Antonio Sánchez (born January 1, 1961) is a
Puerto Rican radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
and
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
personality, show host and producer. Known for his humor, he is also known for his nickname, El Gangster. As of 2008, his television show, ''
No te Duermas'', had been on the air for 19 years.
Biography
Early life
Antonio Sánchez was born in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
to Antonio Sánchez Sr. and Zoraida Casiano. He was the oldest of four children. When he was 9 years old, his family returned to
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
, and settled in the town of
Hormigueros, Puerto Rico
Hormigueros (, ) is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the western region of the island, northeast of Cabo Rojo; northwest of San Germán; and south of Mayagüez. Hormigueros is spread over 5 barrios and Hormigueros Pueblo (th ...
.
Radio Host
Sánchez started studying at the
Interamerican University of Puerto Rico
The Inter American University of Puerto Rico (Spanish: ''Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico''; often abbreviated to ''UIPR'' or ''Inter'') is a private Christian university with its main campus in San Germán, Puerto Rico. It also has c ...
in
San Germán, and he began working as a
disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...
at college parties with his now partner Angél Santiago. He was also in the midst of the late 1970s
CB Radio
Citizens band radio (also known as CB radio), used in many countries, is a land mobile radio system, a system allowing short-distance person-to-many persons bidirectional voice communication among individuals, using two way radios operating on ...
craze where he used the handle "Tony Toyota".
In 1979, while studying, he started working at a local station called Radio Disco. He was then called to work at Cosmos 94 in
Mayagüez with two shows called ''La Hora del Rusheo'' (1981) and ''El Meneo'' (1982). He also worked for Salsa 63. It is during this time that he donned the name of "El Gangster". According to him, he is extremely
shy, and his radio persona was a way to let go a more extroverted attitude.
In 1983, he was asked to work in
San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to:
Places Argentina
* San Juan Province, Argentina
* San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province
* San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province
* San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...
, so Sánchez left his studies and moved to the capital. He started working at QBS AM Radio with ''El Pon de la Mañana'' with "Funky Joe", and later started working in ''El Gufeo Matutino'' at Z-93 with "Moonshadow".
In 1994, he returned to work with his friend, hosting ''
El Bayú de la Mañana
''El Bayú de la Mañana'' (or simply ''El Bayú'') was a popular Puerto Rican morning radio show that aired on SalSoul radio station. "Bayú" loosely means "party" or "mingling". The show started airing on May 6, 1994, and remained popular thro ...
'' at
SalSoul
Salsoul Records is an American New York City based record label, founded by three brothers, Joseph Cayre, Kenneth Cayre, and Stanley Cayre (the Cayre brothers). Salsoul issued about 300 singles, including many disco/post-disco 12-inch releases, ...
radio station. They remained together in the show from 1994 to 2007 when they were replaced due to differences with management. In January 2008, they started hosting a new show called ''
El Circo de La Mega
''El Circo de La Mega'' (or simply ''El Circo'') is a morning radio show in Puerto Rico that airs on Mega 106.9 FM. The show premiered on February 27, 2008, and airs weekdays from 5:30am to 10:00am.
The show is hosted by Antonio Sánchez "El G ...
'' at 106.9 FM. www.elcirco.net
Television works
In 1985, Sánchez started working on several television shows like ''A Gozar'' (
WAPA-TV
WAPA-TV (channel 4) is a Spanish language in the United States, Spanish-language Independent station (North America), independent television station in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is owned by :es:Hemisphere Media Group, Hemisphere Media Group, w ...
), ''El pueblito Nius'' and ''El Show del mediodía''. The next year, he hosted the
game show
A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or Let's Play, demonstrative and are typically directed b ...
''Lo tomas o lo dejas''.
In 1987, Sánchez and friend
Hector Marcano
In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...
were cast as co-hosts of television game show ''La Hora de Oro'' on Puerto Rico's
Super Siete
WSTE-DT (channel 7), branded on air as Teleisla, is a Spanish language in the United States, Spanish-language Independent station (North America), independent television station serving San Juan, Puerto Rico, that is licensed to Ponce, Puerto Ri ...
channel. The show enjoyed a successful run for two years in Puerto Rico, period in which Sanchez's face also became familiar to the Puerto Rican public. During this time, he also performed in comedies like ''
El Cuartel de la Risa
''El Cuartel de la Risa'' was a Puerto Rican comedy show broadcast on WSTE. It was one of the most successful comedy shows during its run.
The show revolved around what happened in a generic police station in the fictional town of Trujillo Ba ...
'' (1989) and ''Adultos Solteros'' (1990), both with
Rafael José
Dr. Rafael José Diaz (born April 22, 1955) is a Puerto Rican actor, singer and television host.
Biography
Early life
Rafael was born in Manatí, Puerto Rico, where his father, a physician born in the Dominican Republic, was the medical ...
.
In 1989, Sánchez was approached by producer Gabriel Suau to intervene in a show called ''
No te Duermas''. Although originally the idea was to have another host while Sánchez performed comedic sketches, Sánchez presented Suau an idea he had about a television program, and he gave him the opportunity. In February 1990, ''No te Duermas'' debuted on Channel 7 (
Super Siete
WSTE-DT (channel 7), branded on air as Teleisla, is a Spanish language in the United States, Spanish-language Independent station (North America), independent television station serving San Juan, Puerto Rico, that is licensed to Ponce, Puerto Ri ...
). After a year of success, the show moved to Channel 2 (
Telemundo
Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language Terrestrial television, terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Television and Streaming#NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a divi ...
) in October 1991. For two years, the show peaked at #1 on local TV popularity lists, and for the following years it remained among the Top 10.
In 1992, Sánchez also began production of ''
Minga y Petraca
''Minga y Petraca'' (later known as ''Minga y Tomasa'') was a television show produced in Puerto Rico by Antonio "El Gangster" Sanchez since 1992 up until early 2005 on Telemundo Puerto Rico, channel 2.
Sanchez and actor Johnny Ray Rodrígue ...
'', where he plays one of the main characters. The show was a
spin-off
Spin-off may refer to:
*Spin-off (media), a media work derived from an existing work
*Corporate spin-off, a type of corporate action that forms a new company or entity
* Government spin-off, civilian goods which are the result of military or gove ...
of a sketch from ''No te Duermas'', where two ladies (played by Sánchez and Johnny Ray) would constantly
gossip
Gossip is idle talk or rumour, especially about the personal or private affairs of others; the act is also known as dishing or tattling.
Gossip is a topic of research in evolutionary psychology, which has found gossip to be an important means ...
on their balcony about local celebrities. In March 2005, the show was cancelled because Telemundo Puerto Rico wanted to open a new
telenovela
A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...
spot at 9:00pm, making all the sitcoms and programs at this spot to be axed, leaving only Sanchez's ''No Te Duermas'' as a daily show.
In 2008, after 18 years, Sánchez announced he would retire the show to take a break and dedicate himself to other ventures. The last show aired on December 30, 2008.
Late during the 2010s, Sanchez started playing a character named Fausto Punetier during the radio and television show ''El Circo''. Punetier represents an effeminate fashion designer who nevertheless does have a girlfriend.
[Archived a]
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
Other works
Sánchez also became a manager of other entertainers. Among the people he has managed is
merengue singer,
Giselle
''Giselle'' (; ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (, ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet (" ballet-pantomime") in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon, ...
.
Personal life
Sanchez married Nelva Rodríguez on June 4, 1983, after meeting her in college. They have three children: Francheska, Gabriel, and Anaís. Sánchez has been known for rarely commenting about his personal life.
Sánchez enjoys fishing and is the owner of a
Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depressi ...
motorcycle.
See also
* ''
No te Duermas''
*
List of talk show hosts
Below is a list of talk show hosts, sorted alphabetically by their surnames.
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A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
Y
Z
See also
* List of game show hosts
This is a list of ...
*
WKAQ-TV
WKAQ-TV (channel 2) is a television station in San Juan, Puerto Rico, airing programming from the Telemundo and NBC networks. It is Owned-and-operated station, owned and operated by the Telemundo Station Group subsidiary of NBCUniversal. WKAQ-T ...
*
El meneo de la mañana
*
List of Puerto Ricans
References
External links
Interviewat
Primera HoraBiography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanchez, Antonio
1961 births
Living people
American television talk show hosts
Interamerican University of Puerto Rico alumni
People from Hormigueros, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rican television personalities
Puerto Rican radio personalities
Puerto Rican television hosts