José Dámaso Rodríguez

José Dámaso Rodríguez y Rodríguez (11 December 1824 – 20 April 1862), known as Pepete, was a Spanish bullfighter in the mid-19th century. He was the first notable matador known by this nickname.

Biography José Dámaso Rodríguez y Rodríguez was born in 1824 in the La Merced neighborhood of Córdoba, Spain. He joined the family business, the livestock trade, and was married very young to Rafaela Bejarano, who came from a family of bullfighters.

He began bullfighting under the nickname Pepete, starting in the cuadrillas of Antonio Luque Camará and . Two years later, on 4 July 1852, he debuted in Madrid, but it would be another year until he had his confirmación, or confirmation of his status, at the hands of on 27 June 1853. However, the bull struck Pepete in the heart. The matador calmly got up and walked toward the edge of the ring, where he fell dead.