Espectro I
| Birth name | Antonio Hernández Arriaga |
|---|---|
| Born |
February 9, 1934 Mexico City, Mexico |
| Died | October 13, 1993 (aged 59) Monterrey, Mexico |
| Children |
Antonio Hernandez Herrada (son) Arturo Hernandez Herrada (son) |
| Family |
Antonio Peña (nephew) Espectro Jr. (nephew) Cadaver de Ultratumba (nephew) Guerrero de la Muerte (nephew) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Tony Hernández Espectro de Ultratumba El Espectro Espectro I |
| Trained by | Rolando Vera |
| Debut | 1951 |
| Retired | September 25, 1959 1974 |
Antonio "Toño" Hernández Arriaga (February 9, 1934 – October 13, 1993) was a Mexican professional wrestler or luchador best known under the ring name El Espectro I ("The Ghost"), at times referred to as Espectro de Ultratumba ("The ghost from beyond the grave"). As Espectro I Hernández became famous for his theatrical, elaborate entrances often involving being carried to the ring in a coffin. He has been cited as one of the most charismatic wrestlers of the 1950s, creating a character that inspired multiple successors including his sons who worked as El Hijo del Espectro ("Son of Espectro") and Espectro 2000. He also inspired his nephew Antonio Peña who became the first wrestler to work as Espectro Jr. and later used the creativity and inspiration of the Espanto character to create Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, later known simply as "AAA".
Hernández is one of a limited number of enmascarados, or masked wrestlers, to voluntarily unmask, option to remove the mask as he announced his retirement due to injuries. He would later return to wrestling but without the mask the Espectro character did not have the same impact. He later became a trainer, having trained such wrestles as Fuerza Guerrera and the current Espectro Jr.
Antonio Hernández Arriaga, referred to as "Toño" by his family and friends, was born on February 9, 1934, in Mexico CIty, Mexico. From an early age he was interested in becoming a luchador, or professional wrestler, persuading Rolando Vera to train him when he turned 16 years old and no longer needed his parent's written permission to train.
Hernández made his in-ring debut in 1951, using the ring name Tony Hernández as he worked for Vera's wrestling promotion in Nuevo León. Early on he worked mainly in the first or second match, not making much headway. In 1953 former referee Roberto Rangel showed a magazine he bought called Los Espectros de Ultratumba (Spanish for "The Spectres from Beyond the Grave)") to local promoter Jesús Garza Hernández. The two thought it would make for a great wrestling character and unbeknownst to Hernández the promoter had a green suit and mask created specifically for Hernández. While Hernández did not like to wrestle in a full body suit, he still went ahead with the character, wrestling as "Espectro de Ultratumba" from that point on. Working with the promoter Hernández began to develop the Espectro de Ultratumba character further, adding in a large degree of theatrics to his matches, including using an actual coffin as part of his entrance. Prior to his matches, he would be carried to the ring in the coffin, often by several hooded pallbearers or wrestlers dressed like ghosts, allowing Espectro to emerge from the coffin "like a ghost rising from the grave". The spectacle of the entrance combined with the showmanship of Hernández himself made the Espectro de Ultratumba character very popular with the locals.
...
Wikipedia