Selena Quintanilla Pérez, known mononymously as Selena, was an American Tejano singer. Called the "Queen of Tejano music", her contributions to music and fashion made her one of the most celebrated Mexican-American entertainers of the late 20th century. In 2020, Billboard magazine put her in third place on their list of "Greatest Latino Artists of All Time", based on both Latin albums and Latin songs chart. Media outlets called her the "Tejano Madonna" for her clothing choices. She also ranks among the most influential Latin artists of all time and is credited for catapulting the Tejano genre into the mainstream market.
Edward James Olmos is an American actor, director, producer, and activist. He is best known for his roles as Lieutenant Martin "Marty" Castillo in Miami Vice (1984–1989), American Me (1992), William Adama in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica (2004–2009), teacher Jaime Escalante in Stand and Deliver (1988), Detective Gaff in Blade Runner (1982) and its sequel Blade Runner 2049 (2017) and the English dub voice of Mito in the 2005 Disney dub of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. In 2018 through 2022, he has played the father of two members of an outlaw motorcycle club in the FX series Mayans MC.
Yolanda Saldívar is an American former nurse who was convicted of the murder of singer Selena in 1995. Saldívar had been the president of Selena's fan club and the manager of her boutiques, but she lost both positions a short time before the murder, when the singer's family discovered that she had been embezzling money from both organizations.
María Guadalupe Villalobos Vélez, known professionally as Lupe Vélez, was a Mexican actress, singer and dancer during the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema.
Selena is a 1997 American biographical musical drama film written and directed by Gregory Nava. It is based on the true story of Tejano music star Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, chronicling her rise to fame and tragic death when she was murdered by Yolanda Saldívar at the age of 23. The film stars Jennifer Lopez, Edward James Olmos, Jon Seda, Constance Marie, Jacob Vargas, Lupe Ontiveros, and Jackie Guerra.
Christopher Gilbert Pérez is an American guitarist, best known as lead guitarist for the Tejano band Selena y Los Dinos. He married the frontwoman of the group, Selena, on April 2, 1992. Pérez grew up in San Antonio, Texas as one of two children of Gilbert Pérez and Carmen Medina. In 1986, he began his tenure by joining Shelly Lares' band. By the late 1980s, Pérez was respected among Tejano musicians for his guitar skills. This caught A.B. Quintanilla's attention; at the time, A.B. was seeking another guitarist for the band he produced, Selena y Los Dinos. Between one and two years after Pérez joined the band, he and Selena began a personal relationship.
America Georgina Ferrera is an American actress. Born in Los Angeles to Honduran parents, Ferrera developed an interest in acting at a young age, performing in several stage productions at her school. She made her feature film debut in 2002 with the comedy-drama Real Women Have Curves, earning praise for her performance. Ferrera has won an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award among others.
Real Women Have Curves is a 2002 American comedy-drama film directed by Patricia Cardoso, based on the play of the same name by Josefina López, who co-authored the screenplay for the film with George LaVoo. The film stars America Ferrera as protagonist Ana García. It gained fame after winning the Audience Award for best dramatic film, and the Special Jury Prize for acting in the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. The film went on to receive the Youth Jury Award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival, the Humanitas Prize, the Imagen Award, and Special Recognition by the National Board of Review. According to the Sundance Institute, the film gives a voice to young women who are struggling to love themselves and find respect in the United States.
Dania Ramirez is a Dominican-American actress. Her credits include the roles of Maya Herrera in Heroes, Alex in Entourage, and Blanca during the last season of The Sopranos on television. Her film roles include Alex Guerrero in She Hate Me and Callisto in the feature film X-Men: The Last Stand. She portrayed Rosie Falta on Lifetime's Devious Maids from June 2013, until its cancellation in 2016. In July 2017, Ramirez joined the hit ABC series Once Upon a Time for its softly-rebooted seventh season in a starring role as Cinderella.
Ilka Tanya Payán was a Dominican-born actress and attorney who later became a prominent HIV/AIDS activist in the United States.
Laura Elena, Countess von Bismarck-Schönhausen, known professionally as Laura Harring, is a Mexican-American actress. In 1985, Harring became the first Hispanic woman crowned Miss USA. She later began her acting career in television and film. She is best known for her dual roles as Rita and Camilla Rhodes in the 2001 postmodern neo-noir film Mulholland Drive. She is also known for her roles in other films, including The Forbidden Dance (1990), John Q (2002), Willard (2003), The Punisher (2004), The King (2005), Love in the Time of Cholera (2007), Ghost Son (2007), The Caller (2008), Drool (2009), Sex Ed (2014), and Inside (2016). She also played Carla Greco in General Hospital (1990–1991), Paula Stevens on Sunset Beach (1997), and Rebecca "Becca" Doyle in The Shield (2006).
Selena Quintanilla Pérez was an American singer who achieved international fame as a member of Selena y Los Dinos and for her subsequent solo career in both Spanish and English. Her father and manager, Abraham Quintanilla Jr., appointed Yolanda Saldívar president of Selena's fan club in 1991 after Saldívar had repeatedly asked permission to start one. In January 1994, Saldívar was promoted to manager of the singer's boutiques. Soon Selena's employees, fashion designer, and cousin began complaining about Saldívar's management style. In January 1995, Quintanilla Jr. began receiving telephone calls and letters from angry fans who had sent membership payments and had received nothing in return. He began investigating their complaints and found evidence that Saldívar had embezzled $60,000 from the fan club and the boutiques using forged checks. After the Quintanilla family confronted her about this, Saldívar fatally shot Selena with a .38 special revolver on the morning of March 31, 1995, at the Days Inn in Corpus Christi, Texas. Although the healthcare team tried to revive Selena, she died of hypovolemic shock.
The Bronze Screen directed and produced by Susan Racho, and Alberto Dominguez, examines, analyzes, and critiques the portrayal of Latinos in Hollywood over the course of a century. Released in 2002, the documentary traces the different stereotypes evoked by Hollywood throughout the mid 19th and 20th century. This is done through the use of silent films and small excerpts from a variety of movie genres that feature Latinos. Carmen Miranda and Margarita Cansino are a few of the many Latin actors and actresses whose careers, according to film historians, directors, and fellow actors featured in the documentary, were fabricated and highly manipulated by Hollywood. Furthermore, these actresses are used to illustrate the politics behind American Cinema and Latino/a negative representations in Hollywood. In addition to exploring stereotypes and negative representations of Latinos, The Bronze Screen also acknowledges the contribution and emergence of Latino writers, directors, cinematographers, composers, and graphic designers. Luis Valdez, Pablo Ferro, Moctesuma Esparza, and John Alonzo are a few, among the many featured in the documentary, that have paved the way for other Latinos who want to work in the industry, as well as, portrayed Latinos in a more positive manner through their films.
Lucy Gallardo was an Argentine-born Mexican actress and screenwriter. She was best known for her numerous roles in Mexican cinema, as well as Mexico's telenovelas. Gallardo was the widow of Mexican actor Enrique Rambal.
State of Texas v. Yolanda Saldívar was a criminal trial held at the Harris County Criminal Courthouse in Downtown Houston, in the U.S. state of Texas. The trial began with the jury's swearing-in on October 9, through opening statements on October 12, to a verdict on October 23, 1995. Former nurse Yolanda Saldívar was tried on one count of first-degree murder after the shooting death of American Tejano music singer Selena on March 31, 1995, after which she held police and the FBI Crisis Negotiation Unit at bay for almost ten hours. The case has been described as the most important trial for the Hispanic population and was compared to the O. J. Simpson murder trial by media outlets. It was one of the most publicly followed trials in the history of the state of Texas.
Los Americans is an eight-part series that focuses on a multi-generational, middle-income Latino family living in Los Angeles. The show was written and directed by Dennis Leoni and released in 2011.
Latinos Beyond Reel is a documentary which was released on February 23, 2013. Latinos Beyond Reel taps into the harsh reality of Latino representation in the media industry. Latinos Beyond Reel was directed by Miguel Picker and Chyng-Feng Sun. Latinos Beyond Reel is under The Media Education Foundation (MEF). The Media Education Foundation (MEF) produced and distributed the film. The film talks about the underrepresentation and marginalization of Latinos in the U.S media. The film also talks about the effects the false representation of Latinos in the media industry has on youth. Latinos Beyond Reel captures the most unfortunate portrayal of Latinos in the media ranging from off-screen roles to animated characters in film and television.
Jessica Marie Garcia is an American actress. She made her acting debut as Sierra on the drama series Huge (2010), and subsequently played Becky on the sitcom The Middle (2012–2014). Her breakthrough came with playing Willow Cruz on the Disney Channel series Liv and Maddie (2013–2017), and she achieved mainstream success portraying Rhonda Navarro on the thriller series How to Get Away with Murder (2018–2019). She has received acclaim for starring as Jasmine Flores on the Netflix series On My Block (2018–2021), which earned her a Teen Choice Award nomination.
Verónica Falcón, credited as Veronica Falcon and occasionally Veronica Falcón, is a Mexican actress and choreographer. When it comes to her English-speaking roles, she is best known for playing Camila Vargas in three seasons of Queen of the South and Lupe Gibbs in the 2020 HBO reboot of Perry Mason. In 2022, Falcón played Camila Elizondo, for Season 4 of Ozark.
