Friends, community remember Johnny Canales

EDINBURG, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Friends and family are remembering television host and musician Johnny Canales. It was announced this morning he passed away at the age of 77.

The legendary entertainer made a great impact as he helped local musicians gain a footing in the entertainment world.

Canales was a trailblazer in the Hispanic music community. He helped lay the path for artists like Selena Quintanilla and Bobby Pulido to be recognized in the music world.

One of his closest friends is musician Roberto Pulido. They were friends since 1965. Pulido said he is proud of what Canales did for the music industry.

“You plant and that’s what you reap," Pulido said. "He opened up the doors for a lot of my fellow companeros de musica, and he started them off in the right path. Only the lord knows if you are going to make it or not going to make it but at least you have an opportunity and my respetos to him.”

In 2013, Canales was inducted into the Texas Conjunto Music Hall of Fame. A section of the Texas School Music Hall of Fame and Museum in San Benito is dedicated to his name.

That is where Patricia Avila, the executive director of the museum, met him. She says he was exactly like he was on TV, "very charismatic and attentive".

“We felt like we already knew him because he would come to our house every Sunday morning," Avila said. "So, I feel like we all knew him already on a personal level. His his characteristics is his personality would just show right through the television show.”

In recent years, Canales continued to stay active amid his declining health. Brownsville singer Cleiri Quezada met him a few years ago at the Brownsville Music Legacy Awards.

She says it was an honor to meet the man she spent Sundays watching with her family as they ate barbacoa.

“His legacy is to be genuine, to always be yourself, and to be proud of where you come from," Quezada said. "He's a staple of our culture as Tejanos. He's a staple of our Hispanic heritage. He is somebody who represents love and are the arts and somebody who just stood for music.”

Pulido says he will miss Canales’ trips to the Valley and his stays at his house as he did shows in the McAllen area. However, he knows one day, he will be reunited with him.

“We shall see you soon, one day johnny," Pulido said.

Funeral plans have not been released.