The lady who is thought to have served as the model for Mamá Coco, the grandmother in the Coco Pixar musical animation, has passed away.
Mara Salud Ramrez Caballero, 109, passed away on October 16 in her Michoacán, Mexico, home. Roberto Monroy, the secretary of tourism for Michoacán, announced Ramrez Caballero’s passing on Twitter and described her as “a relentless woman and life example who inspired this adored persona that went across the world.”
Despite the obvious similarities between Ramrez Caballero and Mamá Coco, Pixar has not officially recognized that Ramrez Caballero served as Mamá Coco’s model. Many people over the years have claimed that she was the inspiration for Mamá Coco due to the resemblance, and visitors have been known to visit her home and take pictures of her next to posters of the film.
Ramrez Caballero, a potter by profession, was born and passed away in Michoacán’s Santa Fe de la Laguna, one of Mexico’s many picturesque and vibrant little towns. And like Mamá Coco in the movie, she had three children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.
The focal point of Coco, Lake Pátzcuaro, one of Mexico’s most well-known locations for the Day of the Dead, is not far from her gorgeous birthplace. On November 1—Da de los Muertos—a young child named Miguel journeys into the kingdom of the dead in order to locate his great grandfather, who was the father of Mamá Coco.
Tuesday is scheduled for Ramrez Caballero’s burial in her hometown.
The 88-year-old Mexican actress Ana Ofelia Murgua provided the voice of Mamá Coco.