Rare 1970's PBS Sitcom "¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?" Available on DVD

Saturday, March 18, 2006

Rare 1970's PBS Sitcom "¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?" Available on DVD

¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? La Completa Collection

¿Qué Pasa, USA? was America's first bilingual situation comedy. The program explored the trials and tribulations faced by the Peña family of Miami as they struggled to cope with a new country and a new language. The series focused on the identity crisis of the members of the family as they were pulled in one direction by their elders - who wanted to maintain Cuban values and traditions - and pulled in other directions by the pressures of living in a predominantly Anglo society.

The series was bilingual, reflecting the mix of language often heard in Cuban-American neighborhoods - from Spanish in the home and English at the supermarket to the inevitable combining of both into "Spanglish."

¿Qué Pasa, USA? aired on PBS nationwide from approximately 1977-1981. A total of 39 episodes were produced over 3 seasons. The show was produced and taped live before a studio audience at PBS affiliate WPBT in Miami, Florida. In recent years, the series has been shown on Galavisión.

The cast included Manolo Villaverde as Pepe, Ana Margarita Martin-Casado as Juana, Luis Oquendo as Antonio, Velia Martinez as Adela, Rocky Echevarria (now known as Steven Bauer) as Joe, and Ana Margarita Menéndez as Carmen.

¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? La Completa Collection is available to purchase on the official site via their store. The 5-Disc Collector's Edition includes all 39 episodios of the ground-breaking comedy series. It will set you back mucho dinero: $99.95 plus $6 shipping and handling. This seems like an internet-only offer. You won't be able to order it on Amazon.com or buy it in stores.

The site, owned and operated by WPBT Channel 2, includes a number of other goodies including a photo album, desktop wallpapers, video clips, and an addicting Qué Pasa Concentration Game.

Related Links:

¿Qué Pasa, USA? Official Site

TV.com Episode Guide

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

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Tuesday, October 22

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Jenny Slate (The Great North/Big Mouth/Married/Bob's Burgers) - Jenny appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Josh Peck (Grandfathered/Drake & Josh) - Josh is a guest on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Selena Gomez (Only Murders in the Building/Wizards of Waverly Place) and Jennie Garth (Mystery Girls/What I Like About You) - E! News has interviews with Selena and Jennie at 11pm on E!.
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Judith Light (Who's the Boss?/Phenom/Transparent) - NBC's Today catches up with Judith in the 9am hour.
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Anna Kendrick (Love Life) - Anna chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
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David Mann and Tamela Mann (Tyler Perry's Assisted Living/Mann & Wife/Meet the Browns) - David drops into Sherri's Laugh Lounge and talks about his Mann To Man - Love, Your Mind series on YouTube on Sherri, so check your local listings. Tamela performs a song off her new album Live, Breathe, Fight on Sherri, so check your local listings.
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