Latina Bombshells Revisited: The Miracle of Salma Hayek

originally posted: 5/6/08 6:16 PM
updated: June 16, 2012 @ 12:19PM

One of the hardest chapters to write in Tex[t]-Mex was the one on Lupe Vélez (you may need to be logged into a gmail account to have the Lupe-link work)--there, late in the game, I try, a tad unsuccessfully, I fear, to fast-forward my study into the present, with lurid, 21st-century meditations on the ecstatic sanctity of movie and television Latina celebrities; in that chapter, Salma Hayek, Penelope Cruz, and Eva Longoria make cameo appearances, with Salma doing yeoman's work womaning selections from a complex Premiere magazine interview, an exchange wherein Hayek eloquently and diligently articulates the limbolandia of being a Latina sexpot and only being a Latina sexpot. Which brings me to this clip from The David Letterman show on CBS wherein we gather the difficulty of her conundrum/situation (watch also for her anecdote that blends Catholicism with tales of the miraculous, a combo that echoes Santa Lupe Velez's situation as described in Tex[t]-Mex):

I love this photo of Salma--cigar smoking, strong, dynamic, and fierce, with eyes that confront the would-be watching subject with a post-Mulvey gaze that might paralyze. More food for thought as we consume our Tex[t]-Mex cuisine.

A page from the chapter on Lupe Velez in Tex[t]-Mex appears below--note the remarkable design/typography work by Lisa Tremaine:

Lupe Velez Screenings Coming up on TCM

Stop the presses! Old Friend/Collaborator Kristy Rawson has breaking news:

"Hi: Wanted to pass this along: TCM is doing a Jimmy Durante day. Two of the four films he made with Lupe Vélez are scheduled to air on the 20th: Strictly Dynamite (1934) at 1:45pm est, and and Cuban Love Song (1931) at 9:15am est. The latter features the first major transnational Cuban jazz hit, "El Manicero" (The Peanut Vendor)... CLS was produced to exploit the popularity of "El Manicero" in the U.S., but the film caused big upset in Cuba. These are both historically interesting, problematic films. I don't think either of them is available on DVD yet... (although I could be wrong about that; some Lupe films have been recently released). best, Kristy

Here are some scenes from each cool flick!!!!