Alan García
A charismatic and controversial populist who led Peru through economic collapse and later a period of stability, his legacy ending in personal tragedy.
1949–2019 (age 70)·President of Peru (1985–1990 and 2006–2011)·Birthday: May 23·Baby Boomers
Biography
Alan García was a political prodigy, mentored by the founder of Peru's historic APRA party and elected president at just 36, embodying a wave of hope for a generation. His first term, however, became a case study in calamity, as hyperinflation, guerrilla violence, and nationalization policies spiraled the country into crisis, forcing him to seek asylum abroad. In a stunning political resurrection, he returned, apologized for his past errors, and won the presidency again in 2006, this time steering a more orthodox economic course that brought growth and infrastructure projects. Yet his second term was shadowed by corruption allegations, and after leaving office, facing imminent arrest, he died by suicide. His life traced a dramatic arc from dazzling promise to profound failure, remarkable comeback, and final despair.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Alan was born in 1949, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Alan Was Born
The biggest hits of 1949
#1 Movie
Samson and Delilah
Best Picture
All the King's Men
#1 TV Show
Texaco Star Theatre
Alan's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1949Born
NATO founded; Mao proclaims the People's Republic of China
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Riders in the Sky" — Vaughn MonroeBest Picture: All the King's Men
1954Started school
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1962Became a teenager
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1965Could drive
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
1967Could vote
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1970Turned 21
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1979Turned 30
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1989Turned 40
Berlin Wall falls; Tiananmen Square protests
Gas: $1.00/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Look Away" — ChicagoBest Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
1999Turned 50
Columbine shooting; Y2K panic builds
Gas: $1.17/galHome: $113,900Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Believe" — CherBest Picture: American Beauty
2009Turned 60
Michael Jackson dies; Bitcoin created
Gas: $2.35/galHome: $148,500Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Boom Boom Pow" — The Black Eyed PeasBest Picture: The Hurt Locker
2019Turned 70
First image of a black hole; Hong Kong protests
Gas: $2.60/galHome: $224,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Old Town Road" — Lil Nas XBest Picture: Parasite
Key Achievements
- Became the youngest ever President of Peru upon his first election in 1985 at the age of 36.
- Presided over a period of significant economic growth and poverty reduction during his second term from 2006 to 2011.
- Oversaw the completion of the Lima Metro's first line and initiated other major public works projects.
- Served as the Secretary General of the American Popular Revolutionary Alliance (APRA), Peru's oldest political party.
Did You Know?
He sought political asylum in Colombia and later lived in France for nearly a decade following his first presidency.
García held a doctorate in sociology and political science from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid.
He was a noted orator, famous for his lengthy, impassioned speeches without notes.
His second presidential inauguration in 2006 was attended by several leftist Latin American leaders, including Hugo Chávez and Evo Morales.
“He who has no contradictions is a statue.”
