If you were lucky enough to grow up in Miami or in my case in Hialeah in the late 70's and early 80's, you probably had a weekly front row seat, on your living room floor, facing an old box television watching ¿Qué Pasa, USA?
No doubt, you and your entire family were
(ROFLOL) rolling on the floor laughing out loud!
This home grown sitcom created by, WPBT & Luis Santeiro, comprised of 39 episodes with a duration of 27 minutes each. Those choice 1,053 minutes of ¿Qué Pasa, USA? became the mirror to our lives and struggles in our new country through the eyes of the Peña family.
The Peñas were a Cuban American family who lived in Miami's Little Havana neighborhood. Their family was very similar to mine, Mom (Juana), Dad (Pepe) and two kids, Carmen and Joe. I, in turn was an only child with an extended family. The Peñas shared their small home with their parents, Adela and Antonio, as I did with my grandparents Abuela Mercedes y Abuelito Lopez.
Like our family, the Peñas were also struggling to find their place in the U.S. They spoke Spanish and English (many times mixing the two in one sentence - Spanglish). They worked really hard and never lost sight of their dream to return to Cuba - just like my folks. Cuyo sueño cambio a pasar de los años en el exilio.
Although, Spanish was strictly enforced and English was frowned upon in our home, I can still hear abuela Mercedes chide, "Hablen Español en la casa porque el Ingles lo van a aprender en la escuela". This was written in some Cuban stone somewhere in her room and my cousins and I obeyed. No choice.
Although, Spanish was strictly enforced and English was frowned upon in our home, I can still hear abuela Mercedes chide, "Hablen Español en la casa porque el Ingles lo van a aprender en la escuela". This was written in some Cuban stone somewhere in her room and my cousins and I obeyed. No choice.
While in the 'Yuma', (which was supposed to be a temporary stay since the return to Cuba was 'un paso' away) they always embraced their 'Cubanissmo' and made sure their children valued the old ways as they did; from religion to traditions. L'est not forget, we children from the land of the sacred palm trees needed to maintain our education expectations high and 'preparados' for our return to the Island one day.
Boom boom pow! Now that I give it some thought, I bet I can still name every street in Santa Clara and the addresses to all of the familial homes and stomping grounds e.g. Conyedo y Tudurri, el parque Central....
The stories of their lives, collectively, is now my personal memory despite the fact that I did not live it. This funny first bilingual situation comedy appealed to all of us that share the same immigrant condition and addressed all of our issues of adaptation in this great new world; growing up American with Cuban values.
Boom boom pow! Now that I give it some thought, I bet I can still name every street in Santa Clara and the addresses to all of the familial homes and stomping grounds e.g. Conyedo y Tudurri, el parque Central....
The stories of their lives, collectively, is now my personal memory despite the fact that I did not live it. This funny first bilingual situation comedy appealed to all of us that share the same immigrant condition and addressed all of our issues of adaptation in this great new world; growing up American with Cuban values.
My favorite aspect of the series was clearly the bilingual tone. They spoke the colloquial slang of the time and or the
mix of language often heard in Cuban-American neighborhoods - from Spanish in
the home and English at the supermarket to the final lexicon cocktail that we have all mastered 'suavemente' the combining of both into
" Spanglish."
Here are some favorites below:
| SAYINGS | ||
Spanish
|
English
Meaning
|
Literal
Translation
|
| ¡Botó la casa por la ventana! | That rocks! | "He threw the house out the window!" |
| Eso no lo brinca un chivo. | It's a big problem. | "Not even a goat can jump it." |
| Cantó el manicero. | He died. | "He sang the peanut vendor." |
| Qué Mona. | She's cute | "She's very much a monkey." |
These darling 'dichos' of our homeland require the assistance of un abuelito o abuelita viviendo en casa to explain...
A que hora mataron a Lola?* A las 3
* ¿Qué le pasó a Chacumbele? Él mismito se mató
* ¿Niño que no llora...? No mama
* ¿A qué se le da la patada? A la lata
* ¿Y si voy al cobre, qué quieres que te traiga? Virgen de la Caridad
* ¿De quién era el platanal? De Bartolo
* ¿A qué hora se tira el cañonazo en La Habana? 9:00 P.M.
* ¿Qué canta la gente cuando se muere? El manicero
* El que siembra su maíz.... Se come su finoro
* El que no tiene de congo....Carabali
* Una cosa es con guitarra, y la otra es....Con Violín
* ¿Cuándo cultivo una rosa blanca? En junio como en enero
* ¿Qué le pasó a Chacumbele? Él mismito se mató
* ¿Niño que no llora...? No mama
* ¿A qué se le da la patada? A la lata
* ¿Y si voy al cobre, qué quieres que te traiga? Virgen de la Caridad
* ¿De quién era el platanal? De Bartolo
* ¿A qué hora se tira el cañonazo en La Habana? 9:00 P.M.
* ¿Qué canta la gente cuando se muere? El manicero
* El que siembra su maíz.... Se come su finoro
* El que no tiene de congo....Carabali
* Una cosa es con guitarra, y la otra es....Con Violín
* ¿Cuándo cultivo una rosa blanca? En junio como en enero
Enjoy!
QuePasa USA: Citizenship Clip - vignette
Scene
description Pena Living
Room discussing
Character Abuelo; Abuela,
Carmen, Violeta
1. Pena Living Room
Grandparents are seated in living room. Carmen and
Violeta are talking standing up.
dissolve to
2. Conversation
Carmen: It’s
a lost cause. They’ll never pass.
violeta: Sure
they will
Carmen: How?
Violeta: There are
ways. Hay muchos truquitos. Like the trick about the yes and no questions
Carmen: What trick
is that?
Violeta: My mother
figured out that in the yes and no questions there is an 80 percent chance that
the right answer will be yes.
Carmen: Hey! That is a good one.
She walks over to Abuelo and abuela
contd- Violeta dice que las preguntas de si y no el 80 % de las veces la
respuesta es Yes
abuela y abuela
excited: speaking at the same time, smiling
abuela: a lo
mejor tenemos una oprtunidad.
Abuelo: Dale vamos.
Preguntanos algo. (The all walk to
dining room table and sit across from Carmen and violeta.)
abuela: Vamos a
ver Pregunta hija
Carmen to abuelo:Have you been
living in this country for more than five years?
Abuelo: (hesitating)
Yes (very serious
Everyone looks at each
other laughing confident that answers are correct.
Carme to Abuela: Do
you swear that the answers to these questions will be truthful?
Abuela: excited
smile: Jesss!
Violeta: que te
dije? Es un tiro.
Everyone excited happy faces
Carmen to Abuelo:
Are you willing to take the full oath of allegiance to the united states.
Abuelo: with
serious affirmation: Yesss
Everyone laughs. Happy answers are good.
Abuelo:
Que Bueno
Violeta:
Great
Abuela: Estamos hecho
Abuelo: Yo creo que
no vamos a tener que estudiar
Carmen to abuela:
have you ever committed adultery?
Abuela: happy
faced: Jess
Carmen and violeta have frozen nervous expressions
Carmen to abuelo:
she appears scared as she asks: Have you ever been arrested for the posession
of drugs?
abuelo: serious
look. Yess
Carmen looks upset.
carmen to abuela:
Have you ever engaged in prostitution?
carmen has a scared looking waiting for the answer.
abuela: screams
out smiling and nodding her head yes.
Yess. Yess.
Pause: ahh, very good , I like it very much.
Violeta and Carmen reach for the
head in their hands. Scene over.
End.
No jorobo mas - hasta la proxima!
Will edit this piece later - p'alante como dice Chirino!
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