And...
set.
What is this? - We're just trying to get...
we're trying to get to the bottom of it.
Bottom of what? What are you, a fucking, uh, private investigator?
Give me a break. You... - It's an interview.
What? - It's an interview.
All right, then let my... I'll tell you stories about...
I have a lot of funny stories about Hector
that I could tell you. And I'll tell you about our lives.
I mean, I want everybody to know everything.
I want the public to know, but...
The public... ... don't fucking get insulting, you know?
You don't tell me how I should have lived my life.
L'll tell you what happened.
Well, it's your versión of it.
Yes, it is my versión of it.
You... if you wanted somebody else's versión of it,
you should have had somebody else come.
Puchi, they can't find Hector.
They keep calling.
Tell 'em I'm not in!
L... I told them that already.
Tell 'em I'm walking the dog.
Tell 'em... I don't give a shit.
Tell 'em the same old fucking story.
Eddie, let's go.
Tito. - What?
I don't wanna have to go out looking for you too
when we get home, okay?
Don't come over here.
Hi, babe.
Come here.
Help me, baby, please.
But he's driving so slow. What's the problem?
Who's this fucking driver, Eddie? Where did you find him?
Hey, hurry up.
Come on.
Don't...
Where are we going? - Where do you think we're going?
Where are we always going when we're doing this crazy shit to you
every single time? Can you please hurry up?
It's your birthday? - No, it's not my birthday.
Look she's...
Hey, you want your sandwich?
I love you.
You always love me when you're high.
And I'm always high.
I don't wanna look, man. L'm looking the other way.
You need to wake up a little bit. Here.
Here.
Oh! - Oh!
Mmm! - This...
Careful, what's all this down here?
Ooh hoo hoo!
I love this life.
Hector, Hector...
Let's go.
Move back, move back. - Come on, get out of the way. We're late.
Get out of the way.
Let's go, let's go. Come on, let's go.
Ralphie, relax. We're here, all right?
This is your problem. You should have gotten here on time.
Come on. Let's go, come on.
Leave him alone! What are you doing?
Today he got here early.
Ladies and gentlemen, the singer
of all singers,
Hector Lavoe!
THE SINGER
My people!
Madison Square Garden...
he filled that place up like that.
You understand?
Hector was the biggest. And not only New York...
all over the worid, people loved Hector.
1985... that was the best year.
It was the end of the good times.
After that, it just...
You want me to sit over here?
Oh yeah, but I love salsa.
I love to dance.
Should I take off my coat? - Sure. Go ahead.
It... oh my God, it brings back so many memories.
We had so many good times in here,
forget it.
Hector was such a joker. He was so funny.
That's what I want everybody to know.
I want 'em to know how funny he was,
how much we laughed, how much fun we had.
That's the thing with Hector:
He didn't know how much people loved him.
And sometimes, you know, it would seem like
he didn't want to know.
It was weird.
But he had it all. At that time, he had all...
he had everything. And he had me.
Yeah, for more than 20 years.
Ask these walls.
Yeah, we all seen better days.
Avuelda, get me a drink, please.
Hey hey hey, give me a hand with this.
Eh? - You wanna get in? Give me a hand with this.
Grab that and follow me.
I thought you were with the band.
Yeah, I thought you were with the band.
We're in, man, we're in. That's all.
What's your name? - Eddie.
Hector. - Hector.
A pleasure, man, a pleasure.
You know how some people... they struggle for years?
Not him.
It was like he was prepared for it,
you know,
like he always knew he was gonna make it.
I mean, he was musical even when he was insulting someone.
But like I say, he...
it's like he always knew it was gonna happen for him,
you know what I mean?
It all just came to him.
That was one of his problems, one of his other problems:
Everything just came to him.
Excuse me. Having a good time?
What, are you guys lost or something?
You lost?
Not at all.? Como esta? Johnny Pacheco.
Fa... Fania, man. Fania Records, guy.
L've been hearing a lot about you. We've checked you out.
You're good, man, really good. - Thanks a lot, man.
I know you too. Willie Colon, man.
A pleasure, really. Trombones, no saxophones.
I mean... you changed everything. I mean...
Hell. A pleasure, man. I mean...
Thanks. I don't speak Spanish.
I like you too, man.
Do you guys believe in destiny?
Well, I do.
I believe destiny brought us to this club tonight.
I believe that you two guys
have been destined to perform together.
I believe that together,
boys, you will take this town by storm.
You both have what each other needs.
You are Puerto Rico.
Willie's from New York.
Call this... 'salsa'...
a sauce, like gumbo...
...a mix of mambo, rumba,
plena, jazz,
merengue.
You'll cook it up.
I say...
why not, man? Damn.
Right here, right here. - Bro.
Bro, you speak English? - Of course, of course, man.
$2.50... you'll take me to the Bronx? - Yeah yeah.
Hey... - Huh?
You're...
Buddy, tell you what: You sing, I'll drive.
Sing, bro, the meter's running.
Listen, I want people to know something:
God couldn't have given me a better baby sister
and couldn't have given her...
...a better brother.
Happy birthday, my little Puchi.
Happy birthday, Puchi!
Are you in the right apartment?
I think so.
Happy birthday.
For me?
Yeah. - Who invited you?
Oh, chocolates.
How sweet.
I heard you singing.
Yeah?
Yeah. You're famous, right?
Trini Lopez... that's who you are.
Yeah, that's me. That's me.
You can call me Trini.
You're funny. - Yeah.
But your pants are even funnier.
What do you mean? These are $5 pants.
Bad.
Bad? L'm not bad. - Yeah.
L'm being me... not mean, just honest.
Hey, man. - Lil' bro.
What's up, man? - You know, Hector, I'm so glad you could make it.
Thank you. - Take it.
Little sister, I see you touching that, I'm gonna kill you.
Yeah. - Give us a minute.
Let me give you a little brotherly advice:
Don't fuck with her
unless you're gonna fuck with her.
Hey...
you wanna fuck with her, fuck with her.
Got it?
Nice one, man.
Have fun. - All right.
Look, I'll show you.
It's not like a cigarette, man.
You gotta hold it like this.
Go like this.
Hold it in? - Mm-hmm.
How's that? - For how long?
Do you feel anything?
Keep going.
No no no no! Not on the sofa. Not on the sofa.
Okay. - Okay?
Mm-hmm. Okay. - Okay.
Come on. - Okay.
Come on. Are you okay?
Ooh. Okay. - All right.
All right? - Mm-hmm.
Tell me your name, baby.
Come on.
I don't want you to die without knowing your name.
What's your name? - Uh, Hector.
Hector. Hector what? - Huh?
Hector what? - Perez.
Hector Perez. Okay.
Well, don't die on my birthday, Hector Perez, okay?
Oh, man, I woke up in her arms, man.
It was beautiful.
It was beautiful, man. It was like...
I don't know, you know. I just took care of business.
Yeah? What kind of business?
Oh, man, just... just... she gave me life back.
That good, huh? - Damn, no.
Actually, it was that bad.
We drank, we smoked, we danced,
and then I threw up all over the poor girl.
I was so high and so dizzy, man.
I never wanna do that shit again.
I didn't know where I was.
I didn't know who I was.
Oh, man, that's the best impressión you can make
with Puerto Rican giris... is being sick.
Marriage, brother, marriage.
You vomit, you marry.
They're natural-born nurses, man.
I think she liked me, man.
Jerry used to be a cop, became a lawyer.
Now he's a... now he's a thief,
robbing every Latin musician blind,
but he's all we got, man. That's all I gotta say.
Hold on, let me look at you for a second, man.
Let me see. No boogers...
you look good, man, decent, you know? - No way.
Now, hey, we gotta be careful in there, though.
You know, we just... we'll just play it off
and, you know, see where it takes us.
It's a big day. - It's a big day for you.
Oh yeah, oh yeah. - Big day for us.
First we cut a record and then we do a tour.
It'll be a'60s approach...
...you know, but Spanish.
Now we are a young company, but, you know,
we're looking to do bigger and better things, you know,
more mainstream things, you know.
The black musicians have, uh, Motown,
Stax Records.
Now the Latin musicians are gonna have their own label...
Fania Records. - Fania Records, yeah.
I know. L-I-I... I buy... I buy your records, man.
Then you know what you're getting into.
Now, Hector, do you have a lawyer? - Yeah, we have a...
We have a good lawyer. - Yeah.
Oh, okay, good good. - Very... he's... he's...
he's very good. Yeah. He's very good.
He's... he's... but you're an honest guy,
so I didn't bring him, you know?
L'm the only guy.
Mmm. - There's one more thing...
and we all gave this a lot of thought...
It wasn't me.
Me neither.
No no no, it's something someone suggested
and I agree.
That name's gotta go, man.
Who gotta go? - Your name.
Uh, it really doesn't mean anything. Uh, it's, uh... it's too common,
like Smith.
Perez is like Smith?
Uh, yes. Yes.
Um, it's, uh...
it's... it's like an unemployment-line name, you know?
Oh, yeah. - Uh, no offense.
And you want a name that the unemployment line is gonna look up to.
Ah, like Smith. L... I understand.
No no no. Like Lavoe.
Like La what?
'La voe'... 'the voice' in French.
Yeah. Sounds fancy.
But won't they think I'm French or something,
singing in Spanish? - No no no.
Hector, see, look, you're clearly Puerto Rican. I mean,
you're gonna be... - I'm just playing with you, man.
Come on, man.
He was corny.
He was funny. He was corny.
I remember the first time that we were together.
It was very impressive.
Nothing but the best for me.
Oh, Hector.
Oh, it hurts. Oh, it hurts.
Yeah? What, me?
No, the back seat.
Okay...
Oh, come on, baby.
You okay?
Yeah.
What's the first thing you're gonna do?
When?
When you're famous, silly.
Come here.
Why are you so sure that I'm gonna be famous?
Because I know these things, that's why.
I want a family. And a brand-new Cadillac.
This way we don't have to make love in this shit.
My brother liked Cadillacs.
Whatever happened to your brother?
He died when he got here.
He was gonna take care of me.
Well, we'll take care of each other, okay?
Okay, let's eat, eh? - Okay.
Babe, these are the best beans in life.
The best beans.
Why do you think I still live here?
L'm not going anywhere.
Where were you raised on the island?
Oh, um, no, on this island.
Here? - Right here.
I don't even remember what a palm tree looks like.
It doesn't matter where she was raised, 'cause she got me now...
palm trees, beaches, pork hash... in person.
It's like Berlitz dining.
Maybe, uh,
one day I'll get back to Puerto Rico. L'll get there.
What did I say? You're there.
Next you'll meet my father.
He thinks he owns the island.
Doesn't he?
We're from Ponce.
All of our family still lives there.
Hector and I are the only ones here. - Mmm.
The only ones left. - So...
how long have you guys known each other?
Oh, days.
But it's destiny.
Mmm.
And your family? They live here?
Mm-hmm.
Oh, I forgot.
You don't speak Spanish.
I do. I do speak...
Well, what does your family do?
Sell dope.
Yeah. Why, are you with the FBI or something?
Because we should get that out of the way right now. What are you...?
You know what, Hector? I came here to eat, not to be grilled.
Ay, no. Ay no. No, hold on.
Priscilla's with the Ponce police.
Babe, this has been my life, okay? Lt's okay.
What do you mean, it's okay? Lt's not okay.
Priscilla, what's with you?
L'm sorry.
I didn't mean to come on that way.
L'm just trying to do what a mother, a sister, a father has to do.
Don't take it like that. L...
Okay? We happy again?
We're home now.
We're gonna be living here, all of us.
Let's not fight.
Let's be happy.
Musical conductor... the great Johnny Pacheco!
One of the great singers of Fania,
Hector Lavoe!
Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen,
Willie Colon!
Willie!
Yeah, oh yeah. Hey hey, Willie.
It's cool, I'll get you later, faggot.
Come on.
Eddie? Hey...
It's happy hour, bro.
You in or out, man?
Yeah, the wonder of life, brother.
You like?
Babe, can you move your ass
so that I can see her ass, please?
You can't even handle ass like that.
You wanna make a bet? - This one you can touch.
This one you can have. This one is yours.
That one... forget it.
Ay ay ay.
You don't wanna change the channel?
Huh? You wanna watch TV?
Is that what you want?
You wanna watch Iris Chacon, baby?
Iris Chacon?
You don't wanna watch 'The Puchi Show'?
Do you think this will end?
What?
This.
It just started, didn't it?
I always wanted somebody like you, Puchi.
Always.
Mm-hmm.
I have a surprise. Hold on.
Oh, yeah? 'The Puchi Show. '
'The Puchi Show. '
No no no no. What are you, nuts?
Come on, you know I don't like that stuff.
Put it away.
But you like me, right?
You don't wanna make it too hot, though.
Oh, that... that's good, that's good. - No no no no, that's good.
That's good. - Yeah yeah.
Good, that's good. You like it?
Right there it was... it... it's good,
but trust me on this, it's...
It feels good to be a Nuyorican holding up a trombone
instead of a tray or a hotel elevator. - Yeah.
Mmm. - That's some good shit, right?
Crime pays, Hector. - Yeah.
You there? - Stand by, guys. We're gonna listen.
Get her out of here. I believe that I was... - The police is here?
The one who was invited to be here at 6:00. - What's she doing?
Get her out of here. Because I do own the place.
Her and Carmen are getting into a little altercation. - Get out of here.
Hector. - Who do you think you are?
Get her the fuck out of here, Eddie.
I think you might need some of this.
Did she recognize Carmen? - Carmen's gone.
Eddie's taking her away. - Get her out.
What is she doing now?
She's staring at us right now. - Oh, shit. Okay.
Where are you going, bro?
I gotta go to the bathroom. - Oh, shit, man.
Hi, Willie. - Hello.
Hey. - Hey, everybody.
Hey, Puchi, Puchi.
Hey, babe. - Hey, baby.
How are you doing? - L'm okay.
I was just talking about you. - Oh, really?
Yeah, I was looking out the window
and I was looking at the stars.
I don't see no windows here.
No? - No.
Well, you know what the stars were saying?
What? - The stars were saying,
'Puchi, I love you, I love you, I love you. '
I heard that in a soap opera once.
Oh, you haven't heard nothing yet, baby.
Hector, stop it. - Wha...
I'm late.
I was just talking to Willie about that, babe.
Two hours you keep me waiting like that.
Weeks late.
You gotta stop playing around with silly little bitches, okay?
Let go. Thank you.
L'll wait for you outside.
He looked like an innocent Jibaro choirboy,
but he wasn't, let me tell you.
And we were both pregnant for him at the same time.
The other woman in question... at this point
it doesn't really matter 'cause that wasn't meant to be.
Right?
I mean, I am the only woman.
I don't know who else was with him for 20 years, do you?
You know something I don't know?
If you put it that way,
will you marry me, Puchi?
L'm gonna marry this woman because I love her.
Baby, yes, no?
Yes, you'd better marry me.
The burundanga.
Wait. - Here!
He'll be here.
Zaida, give me a cigarette, please.
Here?
Okay okay okay. Wait here.
Here.
It's okay, Tito, baby.
Where is he? You're the manager, right?
Baby, you look beautiful, Puchi. Baby, beautiful.
Hector ain't here yet, okay?
It took two years and a baby to get here. Where the hell is he?
He's coming, baby. Just calm down.
Were you at the bachelor party?
Of course I was in the bachelor party. Baby, calm down.
You're in a church. - You're telling me to calm down?
L'm getting married here. You see there's a wedding going on here
and he's not here yet? What kind of managing is that?
Hey, Puchi. - Oh shit.
Hey hey, Puchi.
Puchi... - Shut up, Eddie.
I called you. Y-you didn't call me back. - Shut up.
What? - Willie, where's the ring?
Where's that... where... where's the ring?
Get the ring. - Oh, man. Fuck.
Hector. Hector!
Stand up, honey. We're getting married.
Come on, get up. - Aren't we married already?
Uh, do you, Hector...
He does. Hector, say 'I do. '
I do.
Do you, Puchi... - I do.
Anybody object?
Sorry, Father,
there's no more beer left? Are you sure?
There. - I think it's best
if I now pronounce you...
...man and wife.
This one? - That one.
Thank you very much.
Where is she?
Ah, God, look.
But people loved him.
It was like, with all his faults
and all his fuck-ups,
it just made him more like one of them.
And it was funny, you know.
It was like the bigger Hector got,
the more he grew as an artist,
it was like the deeper he sank as a person,
as a human being, you know what I mean?
He was like,
I don't know.
Why aren't there lights over here? - I can reach it. I can reach it.
Okay, perfect. - There we go.
Oh, look, it's almost like sitting on it. Right, boy?
Yeah. - It's cute.
Santa, remember Tito's train, please!
The boy forgot.
And he really wants one.
He forgot to put it in his letter.
He only told me this morning. Please.
He's been such a good boy.
What do you think? Is that gonna work?
I got connections, son.
Santa... we... we go way back.
Who's there?
Tito, look!
This is all for you, little boy...
a present from Santa Claus.
Tell his father he's a good boy. - Okay.
Oh ho ho ho ho ho ho ho!
Agh!
L'm okay.
Number one, baby.
To life!
That finger, man.
Hey, don't dance for her.
No, it was the '70s. We all did it.
When I first met Hector, I didn't do anything, though.
I didn't... I did nothing.
I didn't drink. I didn't smoke. I didn't do nothing.
But then, you know...
Whoo!
We had a good time.
Yeah. Ah!
She has pretty hair. - She does, right?
Yeah. - Right.
You always wanted to be with a woman, right?
Why, you like that?
L'd like that. Come on.
Okay, but you go first, okay?
With him.
Are you fucking retarded or something?
Come on, babe, it will turn me on. - What the fuck?
What's wrong with that? - That's Willie. That's a fucking man.
It'll turn me on. You do him...
Yeah yeah. ... and then I'll do her.
I don't wanna make you jealous. - Okay?
I don't know what's, uh, normal for other people,
but it was normal for us.
Great. Great. Just great.
L'm not his babysitter, Ralphie.
L'm his wife, in case you forgot.
How could I forget? You remind me every day.
Then go get him. - Ralphie...
Get in your car, Ralphie, and go get him if you know where he is.
Ralphie, give her a break, man. - Tonight's not another night.
I don't care if he makes you wait. He's not gonna make me wait.
Oh, fuck you very much, Willie. - I worked too hard
to get to stand on that fucking stage. - Oh, did you really, Willie?
Why is she here? - Hello, you know, Willie's right.
You know, he's fucking up again, as usual.
Did... did anybody ask for their money back?
I don't know, Eddie. Were they upstairs at the ticket office
asking for their money back? Did they?
No, Puchi. No, but one day they will.
Fuck, man. The dog ate the car keys, man.
I had to borrow the neighbor's car to get here, man. - That's a good one.
Hi, babe. - You don't have a dog.
Everybody, just give us a fucking second!
Oh, fuck you. - Are you fucking happy with yourself?
I don't know. What did I do, man? Lt's a true story.
Don't fucking listen to them. - It's me, Hector, not the others.
I like to fuck around too, but I take this seriously.
Oh, so do I, man.
Willie, you're gonna have a heart attack, man.
Relax. - Hector, I wanted you in my band
because I saw you had a one-in-a-million voice.
And you're a good man. You're my best friend, my family.
And we've gotten far.
Listen, you wanna fuck yourself up, you do it on your own time,
not on mine, you understand? You need help... I'll help,
but you gotta help me too.
You know, Willie,
I think you're talking to the wrong guy.
It's me. Yeah. - Yeah? Lt's you?
Fuck you, 'it's you. ' I know it's you.
L'm not Puchi. L'm not Jerry.
L'm not Ralph. It's me.
I love you, man.
If this is about love, you try loving yourself.
I get plenty of love and I still get here on time.
All right. - All right? L'm your brother.
Yeah. - Come on, let's kill'em.
Did you wash your fucking hands? - Yeah, they're clean.
Let's go. We're ready.
Are you ready, New York?
The Fania All-Stars!
Um, I'm really lucky I have you.
I know.
Oh, well maybe... maybe I don't.
I was driving here tonight...
and I almost hit a fucking cow.
Shut the fuck up.
Eh, what?
You got a question or something?
Wow, relax. The president curses. He lies.
Where were you?
Uh-huh.
Check it out.
I want my money.
After the show... my money.
Get 'em, Willie Colon.
Let the music play on!
Let music roll. Yeah!
Ah, Puerto Rico, man.
Is Puerto Rico your home?
You can call this Nuyorico.
Oh, you like to be here!
Babe, you believe this?
Lt's crazy.
I always did, remember?
Oh, yeah. I love you, babe.
And you're here with me.
I love you too.
Even when it looks like I don't...
I do.
I know.
That for Christmas?
For later.
Yeah? - Or for now.
Ahoooo!
Hey, fuck you.
Fuck you.
Hello?
L'm back.
Hector.
Tito?
Hey, Mom. - Where's your father?
I don't know. He was here somewhere.
Puchi, enough, bitch. Leave me alone.
Your son could have started a fire! - Leave me the fuck alone, man.
You could have started a fire too! - Puchi, enough.
At 10:00 at night, he's over there eating alone! - The baby was fine.
The gas is on... - He was fine before you got here, huh?
...while you're doing Lord knows what.
This is our home. - The baby...
What about this? - Enough.
You leave this around? What, you're starting to believe that shit?
What's wrong with you? - Ah, please, Puchi. Papi...
What, are you that big fucking guy on the album cover now,
you can't even put it away? - Papo gave me that fucking gun, okay?
Who fucking cares who gave it to you? - Oh, fuck you, man.
This is bullshit. Fuck it. - Oh, that's right. Go ahead, leave.
Yeah, okay. - Walk away just like you always do.
Nothing happened. - Don't fucking say...
Your father doesn't fucking hate you, your mother's not dead and...
and your brother's in Harlem scoring dope somewhere. - Yeah? Enough!
Who the fuck do you think you are, huh?
You wanna be a man? You wanna be a fucking man, huh?
Be a man. Huh?
Shut up. Get out.
Ah, yes. - Get out. Get out.
Why don't you get out? Get out. Get out!
Now! I said... - Listen to me. Shut the fuck up.
Listen to me. - Get out!
Oh, yeah. Huh? - Let go of me. Let go of me, Hector.
Huh, Puchi? Huh?
L'm gonna tell you something.
You're finally going to listen to me, okay?
Fuck you!
How's that?
Whore, fuck it.
Doorman? Yes, is this the doorman?
Don't give him his keys.
No, he's drunk. Okay?
Yeah, no. Thank you.
I know it's tough, bro,
but you have two problems.
And I don't know which one's harder to quit.
You? Me neither, man.
But one'll kill you.
And I love her.
I can't help it, you know?
I think she loves you too, man.
We had a great show last night,
gonna have another one tonight.
It's all gonna be good.
We got so much more to do, bro,
and you're right there, front and center, bro.
And I'm right behind you, you know?
I got your back, bro.
Hector, I just...
I just want you to say that you're gonna try to make it work.
I want you to say that you're gonna spend more time with Tito.
I want you to say that you're gonna stop with all the drugs.
And I want you to say that you love me,
because I love you, baby,
and I want us to be together.
Is that too much?
Isn't that what you want? - You know what's funny is that...
I'm not the only one fucking up here, Puchi.
You know that.
Puchi, you want it all,
but I can't promise you all that...
all that in one night. I can't.
L'd be lying to you, baby.
And you can't either. You can't sit there with a straight face
and tell me that you're ready to promise all that either.
There's no way.
I don't like talking about what hurts me.
That's just the way I am,
and you know that. And you don't like it either.
That's us.
Look...
Look at me.
What we had was like an old-fashioned type of love, you know?
Not like this new... this new-wave
soulmate type of shit, you know?
It was good. It was bad.
It was beautiful.
And for the first time in our lives
we had everything that we'd never had.
Yeah, I know what you're thinking,
but love is never perfect when it's real love, all right?
Lt's not his problem.
It's not his problem. It's your problem.
Jerry, please. - And you're my problem.
Please, bro. - This is the last time he does this.
Let's go, let's go!
Hey, what's going on?
Willie.
Fuck, man, you're not gonna believe this shit.
You're not gonna believe this shit, man.
You're right, I won't.
Hey, what's with you, man?
Huh? No no no. Listen, let me explain it...
Brother, let me explain to you. - Hec...
This is not another story, man, really.
Hector, bro, this is the third time this month.
I can't deal with your crazy shit anymore, man.
I quit. The band is yours.
It's that simple. You can be late all you want to.
Wait a minute, look, let's go someplace. Let's go someplace, man.
Let's smoke a joint. Let's talk, just me and you, plea...
Brother, I-I was stuck in traffic, man. - Yeah?
Please believe me. - I told Ralphie to cancel all our gigs.
L'm moving on. You do the same.
L'll work with you, but not on the same stage.
Go home, Hector. - You're making a mistake, man.
Eh, you know what? Fuck you.
Just get some rest, man.
This is the best thing that could have happened, okay?
Now is your time, okay?
He is nothing without you. Fuck him, all right?
Lt's not that... it's not that you were always late.
It's that he was always too early.
It's a lot more than that, Puchi.
It's a lot more than that.
I mean, Will... W- Willie was like my brother.
I know he was like your brother
and he'll always be like your brother, okay?
You are the show. Everybody knows that, Hector.
Let him go out there and try and sing with that
squeaky little voice of his and see how far he gets.
Forget it. It's his loss.
All right?
This had to happen.
This is the way it's supposed to be, okay?
Lt's gonna be all right, baby.
Now 'the man who opens his mouth' is going to sing,
Hector Lavoe, come on!
By 1975, Hector had recorded 12 albums;
he had seven number-one hits;
he had drugs; he had a wife; he had a kid;
he had a family; he had other women...
everything you need for a good guy to break down.
Go away,
take a vacation.
Hector?
Baby, are you okay?
Lt's okay.
Imagine you wake up in the middle of the night
and you see your husband
just sitting there like he's a character from a horror movie.
And all you can think is,
'Shit, it's my fault. '
He was hurting inside. He couldn't... he couldn't hold it in anymore,
you know? So his body...
his body just shut down.
Men like Hector, they don't... they don't get therapy.
They don't go to AA or anything like that, you know?
But we... we... nobody ever knew about that stuff
because we kept our private lives very private.
Mom, are we going to the hospital today?
Uh, no, sweetie, not today.
Next week. Next week. - You always say that.
I know, but...
but I promise.
Come on, honey, be good. Just get dressed.
L'll be there in two minutes.
I love you.
Going to a dance?
You know, he's your brother,
but he's my husband too.
So give me a break, okay?
I wish I could,
but you know, from the first day you met him,
and from the first day I met you,
I had a bad feeling.
His father never wanted him to come here
so he'd never have to meet people like you.
I always wanted to tell you that. - Well, you said it.
Are you happy now? You know what? Ciao, Priscilla.
Mind your business. Go get fucked and all that.
You know, you may not like my kind, but he doesn't seem to mind it much.
Yeah? Look where he is.
I hate the food in this place, man.
How's Tito?
Does he listen to you?
Yeah.
I miss you.
I do.
Do I look crazy to you?
Baby, let's go home.
Dad! - Hey, son.
Oh, Ave Maria. You look good.
I missed you, boy.
Look at you.
Look at this.
Looks like my grandfather's night table.
Well, take your medication.
I don't want you going crazy on me tonight.
No?
Okay.
Ralphie called.
What did he want?
What do you think? Had a bunch of stuff lined up...
shows in Los Ángeles, Europe, Caracas,
you know. But I spoke to him. I handled it.
They're not gonna be fucking with you like they did before.
I told him that first you had to get back
to spending time with your son...
making love to your wife.
You hear me?
What is it, baby? You nervous?
Yeah.
L'm... I'm straight.
That makes me nervous.
I know.
Hope you're listening.
Yes.
Mm-hmm.
You ever seen a coqui sing?
Seen one in the Bronx? No.
That's right. You've never seen one
because you can't see them.
They're there. You can hear them,
but you can't see them.
And they only sing one song.
And it's two notes...
Just like that, all their life, their whole life.
They're born to do that.
And they live everywhere in Puerto Rico.
And they can't survive anywhere else in the worid.
I guess you're a little bit like the coqui, huh, Hector?
Fuck, man, you can be depressing.
Yeah.
Look at me. What, am I in love with a frog?
Don't be, you know, fucking depressing.
Don't be depressing?
Instead of...
I have a dyslexic one. He goes...
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Corso.
We have a surprise guest for you tonight...
Mr. Ruben Blades.
Hello. L'm Ruben Blades
and tonight I'm here to give someone a present.
I wrote this song for Hector Lavoe,
someone I really admired since I was a kid
who wanted to be a singer.
I remember when I went over there to Panama with Willie Colon.
Damn. - After I sing it for you, it's his.
It's called 'El Cantante. '
It goes like this.
Hey, look, I'm buying...
What the fuck...?!
Pay him off.
Hector, baby, you here?
Hector.
Hi, honey.
Ah, look who's here.
My favorite little whore, just like I like it.
What's gotten into you? You crazy?
Nah, where were you, babe? - In a sexy mood?
Where were you, baby? - I was... what?
And you're st... - I was at my sister's house.
And you're stoned too, yeah? - No.
Oh. - I left Tito over there.
And you're stoned. You got stoned at your sis...
No. - How is she?
No, I got chicken. She's good. - Yeah? She's...
Zaida's good. - She's good?
Yeah. - Oh, yeah. And...
You look nice. - Thank you.
Yeah, I b... I bought you chicken.
You hungry? - Dressed like that?
What? - Looking like that,
you were at your sister's house?
Yeah. - Oh, yeah?
Yes. - You look like a whore.
Like a whore?
And since when don't you like it?
You wanna... you wanna eat here or you wanna eat in the kitchen?
I got you wings and thighs
and everything. What do you want? I got potatoes.
L'm good.
Come on. You know, I was gonna surprise you at the club,
but then I went by there and you weren't there.
Where the fuck were you, huh?!
Smile, smile.
Okay, you got it, you got it.
Give me some more. Give me some more.
Oh, get out of here.
All right, look this way.
What?
No, huh-uh. - Good job, good job.
Bye.
Tell me he doesn't look crazy.
I mean, I think he looks a little crazy,
but it's gonna work. I don't know.
Baby, do the sad face.
Like this...
Hold on, hold on. Don't even take it. - Take five.
This is exactly where we wanna be.
It makes me crack up
when you do that funny face.
Who was on the phone? - Huh?
Who were you talking to on the phone?
Nobody. - Oh, nobody?
No. Nothing. - Huh? No? Fucking whore, damn it.
Who was it, the fucking piano player?
Huh? What, the bass player?
Who the fuck was on the phone, Puchi?
What are you talking about?
What am I talking about?
Don't do this here, please. - Don't do this here?
Come on. Go over there. - What are you doing?
Hold it in. Puchi, don't do that. Damn it. Walk.
What, you really wanna know who I'm fucking?
Okay. All of them.
The bass player, the drummer, the congo player... all of them.
All of them except the singer.
Yeah.
Because the singer is always too high to get it up.
That's why. You know what?
You accuse me of fucking so many men
that I'm finally gonna fuck all the men that I'm accused of fucking.
Okay?
Okay.
I just wanted you to be proud of me,
but from what I see, fuck it, eh?
Go ahead, give it to him.
Here. - What is it?
He made it for you in shop at school.
How nice. - You like it?
That's perfect, son. I wanna take it everywhere with me.
Thanks, man.
Don't worry, my feelings are not hurt or anything.
There goes... there goes mommy.
I love you too, Ma. - I love you, baby.
Show him your dance. I know you're dying to do your dance.
Go ahead. - Do I have to? No.
Just don't laugh at me. - Okay, son.
Please don't laugh at me. - No, I won't say...
Don't laugh at me.
Look, why don't you let me help you?
That's what a wife does. Just let me.
L'm gonna take you on tour with me.
I don't wanna see any more doctors, okay?
Lt's not a doctor. It's nothing like that, I promise.
Puchi, can I enjoy watching my son, please?
Lt's better than any doctor, huh?
I enjoy this. I won't break.
I know you enjoy this, but how about him?
Oh, damn. - Since you only see him once every six months,
and even when you're home... don't think I don't know you're fucking high, Hector.
Puchi, God, don't start with that shit, man.
? What's with you, man? Huh? L'm trying to fucking relax.
Or maybe I should go somewhere else to relax 'cause I can't relax
in this fucking house. I can't do a goddamn thing, man. - Yeah, that's a good idea,
maybe another rehab. Or maybe you should go
to one of those fucking whores who keep fucking calling the house.
Enough, damn it, Puchi. It's enough! Damn it!
What the fuck, man?
L'm sorry, son.
Oh, man.
Oh, this can be fixed. Look.
Oh, we can fix this, son. With a little Crazy Glue we'll fix this.
Look look look look. All the pieces are here.
It's okay.
Son, it's not okay, okay?
I mean, I was a warrior,
but that was one battle that I never won.
Your son... he can't keep seeing his mother and father like this.
Do it for him.
Don't do it for me. Don't do it for you.
Do it for him.
He loves you.
He needs a father.
But he couldn't do it.
Maybe deep down he didn't want to. I don't know.
Maybe you didn't want him to change.
Why the fuck wouldn't I want him to change?
That was... that's so stupid.
He was my husband. Of course I wanted... I wanted him to be better.
I think you owe me an apology.
God knows when you got it. It doesn't matter.
But yeah, the H.I.V. Test came back positive.
Uh...
I'm really sorry, man.
And Puchi?
Well, the doctor says that the... the disease
might not show symptoms for years
or even... maybe never.
He doesn't know how long I've had it.
He said that you should get yourself tested...
just in case.
I don't want anybody to know about this.
What's in the future for Hector Lavoe?
L'm looking forward to the best years of my life,
you know. Think about it, look around...
every year's supposed to be 'the Latin boom,' you know,
and now young musicians come and make money.
And then, you know...
I'll go back home and be myself,
just a nobody.
I was thinking, man... I was thinking of getting
an apartment in Jersey or something... a small little place, you know?
I can't stay, man. L'm more afraid to go.
There's somebody here tonight that's trying to hide from us,
but it's not working.
Hector, come on, man. Come up and sing.
You're under arrest. You can't run.
Come on, we really do need a good singer up here.
All right, ladies and gentlemen,
Hector Lavoe.
Excuse me.
Don't touch me. Get off me.
Come on, let's go. Don't make me take you out. - What are you doing?
Hey. - Let's go.
Motherfucker, get off. - Come on, calm down.
Look what they're doing to your wife, faggot.
Do something, you chunky little faggot. - Puchi, Puchi, what are you doing?
Get off! - Let's go. That's... okay, come here. Come here.
Hey, Puchi, Puchi, no. - Leave me alone, you piece of shit!
Come on. - You can't even be a husband.
You can't even be a father.
Gentlemen. - You coward.
Puchi, come on, let's go.
Huh? Hey. Fuck! - Leave me alone, please.
Puchi.
He can't even be a father. - Puchi, enough, damn it! Puchi.
You don't have a son!
You hear me?
You don't have a son.
It was an accident.
He was shot in the stomach
with the gun...
by his best friend.
Well, anyway, I don't like to talk about that too much.
You know, I'm...
I just...
I don't remember too much from that year anyway.
It was...
Don't talk to me like I'm your grandmother. L'm your mother
and if I ask you where you're going, then you tell me
where the fuck you're going. And if you don't know, then you make it up.
But please don't say that you don't know.
All right, I got... - You better give me a kiss right now.
Mmm. - I love you, Ma.
You feel like you're gonna die too,
but you live through it,
and that's worse...
you wish you'd die.
Tito?
Oh, Hector?
He died with him.
Your son is smiling at you one minute,
the next thing you know, you turn around and he's gone.
No one prepares you for that. All the death in the worid
couldn't prepare you for that,
and I've been around a lot of death.
But Hector... Hector...
I'm gonna get going here. If you need anything,
just... just call me up, okay?
Thanks for everything, bro. I appreciate it.
Puchi, I... be back in the morning just to check up on you.
Hey, uh... I I... I love you guys.
Hey, Puchi.
See you.
That's it. Everybody's gone.
You know what I've been thinking?
We don't talk anymore.
You know we haven't been straight for more than three hours a day
for, what, 20 years?
Not since we met.
And we just go on with life like this.
I love you, you know,
but...
it's impossible, Puchi.
Impossible?
Lmpossible?
Oh, I get it.
Now that our son is dead,
it all comes clear to you?
L'm this horrible bitch and you're a great guy?
And maybe the best thing to do
is just to... to make it official now?
Is that what you're saying to me, Hector?
All of a sudden a fucking light bulb went off in your head...
and now you're realizing
that you and me ain't good together?
Is that what you're fucking saying to me right now, Hector?
So we're just gonna break things up
to fix it up?
That's your fucking genius idea?
Fix what up?
Now?
You f...
fucking selfish bastard.
You can never leave me.
L've never been scared of death, man, I mean...
And Puchi?
She tested fine.
Still going out, you know?
I don't like talking about this shit, you know?
Lt's like you can hear the clock ticking in your head or something.
You know... dah dah dah. Fucking with you.
Can't sleep. Imagine,
I can't sleep.
I have all the time in the worid to think about,
'I should have quit...
I should have done this, I should have done that. '
Can't do shit now.
Yes, you can. Of course you can.
Can't smile the same.
Can't sing the same.
Nothing's the same. It's like...
the fucking woman I fell in love with, right...
I put up with it.
Now she can't put up with it, you know?
Lt's almost like... you're doing time or something.
I don't know. I don't understand it.
You know what?
L'm gonna break you out of jail.
L'm here,
and there are people still waiting for you to sing again,
to see you.
They feel for you, man, they mourn with you,
but they need you.
These people... these people love you, Hector.
They love you like, shh...
No matter what.
But they're not gonna wait forever. You know how it is.
Listen, take that gig in Puerto Rico.
It's home. Take it.
Merengue and all this other stuff that's coming out now
is gonna kill you, me, Fania and everything.
Let the people know we're still here
before they bury all of us.
How does anybody ever leave this place, man?
We're back now, man. Feels good, huh?
Yeah.
Maybe... maybe this is a new beginning, Papa.
I hope so, man.
L... I feel good, man.
I feel good.
Patience, people patience.
In a couple minutes were going to start
this great Salsa concert. But please...
Now somebody explain something to me, bro.
I just... I hear cancellation 'cause he canceled it.
No, listen, Hector... - Wait.
Somebody talk to me, tell me the fucking truth, bro.
L'm really sorry about this whole situation, bro.
I don't wanna cancel, but Ralphie...
Ralph, see? The place is empty.
You know, people didn't show up, man.
What the fuck do you want me to do?
You know, I did my part.
Whatever happened here, bro, wasn't my fault. That's all I know.
It's not your fault? - It's not my fault.
You didn't fucking advertise, okay? And don't fucking talk to my artist.
Hey, w-wait-w-w... Take it easy, okay?
Yeah, it's like you didn't know about the free concert that's going on today,
right, in San Juan? - The free concert?
You didn't know about that either? Five free bands.
You knew about that concert, so this is what you get.
This is your concert now. You take care of it now, all right?
You're not in New York now, buddy.
Bro, you're not in New York, okay? This is Puerto Rico, buddy.
Easy easy. - You gotta fix what you broke, brother, okay?
Come on, come on. Easy easy, okay?
L'm gonna fucking sing now. Take it easy, okay?
First of all, I'm fucking here, okay? L'm not a ghost.
I came to sing, I came to sing, bro.
Tell... Eddie, tell the band not to fucking leave, okay?
Hey, you guys don't go anywhere. - The band is here.
L'm here. L'm the only one here.
This one's on me. You guys fix all your fucking problems,
but I'm gonna sing, bro. L'm a professional.
Let's go, let's go. Let's go, let's go, man.
Yo!
Hey, pull the sound back up! Pull the sound back.
Pull the fucking sound back up! - Hello?
'Hector I LOVE YOU SO MUCH' Hey!
Go on, go on, go on, damn it, go on!
Hurry up!
Help him, please.
I mean, how do you live through that, right?
What did they expect from him?
What, that he was fucking Superman?
King Kong couldn't live through that.
I mean, I... sometimes I wonder what I'm doing
sitting here in one piece.
Everybody in the story is fucking dead.
He had multiple fractures and broken bones
and he hurt all his insides
which were already all fucked up from all the drugs and the alcohol,
and he survived.
You know what? The motherfucker survived the fall.
He hit an air conditioning shaft on the way down
outside Johnny Pacheco's room
and he bounced, that's all. But if he would have
hit the concrete, he would have been dead, forget it.
But he didn't.
He did... he lived.
He lived five more years.
But it wasn't real life.
And I wasn't there for him all the time, you know?
Never never leave me, baby.
It's not the same thing as being there with you.
Touching you, kissing you.
You know, well.
L'd better stop.
Just wanted to tell you over and over that I love you.
L'm right here with you.
You see me.
Happy birthday, Puchi. Happy bi...
I wanted to remember him like he was.
Like he wanted me to.
I love you.
The singer of all singers,
Hector Lavoe!
There you go!
Whoo!