Benjamín ''"Tuca"'' Pardo is a fictional character in the 2012 Argentine telenovela ''

Graduados ''Graduados'' ( en, link=no, The Graduates) is a 2012 Argentine telenovela that was broadcast by Telefe from March 12 to December 19. The plot concerns a group of people who graduated from high school in 1989 and reunite twenty years later. Th ...

''. He is played by

Mex Urtizberea Mex Urtizberea (born October 25, 1960 in Buenos Aires, Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , m ...

, both as an adult and, in flashbacks, as a teenager.

Fictional biography

Benjamín "Tuca" Pardo was a high school student in the 1980s, and became best friends with

Andrés Goddzer ''Andrés "Andy" Goddzer'' is a fictional character in the 2012 Argentine telenovela ''Graduados'' (Graduates). He is played by Daniel Hendler, both as an adult and, in flashbacks, as a teenager. Hendler won two awards for his work as the character ...

(

Daniel Hendler Daniel Hendler (born 3 January 1976) is a Uruguayan film, television, and theatre actor who works mainly in the cinema of Argentina, where he lives. He is known for his starring roles in films such as '' Bottom of the Sea'', ''Family Law'', '' ...

) and Verónica Diorio ( Julieta Ortega). He became a millonarie, and keeps hosting parties. He fell in love with

Victoria Lauría Victoria Lauría is a fictional character in the 2012 Argentine telenovela ''Graduados''. She is played by Paola Barrientos, both as an adult and, in flashbacks, as a teenager. Barrientos. received the Tato Award and the Martín Fierro Award for he ...

(

Paola Barrientos Paola Barrientos (born February 23, 1975 in San Fernando, Buenos Aires, San Fernando, Buenos Aires, Argentina) is an Argentine actress. She worked in theater for several years. She took part in a successful TV spot of Banco Galicia, which allowed ...

), and got married with her.

Character creation

Initially,

Violeta Urtizberea Violeta Urtizberea (February 19, 1985) is an Argentine actress. She worked once again with her father in the 2012 telenovela ''Graduados''. Biography She is the granddaughter of the journalist Raúl Urtizberea, daughter of the actor Mex Urtizbe ...

(the daughter of

) was part of the cast of ''

'', and Mex shared ideas about the program with

Sebastián Ortega Sebastián Ortega (born 14 August 1973) is an Argentine television producer, screenwriter, production director and actor. Early life Sebastián Ortega was born on 14 August 1973 in Buenos Aires. He is the son of singer Palito Ortega and actress ...

, his friend. When the actor that would have played the "Tuca" character left the cast, Ortega invited Mex to take part in it as well. Initially, Mex refused, so Ortega promised him that there would be no shared scenes between both. Violeta refused as well to work in the same program with her father, but finally accepted. According to Urtizberea, Ortega described Tuca as the heir of a big fortune, who lives making parties with his friends. He would have an artificial beard and a scruffy style. Mex designed then his walking and talking manners, and draw inspiration for his slow pronunciation from the poet Eduardo Mileo.

Other media

Mex Urtizberea appeared in an interview at the TV program '' La Pelu'' fully costumed as the character. He maintained the "Tuca Pardo" persona during the interview, and detailed his biography and his relation with

(another character from the telenovela) in a complete

in-universe A fictional universe, or fictional world, is a self-consistent setting with events, and often other elements, that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed, or fictional realm (or world). Fictional universes may ...

perspective. There was a cameo at the 2013 telenovela ''

Los vecinos en guerra ''Los Vecinos en Guerra'' ( es, Neighbors at War) also stylized as ''Vecinos en Guerra'' is an Argentine television comedy produced by Underground Contenidos and Endemol which premiered on April 15, 2013 and ended on January 2, 2014. It is written ...

'', also produced by Ortega. The character appeared in a party attended by Paloma (

Candela Vetrano María Candela Vetrano Vega (born August 9, 1991 in Lomas de Zamora, Buenos Aires, Argentina) better known as Candela Vetrano is an Argentine actress, model and fashion designer. Biography María Candela Vetrano was born on August 9, 1991 i ...

) and Lucas (

Gastón Soffritti Gastón Nicolás Soffritti (born December 13, 1991) is an Argentine actor. He debuted as an actor at the age of 9 and has appeared in the series '' Floricienta'', '' Patito Feo'', '' Sueña Conmigo'' and ''Graduados''. Biography Soffritti's ...

). The cameo took place because the scene was being filmed near Urtizberea's house; the TV channel

Telefe Telefe (acronym for Televisión Federal) is a television station located in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The station is owned and operated by Paramount Global through Televisión Federal S.A. Telefe is also one of Argentina's six national televisio ...

had kept the costume and artificial beard that he had used. However, his cameo did not help to boost the ratings of the program, which stayed below the rival telenovela '' Solamente Vos''.

Awards

Mex Urtizberea has been nominated to the 2012

Tato Awards The Tato Awards ( es, Premios Tato) are Argentine awards for television, released by the CAPIT (Cámara Argentina de Productoras Independientes de Televisión). The award is named "Tato" as an homage to the late Tato Bores Mauricio Borensztei ...

and the 2012

Martín Fierro Awards The Martín Fierro Awards ( es, Premios Martín Fierro) is the name of the most prominent awards for Argentine radio and television, granted by APTRA, the Association of Argentine Television and Radio Journalists. History The awards were first g ...

; but did not receive either one.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pardo, Benjamin Graduados characters Fictional socialites Television characters introduced in 2012