Star System
The arrival of television was a new professional opportunity for Cuban radio actors. Many of them made a smooth transition to the new media. However, the triumph of the revolution at the end of the decade, presented them with new challenges. Some actors stayed in the country, but many others went into exile. For the younger ones, it was easy to start a new career, others didn’t have the same luck. In the next decades, many of the Cuban celebrities from the early years of television became forgotten.
As part of ‘The Telenovela Archives’ project we have curated a selection of 1940-1950s promotional postcards. Most of them were created either by Armand or Narcy, two photographers who greatly contributed to the creation of the Cuban star system.
Carlos Badías and María Valero
‘El derecho de nacer’ (1948-49) was the biggest success of the radio era en Cuba. It also provided a canvas for the creation of a local star system. The most popular magazines closely followed the public and private life of the actors, and promotional photos were broadly distributed among fans and collectors.
Alberto González Rubio
Alberto González Rubio, born in 1923, was one of the most iconic Cuban radio actors. He starred in several time-slots sponsored by Colgate-Palmolive, including ‘La novela Palmolive’, “La novela Fab’, and ‘La novela del aire’. His first TV appearance was in ‘El humo del recuerdo: La tragedia de Mayerling’ in the role of Rodolfo de Habsburgo, along Gina Cabrera (May 22, 1952).
He went into exile in 1962, and is quoted saying “Prefiero ser un hombre libre que trabajar en la esclavitud”. He died in Miami, USA (1981).
Minín Bujones
Minín Bujones (b. 1925) was a radio, cinema, and television actress. She starred in ‘Miércoles de Amor Palmolive’, as well as ‘Mi dulce gitanilla’ (by Nora Badía) and ‘El ángel perverso’ (by Delia Fiallo) in the role of Estrellita–this was later versioned as ‘Lucecita’. She went into exile in the 1960s and died in Miami, USA (1997).
Gina Cabrera
Gina Cabrera (b. 1928), was one of the Cuban actors who stayed in the country after the Revolution. One of the most recognized faces in the 1950s, she was the protagonist of ‘Miércoles de amor Palmolive’ and “Soraya, una flor en la tormenta’ among many other drama programs. In 1961, she led the CMQ radio and television literacy campaign–one of the priorities of the revolutionary government. She appeared in many films and TV productions, including the acclaimed “Sol del Batey’ (1985). She died in Havana (2022).
