Joaquin Cordero was born in the city of Puebla in Mexico. Shortly after his birth his family moved to Mexico City, and in the following years he studied in a seminary and even considered becoming a priest, but eventually he decided to pursue a law career. By the mid forties, after three years of law classes, against his family's wishes he decided to become an actor. He initially appeared in bit parts, but by the early fifties he was getting larger parts. Eventually he became one of the most prolific and popular actors in Mexican cinema, he also went on to do theatre, television and throughout his career won numerous awards, and even today, into his early eighties, he is still as active as ever.