'The Tigress' departs: Mexican actor-politician Irma Serrano passes away at 89

Irma Serrano, the Mexican actor who became a politician - and was once the girlfriend of a Mexican president - has died at the age of 89, the Mexican performers' association said Wednesday. The association did not cite a cause of death, nor any funeral plans.

Serrano started out as a dancer and a singer of traditional Mexican "ranchera" music in the 1960s.

She had a long-running affair with then-President Gustavo Diaz Ordaz, who was married and served as president from 1964 to 1970.


Serrano was known for her extravagant makeup and clothing, and was nicknamed 'The Tigress'. She also acted in several television and low-budget movies in the 1970s, and went on to run the Teatro Fru Fru theater in Mexico City.