Spanish Show's 'Gigante' Scoop:
TV Host Interviews Bush, Kerry
By MIRIAM JORDAN
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
October 29, 2004
In the 11th hour of a close presidential race, President Bush and Sen. John Kerry are delivering their messages to the crucial Hispanic constituency through perhaps the silliest and most powerful man in Spanish-language show business: Don Francisco.
Some might deem Mr. Francisco's variety show on the Univision network, "Sábado Gigante," or Giant Saturday, downright tacky. Last week, it featured a contest for the most curvaceous Latina and a sampling of the "worst of the worst" amateur singers, alongside skits, tear-jerking interviews and games. Host Don Francisco, whose real name is Mario Kreutzberger, donned a shocking-pink floppy hat in one segment.
But on Saturday night, Don Francisco will be the envy of talk-show hosts everywhere when "Sábado Gigante," which is broadcast from Miami, includes back-to-back interviews with Messrs. Bush and Kerry. The pre-recorded interviews will run around 10 p.m., two hours into the three-hour program. Both candidates speak in English but throw in a little Spanish.
"We invited the candidates a long time ago," says Mr. Kreutzberger in a phone interview from his native Chile. "We got the interviews at the last minute." He interviewed the candidates separately last week, with Mr. Bush speaking at the White House and Mr. Kerry at a location near Scranton, Pa.
Both candidates have appeared on Spanish-language news for brief interviews. But "Sábado Gigante" puts them before a broad Hispanic audience, for 10 minutes each. "If you want to catch everybody at one place and time, that's a great place to be," says Frank Guerra, who advises Mr. Bush on national media buys.
Most Americans have never heard of "Sábado Gigante," but among Hispanics, "it's an institution," says Fernando Espuelas, a Latino media entrepreneur. The program boasts 100 million viewers in the U.S. and Latin America, and has won a place in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running variety show in the world. No ambitious Latino singer or politician would turn down the chance to appear on "Sábado Gigante." The show's portly host has interviewed everyone from singer Ricky Martin to Mexican President Vicente Fox.
Mr. Kreutzberger is a cross between Jay Leno and Ed Sullivan, with a strong dose of Jerry Lewis. "I am just a guy who does a family show with a little bit of everything," says Mr. Kreutzberger, 64 years old, who compares the program to a stew -- with something for everyone.
Historically, Hispanics support the Democratic candidate in presidential elections, but surveys indicate that many thousands of Latino voters remain undecided. Mr. Bush wields his greatest influence among first-time Latino voters, who take a conservative stance on social issues, and established Hispanics whose roots in the U.S. go back several generations.
Mr. Kerry isn't concerned about being on a show where some women wear frilly short-shorts and the host himself has appeared in boxer shorts. (During most of the show, he wears a suit.) "We trust Don Francisco will do a very good job of maintaining the right tone," says Fabiola Rodriguez-Ciampoli, director of Hispanic media for the Kerry campaign.
"The president enjoys [the show] very much," says Bush campaign spokeswoman Sharon Castillo, adding: "Don Francisco has always been very respectful with the president."
Mr. Kreutzberger won't disclose the content of the interviews. But he allows that he asked the candidates questions related to Latino concerns, including their views on amnesty for illegal immigrants.
Mr. Kreutzberger, the son of a Holocaust refugee, describes himself as apolitical. In 1973, he skirted a request to announce Chile's takeover by Gen. Augusto Pinochet on television by suggesting that a comedian shouldn't speak on such a grave matter.
However, the host encourages his fans to fulfill their civic responsibilities. In a recent show, he reminded the audience that "the only way to make us Hispanics count is to vote. Please vote." On Saturday, he will devote an hour to the presidential election.
Mr. Kreutzberger always had a passion for entertainment. When his father sent him to New York to learn clothing design in 1959, he fell in love with the TV in his hotel room, not fashion.
Upon returning to Santiago, he performed for fun at a local club, where he created the comic persona, Don Francisco, an immigrant who spoke Spanish with a thick German accent. Eventually, he persuaded the first TV station in Chile to bring him on board. "My father thought I was crazy to become a clown on TV," he recalls. He began "Sábado Gigante" in 1962, and in 1986, his success catapulted him to Miami, where the show ran locally. Two years later, "Sábado Gigante" went national in the U.S. and has aired on Univision, part of Univision Communications Inc., ever since.
Because of the growing power of the Hispanic vote, it was easier for Mr. Kreutzberger to get Mr. Bush and his Democratic opponent to appear on his show this election than in 2000. "In the last election, I was chasing the candidates all over the country," he says. Although he landed interviews with both Mr. Bush and his erstwhile rival, Al Gore, Mr. Kreutzberger says that pursuing both candidates along the campaign trail was so taxing, he got sick for 40 days afterward.
Despite all his years in the U.S., Mr. Kreutzberger hasn't chosen to become a citizen -- he is a permanent resident -- and, therefore, won't be voting. Instead, on Nov. 2, he will release his own Mexican country-music CD to raise money for a charity that helps people caught trying to enter the U.S. from Mexico.
