Maria Salud Ramirez Caballero, the woman believed to have inspired the character of Mama Coco in Disney Pixar’s Coco, is no more.
Caballero died in Santa Fe de la Laguna, where she was also born. Roberto Monroy, the Secretary of Tourism for the Mexican state of Michoacan announced Caballero’s death on Twitter on October 16.
Lamento profundamente el fallecimiento de Doña María Salud Ramírez Caballero, “Mamá Coco”, mujer incansable y ejemplo de vida, quien fuera inspiración para este amado personaje que dio la vuelta al mundo. Mis oraciones para su descanso y para que su familia encuentre resignación
— ROBERTO MONROY G (@robertomonroy1) October 16, 2022
“I deeply regret the death of Dona Maria Salud Ramirez Caballero, ‘Mama Coco,’ a tireless woman and example of life,” Monroy wrote, “who was the inspiration for this beloved character who went around the world.”
The 2017 animated film tells the story of 12-year-old Miguel who strums his ancestor’s guitar and ends up in the mystical and colorful Land of the Dead, where he meets his deceased great-great-grandfather. Mama Coco is Miguel’s great-grandmother, who was voiced by actress Ana Ofelia Murguia. Alongside Murguia, the film featured the voices of Gael Garcia Bernal, Benjamin Bratt, Edward James Olmos, Anthony Gonzalez and Alanna Ubach.
However, Disney has never officially revealed that Caballero was the inspiration behind the movie’s matriarch, they did explain that during the filming process they spoke with numerous families in the area including Caballero’s.
Caballero, 109, was a ceramic potter and is survived by her three children, grandkids and great grandkids.