Crónicas marcianas

Crónicas marcianas (Martian Chronicles)[lower-alpha 1] was a Spanish late-night talk show produced by Gestmusic Endemol and broadcast by Telecinco from 1997 to 2005. It was directed and presented by Javier Sardà, and had Miquel José and Jordi Roca, with whom Sardá had created La ventana on Cadena SER, as deputy directors and screenwriters.

Crónicas marcianas
Genre	Late-night talk show
Created by	Miquel José Jordi Roca
Directed by	Javier Sardà
Presented by	Javier Sardà
Country of origin	Spain
Original language	Spanish
No. of seasons	8
No. of episodes	1,277
Production
Executive producers	Toni Cruz Josep Maria Mainat Joan Ramon Mainat
Production company	Gestmusic Endemol
Release
Original network	Telecinco
Original release	8 September 1997 – 21 July 2005

It is the longest running and most watched late-night talk show in the history of Spanish television.[1] Despite being characterized by some as a classic example of telebasura (trash TV),[2] it won several honors during its run, including one Ondas Award, two Iris Awards, and six TP de Oro Awards.[3][4]

History

Crónicas marcianas began airing on 8 September 1997 to compete with Antena 3's La sonrisa del pelícano, which was then the ratings leader.[5] In principle, Crónicas marcianas contributed less sensationalism and a softer form of humor, with comedians, co-presenter Martí Galindo, wild animals, videos of pratfalls, and interviews with celebrities such as Cindy Crawford, Marta Sánchez, David Copperfield, Enrique Iglesias, and Ricky Martin.[6]

Crónicas marcianas came to surpass La sonrisa del pelícano in audience, and became the undisputed leader in its time slot after the latter was canceled amid controversy. Boris Izaguirre began appearing on the show to give "semiotic" analysis of celebrity gossip, in addition to performing "transformism" and striptease numbers.[7] New comedians and public figures were often featured, such as Manel Fuentes, Mariano Mariano, Paz Padilla, and Rosario Pardo. Political and social topics were discussed by guests such as Cristina Almeida, Anna Balletbó, Celia Villalobos, Begoña Ameztoy, Padre Apeles, Loles León, Javier Nart, Enrique del Pozo, Ramoncín, Ivonne Reyes, Juan Adriansens, and Empar Moliner. Francisco Pérez Abellán moved to the program from Esta noche cruzamos el Mississippi to host a crime segment, and Carmen Vijande hosted one on sexology.[8]

For his part, Javier Cárdenas toured Spain to find different characters to interview. Some of these interviews were criticized for mocking their subjects, and Cárdenas and Sardà were ordered to pay €15,000 in compensation after a 2002 segment in which a court found they had committed "illegitimate meddling in the honor" of a young man with a disability.[9] Some interviewees became popular, such as Paco Porras, Leonardo Dantés, Tamara, El Pozí, La Bruja Loja, Carmen de Mairena, and El Mocito Feliz, and they appeared together with Cárdenas in the feature film FBI: Frikis Buscan Incordiar. The controversial singer Tamara (later known as Yurena) had a number one single with "No cambié", and the program also sponsored the release of several music compilations.[10]

In 2000, Crónicas marcianas began to exploit the phenomenon of reality shows such as Gran Hermano and Hotel Glam, to such an extent that many of their former contestants became participants, replacing the previous ones. Examples include Aída Nízar, Sonia Arenas, Jorge Berrocal, Dinio García, María José Galera, Kiko Hernández, Carlos "El Yoyas" Navarro, Silvia Fominaya, Marta López, Pocholo Martínez-Bordiú, Noemí Ungría, and Raquel Morillas. The discussion tables were occupied by Nuria Bermúdez, Borja Hernán, Erika Alonso, Mari Cielo Pajares (daughter of actor Andrés Pajares), Italian nobleman Alessandro Lecquio, Coto Matamoros, Sonia Monroy, Mayte Alonso, Mila Ximénez, and other personalities. Themes such as celebrity relationships, accusations of drug abuse and trafficking, and the practice of prostitution became more prevalent. In this last period, Carlos Latre, Xavier Deltell, and Rocío Madrid joined Sardà as co-presenters.

The program's ratings declined in the 2004–2005 season, as it lost viewers to shows such as Buenafuente. Its cancellation was announced at the end of the season, while it was still the late-night ratings leader.[11][12]

List of contributors

Coto Matamoros in 2018

• Juan Adriansens (1998–2001)
• Erika Alonso (1999–2005)
• Mayte Alonso (2002–2003)
• Begoña Ameztoy (2000–2005)
• Padre Apeles (1997–1998 and 2004–2005)
• Nuria Bermúdez (2003–2005)
• Jorge Berrocal (2000–2003)
• Fayna Bethencourt (2001–2003)
• Daniela Blume (2003–2005)
• Pepe Calabuig (2000–2002)
• Javier Cárdenas (2002–2005)
• Toni Clapés (1998–2000)
• Xavier Deltell (1997–2005)
• Bibiana Fernández (1998)
• Carlos Ferrando (1997–1998)
• Antonio David Flores (2003–2005)
• Silvia Fominaya (2003–2005)
• Manel Fuentes (1997–2001)
• Martí Galindo (1997–2002)
• Íñigo González (2000–2001)
• Borja Hernán (2000–2002)
• Kiko Hernández (2003–2005)
• Carmen Hornillos (2000–2005)
• Boris Izaguirre (1999–2005)
• Natacha Jaitt (2004–2005)
• Carlos Latre (2002–2005)
• Alessandro Lecquio (2001–2005)
• Jesús Locampos (2000–2005)
• Marta López (2001–2005)
• Rocío Madrid (2003–2005)
• Karmele Marchante (1997–1998)
• Mariano Mariano (1997–2002)
• Chiqui Martí (1999–2001)
• Coto Matamoros (2000–2004)
• Sonia Monroy (1998–2005)
• Raquel Morillas (2003–2004)
• Carlos "El Yoyas" Navarro (2001–2004)
• Aída Nízar (2003–2004)
• Juan Carlos Ortega (2003–2005)
• Cristina "La Veneno" Ortiz Rodríguez (2001–2003)
• Paz Padilla (1997–1999)
• Rosario Pardo (2000–2002)
• Enrique del Pozo (2000–2002)
• Carlos Pumares (2002–2004)
• Pilar Rahola (1998–2004)
• Fernando Ramos (2000–2002)
• Nacho Rodríguez (2000–2002)
• Judit Sánchez (1999–2000)
• Mila Ximénez (2004)

Ratings by season

Season		Beginning	Ending	Ratings		Ref
				Viewers	Share
	1	1997	1998	1,826,000	22.5%	[1]
	2	1998	1999	1,568,000	24.5%	[1]
	3	1999	2000	1,548,000	28.7%	[1]
	4	2000	2001	1,818,000	33.7%	[1]
	5	2001	2002	1,792,000	31.3%	[1]
	6	2002	2003	1,871,000	32.7%	[1]
	7	2003	2004	1,981,000	37.7%	[1]
	8	2004	2005	1,471,000	29.4%	[1]
Average		1997	2005	1,734,000	30.1%

International versions

Crónicas marcianas was adapted in Italy as Cronache marziane, running on Italia 1 from 2004 to 2005.

Notes

1. Other than the title, a play on the Spanish word crónicas, which can refer to historical and journalistic chronicles, the program bears no relation to The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury.

References

1. "Se despide 'Crónicas Marcianas', el programa que cambió la TV en España" ['Crónicas Marcianas', the Program That Changed TV in Spain, Says Goodbye]. eldiario.es Vertele! (in Spanish). 21 July 2005. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
2. Confuso, Jose (15 August 2016). "'Crónicas Marcianas', el programa que hizo un arte de la 'telebasura'" ['Crónicas Marcianas', the Program That Made an Art of 'telebasura']. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
3. "'Siete Vidas' y 'Crónicas Marcianas', entre los galardonados con los premios ondas" ['Siete Vidas' and 'Crónicas Marcianas', Among the Winners of the Ondas Awards]. ABC (in Spanish). 18 October 2000. Archived from the original on 27 February 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
4. "Los críticos también hablaron bien de 'Crónicas Marcianas'" [Critics Also Spoke Well of 'Crónicas Marcianas']. eldiario.es Vertele (in Spanish). 22 July 2005. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
5. "'Crónicas marcianas' por delante de 'La sonrisa del pelícano'" ['Crónicas marcianas' Ahead of 'La sonrisa del pelícano']. ABC (in Spanish). 30 October 1997. p. 131. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
6. "'Crónicas Marcianas' cumple 1.000 programas" ['Crónicas Marcianas' Completes 1,000 Programs]. eldiario.es Vertele (in Spanish). 17 November 2003. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
7. Oaknín, Mazal (2019). "The Reception and Marketing of Women Writers in Spain". Feminism, Writing and the Media in Spain. Peter Lang. p. 47. ISBN 9781787077904. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
8. "Muere el periodista Francisco Pérez Abellán" [The Journalist Francisco Pérez Abellán Dies]. Diez Minutos (in Spanish). 28 December 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
9. Quílez, Raquel (19 January 2005). "Telecinco, Javier Sardá y Javier Cárdenas, condenados a indemnizar con 15.000 euros a un discapacitado" [Telecinco, Javier Sardá, and Javier Cárdenas, Sentenced to Compensate a Person With a Disability With 15,000 Euros]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Madrid. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
10. "El quinto álbum de 'CQC' recoge lo mejor de la música de los años 60 de artistas como Simon & Garfunkel, Beach Boys, Tom Jones, Marvin Gaye o Mamas & the Papas" [The Fifth 'CQC' Album Collects the Best of the Music of the 60s by Artists Such as Simon & Garfunkel, Beach Boys, Tom Jones, Marvin Gaye, and Mamas & the Papas]. ABC La Guía TV (in Spanish). 6 March 2002. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
11. "'Buenafuente' se impone a 'Crónicas marcianas' por primera vez en 5 enfrentamientos" ['Buenafuente' Bests 'Crónicas marcianas' for the First Time in 5 Confrontations]. Fórmula TV (in Spanish). 27 January 2005. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
12. "Javier Sardá deja 'Crónicas Marcianas' para tomarse un descanso" [Javier Sardá Leaves 'Crónicas Marcianas' to Take a Break]. Terra (in Spanish). 24 April 2005. Archived from the original on 29 June 2012. Retrieved 24 February 2020.

External links

• Crónicas marcianas at IMDb