Garcés was of
Lebanese descent and was born in the Mexican port of
Tampico,
Tamaulipas. With the support of his uncle, the producer José Yázbek, he was included in the production of
La Muerte Enamorada ("Death In Love", 1950), a comedy starring
Miroslava and
Fernando Fernández. After that film, Mauricio adopted the artistic last name "Garcés", believing the letter "G" would bring good luck and turn him into a star at the level of his idols
Clark Gable,
Gary Cooper and
Cary Grant. His famous image was elegant, worldly, and gallant. This persona aligned with the vision of the producer
Angélica Ortiz, mother of the actress
Angélica María, who cast Mauricio to star in
Don Juan 67 (1966). That marked the first of many films in which he played his alter-ego "Mauricio Galán". Some of the most popular films of the extensive filmography of the "Zorro Plateado" ("The Silver Fox") include:
El matrimonio es como el demonio ("Marriage is like the Devil", 1967),
Click, fotógrafo de modelos ("Click, photographer of models", 1968),
El criado malcriado ("The ill-bred servant", 1968),
Departamento de soltero ("Bachelor's apartment", 1969),
Fray Don Juan ("Friar Don Juan", 1969) and
Modisto de señoras ("Ladies' fashion designer", 1969). The fact that Garcés lived with his mother and never had any known sentimental relationships led some in Mexico and in greater Latin America to believe that he actually was gay. Garcés, however, always called
Silvia Pinal, a Mexican actress, the love of his life. In addition, Garcés had some gambling problems, which led him to lose almost all of his money on betting. ==Filmography==