Of the legion of comedic characters penned – and in many cases also played – by the late Mexican entertainment wizard Roberto Gómez Bolaños, better known as “Chespirito,” his most widely beloved are those who feature in El Chavo del Ocho, an iconic pillar of Latino pop culture.
First aired in the early 1970s on Televisa, the Mexican media empire behind all of Chespirito’s shows and which later distributed them internationally, the sitcom rapidly achieved stratospheric popularity across Latin America; at the height of its success it reached an average of 350 million viewers per episode. Long in syndication in many countries, including the United States via Univision’s channels, the show continues to enjoy a vast multigenerational fanbase half a century later. Its impact among Latinos in the U.S. is such that in 2016 the city of Los Angeles declared September 8 as “El Chavo del Ocho Day.”
Why is the series and its creator so peerlessly cherished among Latinos? With El Chavo del Ocho, Chespirito gifted us a story that communicates across ages, income levels, and even borders – all via the unifying power of hilarity… read more >
