Leaders of Spanish Language Television Named to Receive Emmy Awards!

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences will recognize six prominent individuals to receive honorary Emmy Awards at the Annual Meeting of its Trustees in San Antonio , Texas on June 3, 2005 . The six to be honored are Jorge Ramos, Marie Celeste, Mario Kreutzberger, Veronica Castro, Andres Cantor and Ray Rodriguez. According to Academy Organizing Committee Chairman, Raul Mateu , speaking on behalf of our Committee, “We believe that each of these extraordinary people deserves the highest recognition for their contributions to the growth and quality of Spanish language television in the United States .”

• Jorge Ramos has been called "Star newscaster of Hispanic TV" and "Hispanic TV's No. 1 correspondent and key to a huge voting bloc" by The Wall Street Journal. The research firm Hispanic Trends called him “one of the most influential Latinos” in the United States and Latino Leaders magazine chose him in 2004 as one of “The Ten Most Admired Latinos”. Ramos is one of the most respected journalists among the 40 million Hispanics in the United States and in the 13 Latin American countries where his newscast is seen every night. He has covered five wars ( El Salvador , the Persian Gulf, Kosovo , Afghanistan and Iraq ) and has been a witness to some of the most important news stories of the last two decades, including the fall of the Berlin Wall and the disintegration of the former Soviet Union . He has been the anchorman for Noticiero Univision since 1986.

• Maria Celeste is the host and managing editor of “Al Rojo Vivo con María Celeste”, the most talked about program in Hispanic television, produced by Telemundo/NBC. The popular newsmagazine airs nationwide in the U.S. and in 15 Latin American countries. “Al Rojo Vivo con María Celeste” can also be seen in Europe and the Middle East through different cable systems. In the annual “Hot Celebrity Poll” conducted by People en Español , she was chosen by readers across the nation as the “most popular television personality.” She is the only person to have been in the magazine's cover 6 times…4 of them in 2004 alone. Her book “Selena's Secret” became an instant bestseller and was described by the prestigious trade magazine Publisher's Weekly as “Simon & Schuster's most successful frontlist title in Spanish.” María Celeste is currently working on a children's book with Scholastics.
• Mario Kreutzberger is the host of “Sábado Gigante” (“Gigantic Saturday”), one of the most popular programs in television history. Better known as “Don Francisco”, Kreutzberger was born in Chile the son of German-Jewish immigrants who escaped their native Germany during the Second World War. Starting in 1986, the program began broadcasting from WLTV-Channel 23 in Miami , and a short time later was expanded to the rest of the United States and Latin America by way of the most important U.S. Hispanic network, Univision, and throughout the rest of the world by cable network Galavisión. The New York Times published an article titled “For 100 Million, He is Saturday Night” and People en Español magazine dedicated its first special edition to “40 Years with Don Francisco on TV”. For his work on behalf of children, the United Nations gave him the title of Ambassador of UNICEF, and in 2001 he was named Vice President of the Muscular Dystrophy Association in the United States , a position that he holds to this day.
• Andres Cantor, t he voice of soccer in America is now the top sports personality at the Telemundo Network, bringing with him his unique style, knowledge and energy to the fast rising Network. Previously, Cantor was Univision Network's top soccer play-by-play announcer and sports for 13 years. Cantor, whose “Gooooal” call punctuates his fast-paced work when calling soccer matches, Cantor can be heard daily on his syndicated radio program, Futbol de Primera, which is broadcast in over 40 markets in the U.S. In addition, Simon & Schuster published his first book entitled “GOOOAL: A Celebration of Soccer.” Later this year, he will also break new ground for Hispanic talent when he ventures for the first time away from sports programming. He is developing a prime-time reality series for Telemundo, which he will executive produce as well as host. This series will air during the week, while he continues his heavy weekend sports schedule.
• Verónica Castro started her career as an actress in soap operas. Her career took off with Los Ricos También Lloran, playing a poor maid in a Mexican version of Cinderella. This soap became a success in Latin America, Spain , France , Russia , China and the Philippines . In 1987 her reputation rose internationally when she played the main character in Rosa Salvaje alongside Guillermo Capetillo. The theme song for that soap opera became one of her biggest #1 hits as a singer. Castro embarked during the 1990s into the world of variety show hosting. Last year, it was announced that Castro will host “Viva Vero” (Very Veronica), a weekly variety show that Univision will co-produce with Televisa and Venevision. According to Variety, “For Televisa, no star shines brighter at the moment than Castro.” Her son, Cristian Castro, is a teen idol singer all over Latin America ..
• Ray Rodriguez is President and Chief Operating Officer of Univision Communications, Inc., the premier Spanish-language media company in the United States . He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Univision Communications, Inc. (NYSE: UVN ). Mr. Rodriguez joined Univision in August 1990 as Vice President and Director of Talent Relations, and in September 1991 was promoted to Senior Vice President and Operating Manager of the network. In 1992 he became the President & COO of the Univision Network, in August of 2001 was promoted to President and COO of all the Univision Television Networks and in February of 2005 to his current position. Prior to his tenure at Univision, Mr. Rodriguez spent six years with Julio Iglesias: during the last 4 years, as his Chief Executive Officer and worldwide Manager. Mr. Rodriguez is the founding President of the Kiwanis of Little Havana Foundation. He is a member of several prominent organizations including the Miami Business Forum, Mesa Redonda and is on the Board of Directors of the United Way . He is Vice President of OTI (Organizacion de Television Iberoamericana), the preeminent international organization of Spanish language television executives.

Emmy Saturday -- Teamwork in Action!

Never underestimate the power of teamwork - especially when driven by the desire to salvage a Saturday night. Saturday, January 29 brought ten NATAS members and volunteers together for nine hours at the chapter's administration office in an effort to completely and accurately process your Emmy entries. Undaunted by a 4:45pm , “eleventh hour” tape delivery, the team did it, making the important first step toward the 36th annual Cleveland Regional Chapter Emmy Awards, to be held Saturday, September 17, 2005.