A Laredoan who is one of Mexican entertainment’s most recognizable faces for his numerous roles as a villain recently announced he was diagnosed with two tumors in his colon.
Mexican-American actor Sebastian Ligarde, 68, was born in Laredo on Jan. 26, 1954. He played roles in major Mexican telenovelas such as “Quincenera” where he played his iconic role of “Memo.” He also was the main antagonist in “Maria La del Barrio” as well as the Mexican soap opera “Salome.”
Ligarde recently shared news about his diagnosis to the Mexican show “De Primer Mano” by Mexican entertainment broadcaster Imagen Television.
“I did a colonoscopy recently that I just did it routinely as scheduled without any symptoms or anything that made me feel ill — as I went ahead and did it because I already had 10 years without doing it — and it resulted in the exam finding that I actually have two tumors,” Ligarde said. “One of the tumors is 10 millimeters and the other is 33. When I got out of the doctor’s office, he told me that I have a ‘golf ball’ in my colon.”
Ligarde said the doctor was able to get rid of the 10-millimeter tumor but was not able to do so with the 33-millimeter tumor, as it was too interconnected to tissue. He said he is currently looking for specialists to see how it can be taken away safely, as he states that for four months they have been looking at ways to retrieve it.
Additionally, Ligarde hopes that by November he can have the medical procedure and get rid of the tumor. Although initial medical reports indicate that tumors are benign, the actor said his doctors continue to review them to see if they are not cancerous. He is just glad that he is alive and is currently appreciating more everyday things in life.
Even though Ligarde did leave the Gateway City to pursue his acting career in both Mexico and around the United States, his native Laredo has never forgotten the actor’s relationship with the city. It is due to this that in 2002 he was named “Sr. Internacional” by the local League of United Latin American Citizens organization for his contribution to the Hispanic community. That year he was also recognized as “Honorary President of the Republic of the Rio Grande” for being an outstanding Texan.
“Right after we turned over the age of 60, I believe that we all human beings must take good care of our body and make sure that we take care of it by doing routine checks,” Ligarde said.
According to the actor’s biography, he was born to a Mexican mother and Texan father in the Gateway City and began acting at a very early age. He participated as an amateur all of his early academic life until he debuted professionally in 1974 in the play “Fortune and Men’s Eyes.”
Ligarde in the 1970s went on to study acting in Texas, as he proceeded to receive a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas in film directing with a minor in acting. After having performed in a number of American film productions, he went on to become one of Mexico’s top actors having participated in over 70 motion pictures — the majority in first billing — and more than 18 TV series.
Ligarde has received both the Silver Goddess and El Heraldo Award for Best Film Actor. He was awarded several Circulo Nacional de Periodistas de Espectaculos awards including Best Lead Actor in a Telenovela in 2000 for one of the few non-villain roles in his career in “La Casa en la Playa.” He has also received four TV y Novelas awards — the equivalent of the Mexican Emmy — for his career.
Since 2003, Ligarde has lived in Peru and then in Florida, his biography states. He taped one TV series in Peru and three for Venevision in Miami. Currently, he serves as an acting instructor of the Meisner technique in Miami as the founder and master instructor of the acting school he founded known as the Taller de Actuacion Sebastian Ligarde.