Mexican Moods (1942)

e [Music] men on the March the world over men are on the March and now in Mexico too proudly taking her place among the Nations at war with the axis looking on is President Manuel aala kamacho who called on his countryman to preserve the honor of the Fatherland officers from the United States this day in Mexico City salute the Mexican flag with a right goodwi yes the people of Mexico 19 and A5 million strong have joined the ranks of the United Nations [Music] fine roads part of the Great Pan-American system important as they are to Commerce to defense the great thing is that these roads well paved well policed are taking thousands of average United States folks Into the Heart of a neighboring country now that good roads run way way down South of the Border we Americans are more numerous more truly representative of the United States and down the road a bit is this it's the town of Tasco where Modern Mexico keeps the look of oldtime Mexico Tasco was founded by bord the Frenchman who two centuries ago made himself Rich from Tasco silver bord is dead but the silver is still going strong Mexico all by herself gives the world onethird of all its silver and one mine has been worked since before the days of monuma over 400 years ago many and many are the hands that have been busy working on silver in Tasco all through the years [Music] they say the stars are brighter in tusco than in most places anyway Tasco silver is bright and full of a sort of South of the Border [Music] glamour care for statistics no well here they are anyway Mexico has 13 big commercial air bases beside this one at Mexico City there are 23 air routs three of them coming down from the United States you can fly here in one day from Los Angeles about 3 million miles are flown each year by about 70,000 passengers not all of them as attractive as mappi CZ from Puerto Rico star of Mexican movies and highly popular singer where Mappy Works her entertaining spell Mexico City's swankiest Hotel let's go in and listen to her and now Mai Cortez [Music] for fore [Music] [Applause] Canen FL do you know him if not it's high time you did let's hope he's in I can FL yes there he is the number one man in Mexico's popular theater and also a film star of the first magnitude what chaplain is to us Canen plus is to Mexico that thing around his shoulders that voluminous gabardine that's his coat but he calls his coat anyhow canteen plus was a law student before the stage captured him as a lawyer you would have had to talk sense once in a while as it is he's well paid for never making any sense at all his Mexican double talk which he pours out in a mad Relentless dribble is one of the funniest things in the world and by the way on his days off he's an amateur bull fighter his right name is Mario Moreno but to all Mexicans he's just canteen plus and the maddest Rascal [Music] going on another part of the studio lot the trio MCO la la [Music] General moxino Avala kamacho the president's brother member of the cabinet powerful and exuberant figure in the National Life and the most colorful of the charos and who are the charos why the plaza deos charos which is the pride of many a Mexican city and town the answer reaches back to the days of the Spanish Conquest when horses were cherished and horsemanship was a cult and on to the later days of the great ranches when the owner prided himself on being as good a Horseman as any of his hands and then on down to today when the Charles are splendidly mounted magnificently costumed members of a societ in which the horse is still cherished as the central fact in a richly romantic tradition so their tests of riding skill and this sport with the bulls which is called lolada are more than mere stunts they're a sort of [Music] ritual and now a page from history pageantry which reconstructs the sacrificial rights of those ancient dwellers in Mexico the Aztec the youth who is to be sacrificed at High Noon to the sun god the handsomest of the war Prisoners the victim performs his ceremonial dance which is one of exaltation for he is about to go to his death gladly it was high honor to be chosen messenger of the sun priests princes and warriors share in the procession and oblations this opulent pageant staged for the Ates of the interamerican travel Congress is as careful a reenactment of the ancient ceremonies as could be achieved the Temple of the sun is impressively reproduced and all the details of the festival are as historically accurate as research could make them this is undoubtedly how the ancient inhabitants of Mexico looked and acted on one of their holiest festive days [Music] [Music] and now the messenger of the sun has had his moment of Glory has delivered the staff and shield which the Sun God will need in his NeverEnding Journey Through the heavens and has had the Supreme honor of offering up his life the voladores suspended from the high Mast before the temple launched themselves into space youths and maidens danced and everyone is happy including the handsome and so recently alive messenger of the Sun the fesal comes to an end thus does Mexico of today keep alive the memory of her ancient past [Music]