THE BEST OF THE AMERICAN LATINO & MULTICULTURAL EXPERIENCE “Every popular Latin song that permeates our culture has a story but few have the whimsical backstory and historical significance that matches "La Cucaracha," perhaps the oldest tune that Latinos — and non-Latinos — can easily sing or whistle,” reads the introduction of the documentary produced by Nuestro Stories a platform specialized in content related to the Latino community “La Cucaracha” premiered recently on the new That Latino Song show, and broadcast on most social media platforms and on the Our Stories website. reveals that the song first rose to fame during the Mexican Revolution there are two popular schools of thought about its origins Many chroniclers say that the best-known version of "La Cucaracha" began as one of the favorite songs of Francisco 'Pancho' Villa's troops who modified the lyrics and used them to make fun of dictator Victoriano Huerta and allegedly assassinating popular President Francisco I the song portrays Huerta as a cockroach because he was addicted to alcohol marijuana and was considered a conspirator in the overthrow of Madero argue that the origin of "La Cucaracha" is not related to Huerta but to the Mexican women of the Revolution The U.S.'s proximity to Mexico meant that the song soon became popular in the States as well the director and actor Lloyd Corrigan launched the production of a short musical with the same name; and in 1935 La Cucaracha earned producer Kenneth Macgowan an Oscar for Best Comedy Short Film The song has appeared in numerous Looney Tunes cartoons and has been performed by artists such as Louis Armstrong “La Cucaracha” has also entered the world of comics thanks to a comic strip by Chicano artist Lalo Alcaraz The strip was first published in LA Weekly in 1992 and the satirical themes speak to the true Latino experience in Southern California THE BEST OF THE AMERICAN MULTICULTURAL EXPERIENCE Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device Complete digital access to quality FT journalism with expert analysis from industry leaders Complete digital access to quality analysis and expert insights complemented with our award-winning Weekend Print edition Terms & Conditions apply Discover all the plans currently available in your country See why over a million readers pay to read the Financial Times nostalgic cafes and colourful neighbourhoods Buenos Aires has provided an atmospheric setting for many a movie from arthouse gems to Hollywood blockbusters Here are a few to watch ahead of your trip and the locations to look out for during your stay The atmospheric bar that Ricardo Darín’s character uses as his “office” is La Tasca de Fosforito (Hipólito Yrigoyen 1218) an old tavern famous for its generous portions Argentina’s most successful film to date internationally which won the Oscar for best foreign language film in 2010 was filmed entirely in and around Buenos Aires Locations include the grandiose Retiro train station and the Palace of Justice but the most dramatic moment of the film is a tense chase scene that takes place at Huracán football club’s Estadio Tomás Ducó This classic stadium with its distinctive Art Deco transmission tower is known as “El Palacio” because it was seen as so luxurious when it opened and makes a great visit for soccer fans Is it really possible to blend dance with a hardboiled action thriller Robert Duvall set out to do just that in Assassination Tango (2002) a project that became a personal passion for the US actor Telling the story of a hitman who starts to learn to dance tango the film was shot at locations throughout the city Some of the dance scenes were filmed at the traditional neighbourhood milonga where Duvall himself learned to dance - Sin Rumbo in Villa Urquiza It took a lot of persuasion and caused much controversy, but in 1996 the then president of Argentina finally gave in and allowed Madonna to film on the presidential balcony at the Casa Rosada for the scene where she sings “Don’t Cry for me Argentina” in Alan Parker’s film of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musical Evita You can step out onto the balcony yourself on the guided tours of the Casa Rosada offered at regular intervals on Saturdays the restaurant belonging to the Cantabrian community club in the neighbourhood of Colegiales has caught the attention of several directors most notably Juan José Campanella who used it as the restaurant run by Ricardo Darín’s character in the romantic comedy Son of the Bride (2001) The club was founded by Cantabrian immigrants in 1923 and offers sports and cultural activities as well as a restaurant famous for its Spanish cuisine The Godfather director found the perfect location for his noirish 2008 drama Tetro in the cobblestone streets of San Telmo and La Boca Locations such as Bar Británico and the traditional tenement house where Vincent Gallo’s character lives give an atmosphere of nostalgia to this tale of sibling rivalry Demonstrating that Buenos Aires is always a city of contrasts comedy crime-drama Focus (2015) starring Will Smith and Margot Robbie found another side of the same neighbourhoods - showing La Boca San Telmo as well as Barracas and Puerto Madero as modern Grab some popcorn from a street vendor and head out to enjoy Buenos Aires' cinematic locations See more about culture in Buenos Aires.  A picture shot during the Spanish Civil War A special ceremony took place recently in the Cooley mountains to commemorate seven local people who fought in the Spanish Civil War It was held at the end of last month at a memorial in the form of a carn Friends of the International Brigades Ireland Charlie Donnelly and Archibald Lester Doran fought against General Franco and facism and the dictator ruled Spain for 36 years until his death in 1975 Greenore; and on the day Brian had copies of letters which Andrew had sent home,' said Brendan McSherry Louth heritage officer who was present at the event who performed the unveiling ceremony in 2013 He was one of nine children of William and Elizabeth Delaney His father was an RIC constable originally from County Wicklow who had been stationed in Dundalk before taking up his post in Carlingford His mother was originally from County Cavan Andrew emigrated to New York in 1930 where he stayed with his brother John in Queens His occupation is listed as 'seaman' and there are records of Andrew having been engaged on two ships his father Joseph sold his farm and moved his family to Dundalk Archibald Lester Doran arrived in Spain on 1 January 1937 Alexander Madero was born in Dundalk in 1911 where he lived on Union Street and was employed as a glassworker but joined the International Brigades in London Albert W McElroy is listed as arriving in Spain on 16 May John R McAleenan (Richard McAleenan) is the only volunteer remembered at the monument who survived the war SoccerDrogheda Town Dragons on fire as they celebrate U12 title in North Dublin LeagueDROGHEDA Town U12 Dragons celebrated their league success on Sunday morning as they were crowned North Dublin Schoolboy League ‘C’ champions for the 2024/25 season