Luis Sánchez Polack

Luis Sánchez Polack (Valencia, July 22, 1926-Madrid, February 8, 1999), also known as Tip, was a Spanish actor and comedian. television, radio and theater, known for the humorous duos of which he was a part. The first of them was Tip y Top, and the second, more relevant, was Tip y Coll, together with the comedian José Luis Coll.

With a portentously surreal imagination, his tall, mustachioed, quixotic and lanky silhouette was characteristic, crowned by a large top hat, next to the short and stocky one, topped by a Coll bowler hat.

He was the brother of the actor Fernando Sánchez Polack and great uncle of the director and screenwriter Luis Sánchez-Polack.

Beginnings as an actor

From a middle-class family, he studied at the School of Arts and Crafts and at the School of Ceramics, until he began his theatrical career in 1944 as a member of the María Guerrero Theater in Madrid, with the work of Luca de Tena From the painted to the living. Once he became a professional, he toured all of Andalusia in the Ana María Noé Company.

A year later he joined the ranks of Radio Madrid performers —Cadena SER—, where Don Poeto Primavero de Quintillas (with Pototo and Boliche) was one of his first jobs as a comedian. On Radio Madrid he met Joaquín Portillo, 'Top', with whom he would form the comic couple Tip and Top, which lasted 14 years. Together they made radio (Cabalgata Fin de Semana), films like Days of the fair, My uncle Jacinto, Festival in Benidorm, The Taming of the Shrew, The Showgirl, The Red Cross Girls, Valentine's Day, A kiss in the port or Tarde de toros, and they appeared on television.

Tip continued alone on television with the program Las Zapatiestas, after participating in the humor space Consultorio (1961), along with Álvaro de Laiglesia, to whom would follow First Row (1964), Novel (1966-69), History of Frivolity (1968), The House of the Martínez (1968-69) and The last coffee (1970), in addition to participating in the play How is the service! (1968), by Alfonso Paso, along with Florinda Chico.

Tip and Coll

It was around these years when he met José Luis Coll, with whom he formed the duo Tip y Coll, although at first Luis wanted it to be called "TipiColl Spain". The couple of comedians debuted at the Aránzazu Hotel in Bilbao and from 1967 their performances became more famous. In 1969 they began working on television (Galas del Sábado, later 625líneas).

On January 28, 1979, the broadcast of their intervention was censored, specifically, for a sketch in which they made reference to a linguistic slip by the socialist politician Enrique Múgica Herzog and they left the program. They returned at the beginning of October to continue participating in 625 lines, but their third appearance, on the 21st, was censored and they left the program again.

Nor were the shows in nightclubs (many years in a row at Cleofás, eight at Top-Less) without problems. In January 1986 they took the show to Barcelona, but had to suspend it on February 3 following an interview on the program Fil directe, on Catalunya Ràdio, on the that Coll asked that the questions be asked in Spanish. Threats from the independence group La Crida motivated the suspension.

They wrote several works together, such as the show The Dream of Summer Loons, The Book of Tip y Coll or Tip y Coll Spain. But Luis also worked alone (as he would later do on the small screen, more specifically, in the contest El Gordo on Antena 3) and in feature films such as Urtain el rey de la selva... or like this (1969), by Manuel Summers, and Although the hormone dresses in silk (1971), by Vicente Escrivá.

On July 9, 1982, he underwent surgery for a benign tumor in his throat, which gave a characteristic tone to his voice. He also joined the program Protagonistas, by journalist Luis del Olmo, on COPE and later on Onda Cero, within the gathering The State of the Nation, where he gave good sample of his ingenuity and know-how. He also participated in a weekly space, similar to the radio one, broadcast by the private television network Tele 5, This country needs a review (1993-95), directed by José Luis Coll.

Once the annulment of his first marriage was obtained, he married Amparo Torres Bosch in Valencia in 1986. Three years earlier they had contracted a civil marriage.

He wrote Cantares del Mío Tip (1980) and Holy Men (1996). He died on February 8, 1999, after several months convalescing from a stroke.