Renowned actress Queta Lavat, who was a star during the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema from the 1940s and 50s, died at 94. Initial reports had marked her age of death as 95. Lavat’s death was confirmed by her family on social media and first reported by Spanish-Mexican journalist Joaquín López-Dóriga.
“I regret to report the death of the beloved and extraordinary actress, Queta Lavat at the jubilant age of 95,” López-Dóriga wrote in Spanish. “How I regret it, how I loved her. She lived as she wanted, she enjoyed life and her children.”
Born in Mexico City, Enriqueta Margarita Lavat Bayona began her life as an entertainer when she studied dance at the behest of her cousin, María Elena Marqués, who was also a star during the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema.
She got her start in cinema as an extra in the 1946 comedy-drama, Las colegialas. With experience as a narrator on radio soap operas, she landed her first credited role in the 1947 drama, Ángel o demonio.
Over the next decade, Lavat would star in several Mexican films, including Soy charro de Levita, Nuestras vidas, Acá las tortas, Chucho el remendado and Dos tipos de cuidado. She continued to work in the film industry for another 70 years.
In 2019, Lavat was seen in 25 episodes of La Usurpadora where she played the character Piedad de Bernal. Her final screen credit is listed as working on one episode of the novela, SOS Me estoy enamorando in 2021.
In recent years, Lavat has shared recipes and other content on TikTok with her more than 727,000 followers. The last video she posted was this past March when she shared a recipe for “Caldo de haba.”
Queta Lavat had six brothers, two of whom also worked as actors – Jorge Lavat and José Lavat.