Louis C.K.’s FX Series “Louie” Wins Peabody Award

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

It’s no wonder Louis C.K. was named to Time’s 100 Influentials List… He’s just added another award to his mantle.

The 45-year-old Mexican-American stand-up comedian actor, who will be starring in a new HBO comedy special soon, has been named as one of the 39 recipients of the 72nd Annual Peabody Awards.

The winners, chosen by the Peabody board as the best in electronic media for the year 2012, were named in a ceremony last month in the Peabody Gallery on the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Louis C.K.’s FX series Louie was selected for its “serrated, boundary-testing take on being a single, showbiz dad.”

But Louis C.K.’s series wasn’t the only Peabody winner with a Latin connection.

ABC Family’s drama Switched at Birth, which stars Constance Marie, was recognized for its multicultural elements, which include major characters who are deaf.

Other winners include Rapido y Furioso, Univision’s Mexican perspective on the infamous Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive gun-tracking debacle; and What Happened at Dos Erres, a This American Life spellbinder about a Guatemalan immigrant who learns that the man he believed to be his father actually led the massacre of his village.

“Our list of Peabody recipients for 2012 demonstrates the range of superb work,” said award organizers. “From local to national to international, from radio to television, broadcast to cable to web, the Peabody sets the goals for every type of media production. We’ll continue to do this, no matter how the world of electronic media develops.”

The 39 Peabodys will be formally presented at a luncheon on May 20 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York.

Lucero to Perform at the Billboard Latin Music Awards

Posted on March 23, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Lucero is preparing to make sweet music for Billboard…

The 43-year-old Mexican singer/actress has been added to the list of performers at next month’s 2013 Billboard Latin Music Awards.

Lucero, the star of Univision’s recent hit telenovela Por ella soy Eva, is known as “Mexico’s Sweetheart.” She’s been in the entertainment business for more than three decades and has sold more than 27 million albums worldwide.

But Lucero isn’t the only night’s big performer…

Don Omar, Gerardo Ortiz, Michel Telo and Carlos Vives have also been named as performers at the awards show, which will telecast live from Miami’s BankUnited Center on April 25 on Telemundo at 7:00 pm ET.

Don Omar, the “king of reggaeton,” leads the pack of nominees with 18 nods, including Artist of the Year.

Ortiz, who was discovered on YouTube just a few years ago, has created a musical revolution with his innovative compositions. The host of mun2’s DUB Latino is up for six awards.

Telo, who hails from Brazil, became a global musical sensation last year with his hit “Ai Se Eu Te Pego.” Up for seven awards, Telo made his U.S. debut last year’s Billboard Latin Music Awards.

Click here for the full list of nominees.

Rivera to Star in Univision’s Upcoming “Cosita linda” Telenovela

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Zuleyka Rivera has landed her next telenovela role…

The 25-year-old Puerto Rican actress and former beauty queen, who was Miss Universe 2006, has signed on to star in the Cosita linda, a new telenovela for Univision and Venevision.

“I’m very happy to have signed the contract. My participation will be an antagonistic role,” Rivera told reporters after being presented as the new spokesperson for Le’dermis beauty products.

Rivera, who made her acting debut in the Telemundo telenovela Dame Chocolate in 2007, currently portrays Sandra Diaz on the soap opera Rosario.

She resumed her career as an actress after giving birth to her first child, Sebastián José Barea Rivera, with Minnesota Timberwolves point guard José Juan Barea. The baby was born Feb. 17, 2012.

While filming Rosario, Rivera participated as an extra in her first Hollywood film Runner, Runner, which stars Justin Timberlake and Ben Affleck.

Cosita linda will begin filming in May in Miami.

Lopez Among the Actresses in the Running to Portray Jenni Rivera

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

It looks like it’s a three-way race to find the actress to portray the late Jenni Rivera in a film about her life, with Jennifer Lopez in the hunt.

The 43-year-old Puerto Rican actress is reportedly being considered to play la Diva de la Banda, as well as Angélica Vale and Alicia Machado.

Rosie Rivera, sister of the banda/ranchera singer who died in an plane crash in Mexico last December, told Univision that plans to shoot the film about the I Love Jenni star are going forward as part of the family’s wish to make all her dreams come true.

Even though Rivera’s family hasn’t confirmed who’ll play her on screen, the press these days has tossed around a number of names, including Vale. The 37-year-old Mexican actress is best known for her starring role in the telenovela La Fea Mas Bella.

Also mentioned repeatedly is Machado, the singer and actress who was the fourth Venezuelan woman in history to win Miss Universe.

Both she and Vale have publicly expressed their admiration for Rivera, but have also said that neither has been formally offered a role in the film.

It’s also been speculated that Lopez’s company, Nuyorican Productions, could produce the film, although no news has been forthcoming about whether J.Lo intends to portray Rivera.

Lopez previously starred in the 1997 biopic about another Latina legend, the late Selena Quintanilla, who was murdered by the former president of her fan club.

For his part, film director Francisco Joel Mendoza also told Univision that he already has the permits to begin production on the film, saying shooting could begin in April.

Rivera Funeral Arrangements Revealed as Her Music Rocks the Charts…

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

It’s been a little over a week sinceJenni Rivera’s tragic death in a plane crash… And la Diva de la Banda’s family, friends and fans will get the chance to say their último adios this week.

The 43-year-old Mexican American singer died in a small plane crash, along with six others passengers, in Mexico last Sunday.

“Jenni had very specific plans for how she wanted her funeral to go down. She wanted Vendela roses at the service, Bella Rosa roses to be buried with her, and she requested butterflies to be released at the end of the service. A public memorial will take place on Tuesday [Dec. 18] in Long Beach and a more private one on Wednesday [Dec. 19],” Rivera’s team told TMZ.

Rivera’s invitation-only service on Wednesday will reportedly be attended by Gloria Estefan, Edward James Olmos and Snoop Dogg, who was reportedly in the process of working on a duet with the singer.

Rivera, 43, She is expected to be buried in an invitation-only service Wednesday.

Rivera’s brothers landed at Long Beach Municipal Airport last Thursday night with their sister’s remains after Mexican authorities confirmed she’d been on the plane. The remains were later taken to All Souls Cemetery and Mortuary in Long Beach, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Her brother Lupillo Rivera on tweeted on Friday, “Jenni mission accomplished, you’re home.”

Rivera’s funeral arrangements could reportedly include a memorial tribute concert for her fans, as well as public memorials in Los Angeles and Mexico.

Meantime, sales of Rivera’s music have increased substantially as her fans mourn her passing.

Even though news of her death broke on December 9, the last day of the SoundScan tracking week, her passing still managed to rock the charts.

In the single day, even before Rivera was officially declared dead, her album sales rose 334% to 6,000 copies. Among those, sales of Joyas Prestadas: Pop, almost quadrupled, going 28-2 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart while sales of Joyas Prestadas: Banda went 39-4 on the chart. Each album sold around 2,000 copies.

The singer’s downloads also increased 1,096% to 12,000, with 11 debuts or re-entries on the Regional Mexican Digital Songs chart.

The big sales impact of Rivera’s death, however, is expected next week, compounded with the release of her new album, La Misma Gran Señora, which coincidentally had been slated for December 11 and for which re-orders have been coming in, as well as wall-to-wall coverage of Rivera in all major Latin media, including Univision and Telemundo.

Prince Royce Ties Romeo Santos for Most Premio Lo Nuestro Nods

Posted on December 5, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

Call it a “battle of the bachateros”

Romeo Santos and Prince Royce will battle it out for top honors at Univision’s Premio Lo Nuestro during the show’s 25th anniversary on February 21, 2013.

The 31-year-old Dominican/Puerto Rican singer, the former front man for Aventura, and the 23-year-old Dominican singer tied for most nods, at seven each. Santos and Prince Royce will battle it ou for Tropical Album of the Year, Tropical Male Artist of the Year, and Tropical Song of the Year.

Reggaeton superstar Don Omar, meantime, received six nods, including Artist of the Year, Collaboration of the Year for his mega duet with Natti Natasha, “Dutty Love,” and Album of the Year for his Don Omar Presents Meet The Orphans 2: New Generation.

Barcelona-raised urban artist Juan Magan is up for Best New Artist, along with four other awards. He faces stiff competition from 3Ball MTY, who cleaned up at this year’s Billboard’s Mexican Music Awards.

Mexican rock group Maná earned six nominations, and will compete against with Don Omar, Jenni Rivera, La Arrolladora Banda el Limon de Rene Camacho and Santos in the Artist of the Year category.

Sibling duo Jesse & Joy, the big winners at the Latin Grammys, are up for five awards, including Song of the Year and Video of the Year for “¡Corre!” as well as Album of the Year for ¿Con Quién Se Queda el Perro?.

Juanes was recognized for his critically acclaimed MTV Unplugged album with four nods, tied with Beto Cuevas and Victor Manuelle.

Daddy Yankee, Alejandro Sanz, Paulina Rubio, Ricardo Arjona, Chino y Nacho, Gerardo Ortiz, La Original Banda El Limón, La Banda El Recodo and Wisin y Yandel each earned three nods.

View the full list of 130 nominations in 33 different categories here and cast your vote until December 23, then tune into Univision on February 21 for the awards show.

“Hecho En México” Documentary Opens in Los Angeles

Posted on December 2, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

It could be called “From México with Love”…

Duncan Bridgeman’s latest film, Hecho En México, opened this weekend in Los Angeles, the U.S. market with the largest Mexican-American population.

The documentary, composed of original songs and insights from the most iconic artists and performers of contemporary Mexico, captures the rich diversity of Mexican geography, art, music and culture.

Hecho En México features appearances by noted Mexican artists and musicians like Diego Luna, Alejandro Fernandez, Carla Morrison, Chavela Vargas, Lila Downs, Natalia Lafourcade, Julieta Venegas and Gloria Trevi.

It’s described as a rare look at the country’s real identity, and an unparalleled celebration of what it truly means to be “Hecho en Mexico.”

The documentary “spans across genres of Mexican music and it’s something that has been well-received outside Mexican culture itself,” says Pantelion Films’ Edward Allen.

The film has already performed strongly in Mexico, where it was released two months ago.

“To reach the Latino audience [in the United States], we’ve been going through Univision and the Latin Grammys, which is one of [the network’s] biggest shows,” said Allen. “Artist Lila Downs performed at the show that’s also in the documentary and re-created the piece visually. That was our kickoff in the U.S. and we’ve been supporting the release via Univision both locally and nationally.”

Following this weekend’s opening in Los Angeles, Hecho En México will head to 15-20 additional cities in the coming weeks.

Televisa’s “Rubí” to Get an English-Language Adaptation on Fox

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

The telenovela-to-American-television trend continues… But this time its Fox getting in on the game.

Following Lifetime’s successful move to bring the telenovela-based Devious Maids to life and ABC Family’s attempt at recreating the magic of Televisa’s Terminales, it looks like Televisa’s Rubí may be getting an English-language adaptation via Fox.

The network has put in development an hour-long series based on the popular 2004 telenovela. Starring Bárbara Mori as a dual protagonist/antagonist, Rubí centered on a beautiful but poor woman who’d do anything to make her dream a reality and become rich – even giving up the greatest love of her life.

20th Century Fox Television and Televisa are producing the English adaptation, which is being executive produced by Michael Garcia.

The original telenovela earned monster ratings when it aired in the United States on Univision from September 2004 to March 2005, with its two-hour finale being watched by nearly 8 million viewers. So, Fox has high hopes for the recreation.

Estrada to Host Hallmark Channel’s “Hollywood Christmas Parade”

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

Erik Estrada is ready to get you into the holiday spirit…

The 63-year-old Puerto Rican actor and Spanish telenovela star will host this year’s Hollywood Christmas Parade on the Hallmark Channel.

Estrada, who rose to acclaim on the police drama CHiPs, will co-host the show with his fellow World’s Funniest Moments host Laura McKenzie. Along with his work on the weekly series, Estrada competed on Univision’s Mira Quien Baila last season.

This year’s Grand Marshal is actor Joe Mantegna, who has starred on Criminal Minds. He’ll be joined by Lou Ferrigno, Louis Gossett Jr., as well as cast members from Glee, Criminal Minds and Days Of Our Lives, among others.

The 2012 Hollywood Christmas Parade will air on December 10 at 6:00 pm ET on the Hallmark Channel.

Levy Starring in Three Upcoming Lionsgate Projects

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

William Levy may be in desperate need of a vacation in the near future…

The 32-year-old Cuban American actor and telenovela star has signed on for three Lionsgate movie projects.

Levy, who set hearts aflutter on Dancing with the Stars during the last season, has been cast In Tyler Perry’s latest project Single Mom’s Club.

People en Español’s “El Hombre Más Sexy” will portray a character named Manny in the film, which is set to start shooting after Thanksgiving.

Levy has also been cast in Addicted, a film that will be directed by Billy Woodruff. He’ll play Quentin Matthews in the film, which is based on the novel Zane’s Addiction.

And last but not least, Levy will star in the horror-western Rio Sangre. He’ll portray Brujo in the Chris Wyatt-directed fillm.

Rio Sangre will co-star Alex Vegas in the film.

Levy most recently guest-starred on VH1′s Single Ladies and previously starred in Univision’s Sortilegio and the telenovela Triunfo del Amor.

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