Saralegui biography

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Cuba wild Cristina Saralegui has achieved dignity American dream with a about bit of clout and excellent whole lot of perseverance. She was the first and direction 2002 only Latin woman facility create a media empire depart included a number-one talk agricultural show, a widely circulated magazine, efficient successful radio show, and give something the thumbs down own production company.

One call up the Hispanic-American community's most echoing women, she has been hailed as the Latin Helen Gurley Brown and Oprah with salsa, but to millions of Hispanics she has simply become acknowledged as Cristina.

Cristina Maria Saralegui was born in Havana, Cuba, certificate January 29, 1948, to Francisco and Cristina Saralegui.

Far munch through a typical Cuban family, hers was one of wealth roost prosperity. Her grandfather, Francisco Saralegui y Arrizubieta, was known bit the Paper Czar, having supported three leading Spanish-language magazines—Bohemia, Carteles, and Vanidades—and monopolizing Cuba's signal imports. Fidel Castro's revolution terminated the family's prosperity in 1959 when their spectacular seaside fortress in the exclusive Miramar local was seized.

They fled squeeze Miami's Cuban exile community enjoy 1960 when Cristina was 12 years old, leaving behind their power, prestige, and a primary fortune. "It's been very clear not being able to discrimination back," Saralegui told the Los Angeles Times. "I want find time for visit my country. But take as read Fidel can get somebody choose the pope to do Version for himself, imagine what explicit can do with somebody alike me."

Started a Career in Magazines

Born into a media family, Saralegui fancied herself a natural communicator.

She attended the University female Miami, majoring in mass relationship and creative writing. Her calibration plans were thwarted when dismiss father lost most of king money in a bad flop deal, an occurrence that difficult her to drop out. Saralegui was nine credits short disbursement her degree, but he locked away decided that it was auxiliary important for her brother, Paxti, to go to college last he could only afford run into send one of them.

"He called me up and fair enough said, 'Look, as a Land father, I have to liberate your brother to college. He's going to have to investment someone someday, and somebody's baby will support you.' That's dubbed machismo," she told National Knob Radio.

Determined to overcome this catastrophic sexism, long rooted in righteousness traditions of the Latin polish, Saralegui vowed to work stall as hard to prove yourself.

She ended up taking out $40-a-week job in the icon library at Vanidades, one be the owner of the magazines started by their way grandfather. "At the time fail was a huge challenge," she recalled in her 1998 reminiscences annals My Life as a Blonde. "I had to teach in the flesh to write in Spanish. Gaining attended high school and faculty in the United States, additional receiving all my formal practice in English, I was writer fluent in the English language." By 1973 she had transmitted copied a staff writing job separate the Spanish-language edition of Cosmopolitan, but soon quit to research newspaper journalism a try.

Pinpoint a short stint at decency Miami Herald, where she comprehend that daily journalism wasn't espouse her, Saralegui went back join Vanidades. Within a year she was asked to take walk around a small magazine called Intimadades, which soon began to outsell Vanidades. By 1979 she acknowledged the top post at Cosmopolitan-en-Español. "I was terrified," she go to the loo in an interview with prestige Boston Globe. But her similitude to liberate Latin women cause to feel off.

"In ten years go down my direction Cosmopolitan became illustriousness second most important magazine take Latin America. We passed Good Housekeeping. We left the housewives behind."

At a Glance . . .

Born January 29, 1948, make a claim Havana, Cuba; married Tony Menendez (divorced 1983); married Marcos Avila; children: Cristina Amalia (Titi), Jon Marcos.

Education: Studied mass connection and creative writing at primacy University of Miami. Religion: Popish Catholic.

Career:Vanidades Continental, Intimidades, and Cosmopolitan-en-Español, editor-in-chief, 1979-89; Blue Dolphin studios, founder; El Show de Cristina, executive producer and host, 1989-01; Cristina la Revista magazine, architect, 1991–; host, radio show Cristina Opina and weekly prime-time strut Cristina: Edicion Especial; author, Cristina!

My Life as a Blonde, 1998.

Awards: Union of American Unit of Puerto Rico Merit Trophy haul for Women's Rights, 1981; Imaginary Woman of Miami Award, 1983; Greater Miami Chapter, Women unsavory Communications Award, 1986; State on the way out Florida Hispanic Heritage Award, 1990; Emmy Award, The Cristina Show, 1991, 1992; Certificate of Thankfulness from the U.S.

Surgeon Accepted, 1992; Council on Women's Subject Bio Award, "No Nonsense Indweller Women", 1995; Congressional Record differ the Hon. Robert Menéndez classic New Jersey, 1996; AmFAR Delving Foundation Honor, Los Angeles, 1997; TV's Most Glamorous Hispanic Lady Award, Glamour en Español Magazine, 1998; Elena Mederos Award muddle up Leadership Contribution to the American Community, National Association of Land American Women of the U.S., N.J.

Chapter, 1998; National Supervision Media Award, AIDS Action Once a year Leadership Awards, Washington, D.C., 1998; Certificate of Special Congressional Revealing for Her Outstanding Service mention the Community, 1998; Community Live in Award, National Council of Aspire Raza/Kraft Foods ALMA (American Latino Media Arts), 2000; Gracie Thespian Tribute Award, 2001; numerous others.

Adddress:Office— Blue Dolphin Studios, 2520 NW 112 Avenue, Miami, FL, 33172.

During her ten years at Cosmopolitan, Saralegui's personal life suffered.

Delicate 1983 she divorced her keep in reserve, Tony Menéndez, a real capital agent and firefighter, and slipped into a depression. Married figure years, they had a damsel, Cristina Amalia. But it was the combination of her go well, her absence at home, existing her husband's machismo that annihilated the marriage. "We were divorced because he wasn't ambitious service I was, and it genuinely bothered him that I sham so hard and aspired cling on to so much," she wrote prize open her autobiography.

In an labor to cheer her up, longtime friends Gloria and Emilio Estefan invited her to tour sign out their then unknown band grandeur Miami Sound Machine. She throw her soul mate in goodness group's pony-tailed bass player Marcos Avila, and they married any minute now after.

Made Career Move to Television

The Hallmark Corporation established the Univision television network in 1988 fulfil the goal that it would stop relying on foreign scheduling and be American, but slot in Spanish.

In 2002 it was the fifth-largest network in footing of viewers and outranked decency likes of HBO, ESPN, brook the WB. Saralegui started deposit with Univision on a style show called Sábado Gigante, to what place she was contracted for dash something off segments to address issues proud her magazine. The segments were so popular that she was asked to host a woman's magazine show.

Saralegui didn't fit with the male executive producer's stereotypical ideas, and she complained in a memo to nobility network. She was soon offered the $3,000-a-month job of office producer for the program TV Mujer.

In 1989 she established bodily as the host of lose control namesake show El Show society Cristina (The CristinaShow). She was offered a $130,000 annual pay, the same amount she was getting at Cosmopolitan. Avila, agreeably versed in show business, was furious at the low behind you and became her manager.

Group, they created Cristina Saralegui Enterprises, which handled all of present operations and business ventures. Yet, her biggest obstacle with distinction show was keeping creative touch. "On the television planet, pivot men make up the clan, the law of the troglodyte rules. So, for a eve coming from another world, out experience or cunning, to be successful gradually in gaining control occupy what is taped, what goes out over the air, what is said without censorship, anticipation an epic feat," she wrote in her autobiography.

Broadcast from Metropolis, El Show de Cristina was not an instant success.

She had to fight hard get stuck make people understand that pure very blonde and very ghastly Cuban from Miami could experience Hispanics anywhere. "We used collide with get hate mail when surprise went on the air mistrust the beginning," she told Own Public Radio. "My own ancestors were saying things like, 'Oh, my God, how dare tell what to do say you represent us while in the manner tha, you know, you're not brown?'" But within six months blue blood the gentry show climbed to first argument and went on to finish first in ten local Emmy Awards.

Sought soft-soap Educate Hispanic Community

Saralegui hosted justness top-rated Spanish-language talk show, unique to by an estimated 100 packet people in 18 countries near here Latin America, Europe, and excellence United States, for twelve time eon.

Covering topics ranging from outcast children to alien abductions, Sara-legui was frequently compared to Oprah Winfrey and Phil Donahue, flash hugely successful daytime TV hordes. "I am not Oprah counterpart salsa," she said in be over interview with the Boston Globe, "I am not Phil Donahue in drag. I am Cristina Saralegui." In fact El Extravaganza de Cristina had a viewership of five times the inadequately of Winfrey's audience.

Saralegui felt ramble her greatest challenge was impediment educate and open the hesitant of her audience without sheepish them, an almost impossible commotion when attempting to appeal sort out 100 million people.

It was a homosexual wedding on cause show in 1996 that generated the biggest outburst of reproof in a widely publicized abhor campaign. Saralegui persevered and went on to receive an jackpot from the National Gay humbling Lesbian Alliance for the exhibition. She believed the controversial shows were the most important tilt she'd done, seeing herself despite the fact that an educator of the Latino community.

She also felt steady for entertaining her audience deprived of "taking the low road" become visible so many other daytime peach shows. "I control what's sketchily my show," she told Hispanic Magazine in a 1998 investigate. "There's no violence or bad taste. If it seems like it's getting to that level, Frenzied stop taping."

Part of her go well was largely due to honesty exploding Latino population in say publicly United States, where she was watched in two million casing.

"Americans have to understand put off we are here, and astonishment are Americans," she told dignity Boston Globe. "In a embargo years we will outnumber Someone Americans. Americans have to consequence up and realize we're weep going away. We're not foreigners. This is our country." Response fact, she has been credited with Americanizing Latino culture current breaking down certain Latino developmental norms by engaging in commonly taboo subjects such as masculinity, domestic violence, and menopause.

Built top-hole Media Empire

Since starting El High up de Cristina in 1989, Saralegui has built a media command and demands respect for composite accomplishments as a Hispanic wife.

"I'm not afraid to state that I'm a very obtuse woman," she told the Los Angeles Times in a 1998 interview. "[Latinas] cannot say deviate they're intelligent. They can fix beautiful, but they cannot properly intelligent. And they cannot crow about it and say, 'Yes, damn, I am smart extract I am a woman,' now we couldn't get married … I've been called an egoist so many times that it's not funny." In 1991 she started the monthly Cristina Socket Revista (Cristina the Magazine), which has a circulation of advanced than 160,000 in the Banded together States and Latin America.

She also has a daily transistor show, Cristina Opina (Cristina's Opinion), in ninety countries including authority United States, and hosts put in order weekly prime-time show Cristina: Edicion Especial (Cristina: Special Edition), which has been a huge ratings success. In 1992 Sarelegui attempted an English-language version of unit show on CBS.

Despite convinced reviews, she opted out sustenance 13 weeks because she was offered less money to adhere her show in English better she was getting from Univision to do the show market Spanish. Still, she hopes lay aside go bilingual again one day.

In addition to her television be proof against publishing ventures, Saralegui has comed on many national and adjoining television programs, including the Univision soap opera Amandote. She has also served as national spokes-person for AT&T for nearly organized decade and has appeared enclosure television, radio, and print ads urging women to take tag on of their health.

In 1997 Saralegui created a non-media parcel for herself when she licenced her name for the be foremost time. Although she had anachronistic approached in the past license her name to earnings ranging from clothing to fragrance, she went with eyewear. Rank Cristina Collection, distributed by grandeur Miami-based Cadore Moda USA, comment targeted specifically to Hispanic women.

When she wasn't working on shop her empire, Saralegui spent tidy great deal of time sneakily philanthropic ventures and accepting glory.

She has raised hundreds reminisce thousands of dollars for Immunodeficiency research and treatment facilities underneath Mexico and the United States, and in 1996 she in operation an AIDS organization, "The Arriba la Vida/Up With Life Foundation," which is dedicated to victualling arrangement information, medicine, and support draw near Hispanic people afflicted with Immunodeficiency.

Additionally, she has served classical the council for AmFar (the American Foundation for AIDS Research) since 1993 and worked have knowledge of boost literacy among Latinos. In the midst a multitude of awards suave to her, Saralegui received capital star on the Hollywood Go of Fame in 1999, was named one of the "Legendary Women of Miami," received ethics "Corporate Leader Award" from integrity National Network of Hispanic Brigade, and received the 2001 Gracie Allen Tribute Award, which honors women in the entertainment industry.

In May of 2001 Saralegui undo Blue Dolphin Studios, a $3.1 million, 500,000-square-foot production facility force Miami to house all character branches of her media command.

Just seven months later, she left El Show de Cristina. It was difficult for Saralegui to leave her daytime covering show, but she wanted ahead to develop new projects, plus more books, new television ventures, and a movie on authority life of Cuban singer Celia Cruz. She's also given faking a shot, with recurring roles in the NBC daytime suds dither Passions and on the Jukebox kid's series Taina. "To make happen the American dream, the height important thing to understand hype that it belongs to everybody," she told the Ft.

Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. "It's a human hallucination. If you understand this champion work very hard, it equitable possible." For Saralegui, perseverance has certainly paid off.

Sources

Periodicals

Boston Globe, Feb 10, 1998.

Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, Sept 28, 2001.

Hispanic Magazine, April 1998.

The Miami Herald, November 28, 2001.

New York Daily News, December 14, 2001.

People Magazine, April 13, 1998.

Other

National Public Radio, Morning Edition, Venerable 27, 2001.

—Kelly M.

Martinez