María Salud Ramírez Caballero was renamed by the collective of her town in Michoacán, Mexico, as Mama Coconut in 2017, when the Disney-Pixar film was released that portrayed the old woman, on whom the producer would have based the character’s traits for the animated film on the Day of the Dead.
The centenarian woman, who in her long life dedicated herself to pottery, died on Sunday in her hometown, where she lived for more than a century. The producers of the film arrived there in the pre-production stage to investigate the important festivity rooted in Mexican culture.
The producers visited several locations in Mexico and spent time with Mexican families, including the family of María Salud. They photographed her in the town square and later the character of the grandmother appeared on the tape, serving as the common thread for the trip of the youngest of the family clan -Miguel- and her dog to the world of the dead to meet her great-grandfather .
The residents of the town did not take long to identify her and the news spread like wildfire. Although the transnational production company refused to admit that it had based her character on the old woman born in September 1913, the relatives continued to fight for recognition without success.
The producers hardly conceded that at the time they “traveled through various states of Mexico” to document Mexican traditions and in particular the Day of the Dead holiday, the theme of the film.
Solidarity to celebrity
However, celebrity caught up with him. In the absence of obtaining the economic support of the producer, the town itself honored her and the old woman became a public figure. Tourists came to her town to meet her and take photos with her, the film’s posters served as a background for the images that ran in abundance through social networks.
The news of his death has touched the institutional threads of Michoacán, where the Secretary of Tourism, Roberto Monroy, lamented the departure of the centenarian who leaves a line of descendants that extends to great-great-grandchildren.
“Doña María Salud, tireless woman and example of life,” said the head of the tourism portfolio, who highlighted the social recognition of the State for “who was the inspiration for this beloved character who went around the world.”
The Mexican press has highlighted this Monday the profile of the old woman who did not see revenue for the tape other than the donations of the tourists who came to take pictures with her.
María Salud, according to family memory, married in her youth and had three children. Together with her husband, she devoted herself to pottery as a trade, with which they brought her descendants forward.
The family based their claims before the production company on the photos they took of them and on the fact that in some sequences of the film the facade of the town church appears -in an animated version- where its inhabitants today say goodbye to Mama Coconut .
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