

• Blue Demon contra las invasoras
  (Blue Demon vs. The Women Invaders)
  Also known as Blue Demon Y Las Seductoras

1969

• Santo el emmascarado de plata y Blue Demon contra los monstruos
  (Santo and Blue Demon vs The Monsters)
• Santo contra Blue Demon en la Atlántida
  (Santo vs Blue Demon in Atlantis)
• Santo y Blue Demon en el mundo de los muertos
  (Santo & Blue Demon in "World of the Dead")

1970

• Los campeones justicieros
  (The Champions of Justice)
• Las momias de Guanajuato
  (The Mummies of Guanajuato) Co-stars Santo and Mil Máscaras

1971

• Blue Demon y Zovek en "La invasión de los muertos"
  (Blue Demon & Zovek In "The Invasion of The Dead")

1972

• La noche de la muerte
  (Blue Demon in "Night of Death")
• Blue Demon en la mafia amarilla
  (Blue Demon In "The Yellow Mafia")
• Vuelven los campeones justicieros
  (The Champions of Justice Return)
• Santo y Blue Demon contra Drácula y el Hombre Lobo
  (Santo & Blue Demon vs Dracula & The Wolfman)
• Santo y Blue Demon en "Las bestias del terror"
  (Santo & Blue Demon In "The Beasts of Terror")

1973

• El triunfo de los campeones justicieros
  (Triumph of The Champions of Justice)
• Santo y Blue Demon contra el doctor Frankenstein
  (Santo & Blue Demon vs Dr. Frankenstein)

1974

• El hijo de Alma Grande
  (The Son of Alma Grande)

1975

• La mansion de las siete momias
  (Mansion of The Seven Mummies)
  co-starring Superzan

1977

• Misterio en las Bermudas
  (Mystery In Bermuda) Co-stars Santo and Mil Máscaras

1989

• Blue Demon, el campeón
  (Blue Demon, The Champion) Documentary, video release only.

References

External links

• Blue Demon wrestling profile

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