Roberto Gómez Bolaños Roberto Gómez Bolaños , `` Chespirito '' Roberto Gómez Bolaños ( born February 21 , 1929 ) , best known by his professional name of Chespirito , is a Mexican writer , actor , director , comedian , humourist , and songwriter . Gómez Bolaños was born in Mexico City . Before becoming an actor , he was an amateur boxer . He began studying Engineering at the National Autonomous University of Mexico ( UNAM ) , and , according to one of his professors , Esteban Salinas Elorriaga , now professor emeritus , excelled in math . He wrote a number of plays , and contributed dialogue for scripts of films and television shows in Mexico , as well as some character acting work before he became famous . His stage name of Chespirito was given by a producer during Gomez Bolaños ' first years as a writer and was concocted from the dimutive form the Mexican pronunciation of the name of William Shakespeare or Shakespiercito , meaning `` Little Shakepeare '' or `` Little Boy Shakespeare '' . Chespirito was discovered as an actor one day as he was making a line to apply for a job as a writer at Televisa . The network quickly signed him and soon he began writing and starring in his children comedy shows . He continuously starred in shows on Mexican television from 1970 to 1995 and became well known throughout Latin America . His best known roles were in the shows El Chavo Del Ocho and El Chapulín Colorado , as El Chavo and El Chapulín Colorado transmitted in the Mexican TV Network Televisa . Other shows produced and starred by him were the short-lived La chicharra and , during his last years on air , Chespirito featuring a bunch of new characters as Los caquitos , Los chifladitos and others . In El Chavo Del Ocho , Chespirito played a 8 year old boy who often took refuge inside a wooden rain barrel in a Mexican neighborhood , and in El Chapulín Colorado he played a good hearted superhero who always got involved in funny situations . The Simpsons creator Matt Groening has declared that he created the Bumblebee Man character after watching El Chapulín Colorado in a motel on the U.S.-Mexico border . These two shows became hits all over Latin America , the United States and Spain , and the stars of the show found international fame . He also started in such Mexican movies as El Chanfle , and El Chanfle 2 . On November 19 , 2004 , he married actress Florinda Meza , who starred as Doña Florinda in El Chavo and who frequently participated in El Chapulín Colorado . After show production was stopped both for El Chavo and El Chapulín , both started to tour Mexico and the rest of Latin America and the United States with different plays , sometimes playing the characters that made them famous . On November 26 , 2003 , Chespirito and Florinda Meza received the keys to the city of Cicero , Illinois . Roberto Gómez Bolaños and Edgar Vivar , one of the actors from his shows , once received an award from a Laurel and Hardy fan club for performing the funniest impersonation of Laurel and Hardy in Latin America.This impersonation was made during an episode of El Chapulín Colorado . During the 2000 and the 2006 Presidential electoral campaings in Mexico he openly supported the PAN ( Partido Acción Nacional , National Action Party ) in a TV commercial urging people to vote for this party just like him . External links Chespirito 's official website Chespirito 's work - Chavo del 8 Chespirito 's Blog Chespirito 's Forum Chespirito site This article about a Mexican actor or actress is a stub . You can help Wikipedia by expanding it . Categories : 1929 births | Living people | Chespirito | Chespirito actors | Mexican actors | Mexican screenwriters | Mexican songwriters | People from Mexico City | Mexican actor stubs In other languages : Español | Português 