Corpus Christi Caller Times Caller.com - 'Caliente' sizzling into town

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Thursday, February 3, 2000

'Caliente' sizzling into town
Spanish-language show needs dancers
By Tara Copp
Caller-Times
"Caliente," Univision's beach party-themed Spanish-language program for teen-agers, will film two shows in Corpus Christi this April. And it needs 150 young dancers with hot talent.
   For aspiring young actors, dancers and singers in Corpus Christi, it's another chance to break into television. For local Univision affiliate KORO-TV/28 and the Corpus Christi Convention and Visitors Bureau, its another chance for the city to break into the hot Latin market.
   "That type of advertising you just can't buy," said Char Beltran, president and chief executive officer of the visitors bureau. "'Caliente' is a popular half-hour show, so we'll get into the Spanish-speaking households in the U.S., and that's been a real hole for us. We haven't really been able to break into that market."
   By hosting the show, Corpus Christi will get nine minutes in each episode to promote the city's tourist attractions, Beltran said.
   "Caliente" is produced by Univision, the top Spanish network in the United States. Univision reaches 1.7 million adults ages 18 to 49 during primetime, ranking it fifth behind NBC, Fox, ABC and CBS.
   That exposure could translate into real dollars for Corpus Christi's tourism industry, said Araceli De Leon, general manager of KORO.
   "The adults 18 to 49 are a very important group," De Leon said. "They are people who have kids and take vacations. We have the beach and we also have the aquarium. You can see the Selena museum - there's a lot of things families can enjoy by coming to Corpus Christi."
   KORO will hold casting calls in a couple of weeks for "Caliente," De Leon said.
   The show "is taped on location at the hippest, most spectacular sights in the world," the company said in promotional materials.
   During its 30-minute segments the teen magazine-style show features "music, dancing, fashion, famous personalities and plenty of beautiful bodies in a weekly beach party that sizzles year round."
   KORO will be "looking for young adults and teens in mid-February," De Leon said. The dancers must be over 18 years old, and the station will probably call for about 200 performers, De Leon said.
   Familiar exposure
   It's the third time in a year that Corpus Christi will be featured on Univision in the United States or on a program produced by Televisa, Mexico's largest television production company.
   Televisa sells programming in more than 110 markets worldwide, including countries in Africa, Europe, North America, the Caribbean and Latin America.
   Last year the city was featured in Televisa's "Ritmo Son," the MTV of Mexico. For 28 days in May, shots from the city popped up "five times an hour, 24 hours a day," Beltran said, and generated an estimated $7.2 million worth of advertising for the city, she said.
   Last November, Televisa filmed several episodes of the telenovela "Amigos X Siempre" here. That show began airing in Mexico Jan. 10 to an estimated 80 million viewers, Beltran said. The show will likely begin airing in the United States on Univision this May.
   A formal partnership
   Arlene Rivera, promotions director for KORO, said the station sought "Caliente" to go after a younger viewer base.
   "It's a very good opportunity for young people," Rivera said. "First we had the novela for parents. Now we have 'Caliente.' We want to cover every level of audience."
   KORO is beginning to negotiate locations to film the show, and both the USS Inchon at Naval Station Ingleside and Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi are candidates, Rivera said.
   KORO and the visitors bureau worked together to bring the previous shows to Corpus Christi, and on Wednesday they announced a formal partnership to work on future endeavors.
   Common means, different ends
   For "Caliente," the visitors bureau helped close the deal by agreeing to pay the airfare to bring the show's producers and stars to Corpus Christi.
   In addition, the visitors bureau will get the necessary permits and security measures the show will need, Beltran said.
   "We've been working with them, but we wanted a more formal partnership," Beltran said.
   "We're now going to share everything we're doing, especially as it relates to having an effect on bringing visitors to Corpus Christi."
   'Great for Corpus Christi'
   There are more shows on the horizon.
   The visitors bureau and KORO are working to lure "Sabado Gigante" to bring the show's "traveling camera" segment to the city in May, and is trying to lure "Plaza Sesimo," or "Sesame Street."
   The "Caliente" episodes could air in May, possibly coinciding with the U.S. release of "Amigos X Siempre."
   The possibilities are astounding, De Leon said.
   "We just think, 'My God, this would be great for Corpus Christi.' "



Business writer Tara Copp can be reached at 886-4316 or by e-mail at coppt@caller.com

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