Famous Mexicans

Test your knowledge against the following list of famous Mexicans to see how well you do. Famous Mexicans go back in history, so to keep things fresh, the following famous people will mainly be from recent history. Here is a list of famous people of Mexican decent.

1. Carlos Chavez Chavez is the founder of modern day Mexican music. Chavez began taking piano lessons at a very early age, but it was his ability to compose music from observation that made him stand out. From his first works in 1921, Chavez was considered an innovator, which made musicians of the romantic European tradition his "haters." In 1928, Chavez and the Mexico City Syndicate of Musicians founded what would eventually become The Mexican Symphony Orchestra. In 1936, Carlos was a guest conductor at the Boston Symphony Orchestra and, in 1937, the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Carlos Chavez continued to work throughout the '60s and '70s, and in 1978, he was awarded honorary memberships in both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Institute of  Arts and Letters. How ya like him now?
2. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu His 2010 film "Biutiful" was nominated for an Oscar. Gonzalez was a DJ before becoming a filmmaker. During the '90s Inarritu was a Mexican television producer. Alejandro even used his DJ'ing skills to compose soundtracks for Mexican movies. Gonzalez made his feature film debut in 1999 with "Amores Perros," which earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. Inarritu would soon get the calling to relocate to the United States to study directing. Alejandro's first English language feature, "21 Grams," was nominated for two Oscars and in 2006, he won Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival for his second movie "Babel." "Babel" also received seven Oscar nominations. Now that's talent.
3. Jorge Castaneda Gutman Gutman served as Secretary of Foreign Affairs from 2000 to 2003. Castaneda is also an academic, earning a B.A. from Princeton University and a Ph.D. from the University of Paris. Gutman has worked as a professor at National Autonomous University of Mexico, the University of California at Berkeley, Princeton University, New York University and the University of Cambridge. And if that ain't enough for you, he is also the author of over one dozen books, including the biography of Che Guevara. Jorge German Castaneda Gutman makes education look real cool. 
4. Raul Julia-Levy He is the grandson of clothing tycoon Abraham Levy and the son of actor Raul Julia (both deceased). Julia-Levy has appeared on the Mexican TV series "El Vuelo del Aguila" and "Cancion de Amor." He also appeared in the 2001 American film "Double Take." According to a 2002 CNN report, Julia-Levy was responsible for organizing the attendance of an elite group of individuals to President Vincente Fox's inauguration. The list included Cuban President Fidel Castro, Venezuelan Presidency Hugo Chavez and England's Queen Elizabeth II, so Julia-Levy is definitely famous and he has "big pull."
5. Selena By the age of ten, she was the lead singer of her family's band Selena Y Los Dinos. At the 1987 Tejano Music Awards, Selena won Best Female Vocalist and Best Performer of the Year. Selena's 1990 album "Ven Conmigo" went gold, the first Tejano album in history to do such. In 1993, she won a Grammy Award for best Mexican-American album. Selena's next album "Amor Prohibido" also went gold. Selena was working on an English album when she was shot and killed in March 1995 by the founder of Selena's fan club who turned "hater."