| El Chavo | |
| First: | El Ropavejero (1971/1972, sketch) Los globos (1973, series) Los globos (Ballooney) (2006, animated series) |
| Portrayer: | Roberto Gómez Bolaños |
| Voice: | Jesús Guzmán (El Chavo Animado) Mona Marshall (El Chavo Animado; English dub) |
| Creator: | Roberto Gómez Bolaños |
| Series: | El Chavo del Ocho |
| Nationality: | Mexican |
| Family: | Unknown |
| Occupation: | Primary student |
| Species: | Human |
| Gender: | Male |
| Home: | Flat 8 in Señor Barriga's neighborhood |
| Religion: | Catholic |
| Lbl21: | Age |
| Data21: | 8 years old |
| Last: | Clases de inglés (1992, sketch) Lavadora nueva (1980, series) Historias de amor II (Love Stories II) (2014, animated series) |
El Chavo del Ocho (English: The Kid or The Boy from number Eight) or El Chavo (English: The Kid or The Boy, but Spanish: chavo also meaning "cent") is a Mexican fictional character and the protagonist of the Mexican television sitcom series of the same name. He was played by Roberto Gómez Bolaños (Chespirito), despite the obvious age difference between the actor and the character, and in the animated series his voice is played by Jesús Guzmán. In the English dub version of the animated series, he is voiced by Mona Marshall. "Chavo" means "boy" in colloquial Mexican language, his real name is unknown. He is very enthusiastic, creative and well-meaning, but also very innocent, which is why other children take advantage of him. He's not very bright and he's a bit clumsy. It is said that he came to the neighborhood at the age of four and apparently lives in apartment #8, it is not known with whom exactly, but it is said that an old woman took care of him in her apartment until she died.[1]
In December 2016, a rumor began to circulate on the Internet, according to the book El diario del Chavo del 8, written by Gómez Bolaños in 1995, his real name is revealed: Rodolfo Pietro Filiberto Raffaelo Guglielmi,[2] however said rumor was denied by official sources.[3]
El Chavo is freckled and wears a green checkered cap with visor and earmuffs, a patched white T-shirt with brown and yellow horizontal stripes, brown pants held up by two red suspenders over his left shoulder, and black shoes, a gift from La Chilindrina. with yellow laces.[4]
Although during the first episodes he could be seen dressed in light blue or yellow pants and on some occasions he has been seen wearing white or yellow shirts, and even with a shirt with the figure of El Chapulín Colorado, who is his idol, the Same in the animated version, except for the shoes and the pants are orange and the shoes are brown.
El Chavo is an orphaned, poor and malnourished boy who spends most of his time in a barrel located in the front yard of a lower-middle-class Mexican neighborhood owned by Señor Barriga. At first he was called "El Chavo del 8" because this series was broadcast on channel 8 of Mexican TV (today Nu9ve), but when the program began to be broadcast on another channel due to its popularity, the character himself explained to the rest that it was a false belief that he lived in the barrel of the patio and the "8" was because he lived in apartment #8, although his real name is not known, nor who he lives with, since every time he is asked about it, someone interrupts him before he can answer.
In the neighborhood he is always playing with Quico, La Chilindrina, Popis, Ñoño, Godínez, Paty and other children, with whom he frequently experiences conflicts typical of infants that generally end in lawsuits and are sometimes resolved in a hilarious way with the intervention of the other characters, although in the end the feeling of friendship between him and his neighbors prevails.
Although it is true that El Chavo is clumsy and not very bright, on some occasions he has very ingenious and comical outings, he earns his living running errands, sometimes recycling empty cans and bottles, saving money from his piggy bank for the Red Cross, Christmas, the weekend of the year, the Holy Kings (according to him), selling newspapers and magazines, fresh waters, working as a shoeshiner, as a waiter and others. He is very honest, although this does not apply to other people's food, which he often eats when the owners are careless.
He is in love with Paty, Gloria's niece (in several original episodes and several seasons of the animated series because he receives kisses, although he feels great appreciation for Chilindrina, who previously kissed him in other episodes), he is a close friend of all, especially everything from Don Ramón, although he receives blows from him, he knows that he will never disappoint him and he sees him as a model to imitate despite being aware of his defects. When it comes to fighting, it is known that he is generally better than Quico, at first he has never been able to hit Ñoño, who defends himself with his stomach, but he has on other occasions such as in La torta de la paz. However, he has never been able to hit Godínez, who responds by hitting back harder.
He constantly thinks about food, he loves jelly and ham sandwiches, food being the only reason and object for which he is capable of stealing. When he is very afraid, he is given "the Garrotera" (Stiffs), an attack that immobilizes him in a specific position (standing, slightly hunched over, with one arm flexed in front of the chest and the other extended downwards, the legs bent and the head looking over the left shoulder), almost in a state of unconsciousness; as El Chavo explains, "Siento como si sintiera que no estuviera sintiendo nada" (I feel like I feel like I'm not feeling anything), the only way to get him to come to is to throw cold water on his face.
It has many characteristic phrases such as "Fue sin querer queriendo" (I did it on purpose, but I didn’t mean to); "Bueno, pero no se enoje" (Well, but don't get mad); "Es que no me tienen paciencia" (You’re just not patient enough with me); "Se me chispoteó" (It Just slipped out), "Vas a ver a la salida" (You are going to see the exit) and his classic "Eso, eso, eso" (That's True That's True That's True), when he is happy he stomps his feet as if he were dancing and when he is angry he kicks the ground violently and furiously, he commonly plays with a broom that he tries to keep balanced on his foot, he creates his toys in a simple way using cans, cardboard and playing yoyos, ball bearings and more, but these are overshadowed by Quico's, when he brings the same kind of toy but more modern.