Raising Cane To say that television's Alex Vega is a highly conflicted man would be an understatement. Recently appointed as the CEO of Duque Rum and Sugar by his adopted father, Pancho Duque, Vega assumes control of the board in a quiet, yet decisive manner. He pushes forward with ambitious plans for the company, including a federal deal to produce sugar-based ethanol. That goes contrary to the wishes of Pancho's natural first-born, Frank, who resents Vega for taking a position that should have been his. Vega also discovers that rival sugar king Joe Samuels was behind the kidnapping and murder of his younger sister, Lucía, and will do what it takes to protect the business and his family. That can mean anything, from keeping secrets from family members and protecting them, to having a man killed.
“The idea of family is everything to him, but at the same time that very concept of what family could be is, at its essence, his major conflict, because he is not really a part of that family, by blood anyway, so what does family really mean?” says actor Jimmy Smits, who plays Vega on the freshman CBS show “Cane.” “You have somebody who has these strong moral principles, but at the same time he is very conflicted about who he is, where he comes from, his parents and again, I think, that makes a very interesting springboard to jump from.”
“Cane” brings Smits back to episodic drama after a brief hiatus from television. Last season, he played the steadfast president-elect Matt Santos in the critically acclaimed political drama “The West Wing.” Smits has already received accolades for two previous TV characters: Victor Sifuentes on “LA Law,” for which he won an Emmy, and Bobby Simone on “NYPD Blue.” The latter earned Smits five Emmy nominations. “Cane,” however, is his first foray TV production.
Smits has been working on a production deal through his company, El Sendero Productions, with ABC Studios since 2004, while juggling his “West Wing” role. But finding a venture that pricked his interest proved elusive until early 2007, when the actor learned about the project through the president of CBS Entertainment, Nina Tassler. The executive had received a pitch from Interscope Records executive Polly Anthony and producer Jonathan Prince for a show about a Latino Godfather-like character. Tassler suggested Cuban writer Cynthia Cidre for the job.
Cidre and Smits already had a working relationship. Their first collaboration took place in 1991 with the movie “Fires Within.” Cidre authored the script about a Cuban political prisoner (Smits) who rejoins his wife and daughter in Miami after spending years behind bars.
“[Cynthia] does pilots and she's constantly doing scripts. Como la comunidad Latina artística aquí es tan pequeñita, we're always keeping track of one another,” Smits explains. “So when I heard that she wrote that pilot, I read it and I was very interested in talking to [Cynthia] through Nina… Cynthia and I got together, we read her preliminary draft and we had lots of conversations about where we wanted to go because, as opposed to a film script, which is very kind of, you know, beginning, middle and end, you ought to know that you can build a franchise around something. That you have a pilot and it has the legs for 100 episodes. That whoever the creator and story teller is going to be, [that person] has a vision that goes beyond one or 20 capítulos.”
When it was originally commissioned in January, the show was titled “Los Duques” and the Duques were a West-Coast Mexican-American family who owned and operated a grocery store. But Tassler encouraged Cidre to write about what she knew. Cidre was reluctant to write about her Cuban heritage, since she has done that several times already, but she came around, believing that it was time to revisit her roots. The Mexican-American grocers thus became Cuban rum and sugar tycoons living in South Florida . By the time the show was picked up and placed on CBS's fall lineup on May 14, the show was renamed “Cane.”
mits decided to sign on after some conversations with Cidre and Tassler. Smits spoke with executives at Interscope Records, including its president Jimmy Iovine, about how they could work music into the storylines. But what really sold him on the project were the show's potential and the opportunity of playing Alex Vega, a character unlike any he had played before.
“It's certainly a kind of edgier character, and I just thought that there was a possibility for more layers and textures that we could bring on a long-term basis,” he says.
One hurdle Smits needed to overcome was accommodating the CBS project with his ABC Studios deal. He placed his other projects on hold to concentrate on “Cane.” Once an agreement was ironed out, Smits came on board as the protagonist and one of the series' executive producers last February.
This story continues in Metro San Juan: Issue #1, available now.
Untitled Document
Pensamiento Da Cor: La Nueva Exposición de Marcano La nueva exposición del artista José Marcano se titula PENSAMENTO DA COR, del portugués que en español se traduce a “Pensamiento de Color”. Consta de 17 piezas de impasto con rayado en veladura, con transparencia sobre tela en formato grande.
Ashes to Ashes: Puerto Rico’s Coal Combustion Problem “Toward the end of last February we started to see the trail of ashes,” Miriam Gallardo recalls. “The first thing they did was dig a wide ditch and everything was filled with ashes.”
Power Gallery When people—be they constituents, journalists or dignitaries—visit the governor inside La Fortaleza, they often wait in El Salón de Los Gobernadores, a foir adorned with official paintings of Puerto Rico's governors.
Hell or Highwater
Now well into the second 100 days as Governor of Puerto Rico, the wee morning hours of Nov. 5, 2008, are just a memory to Luis Fortuño. He barely recalls his Brooks Brothers shirt still damp with sweat after a 20-hour day that culminated with his acceptance speech before a throng of New Progressive Party faithful drunk with victory.
The Everyman
If baseball is theater, perhaps an apt title is Everyman, the 15th century morality play about fleeting materialism. In the modern MLB version, Carlos Delgado personifies the protagonist because he is a man possessing a multitude of talents.
Off the Beaten Path Whether your fantasy getaway calls for a secluded beach bungalow, a centuries-old plantation in the mountains, or a jungle-wrapped rainforest retreat, chances are you won't have to wander too far from home— Puerto Rico has just the ticket for turning your craving into a reality.
Not Saying Adiós As Fox's talent showcase “American Idol” crowns its eighth winner this month, Puerto Rican participant Jorge Nuñez wonders what could have been and what might still be...
Legacy of a Legend The Latin music community mourns the passing of prominent music impresario Ralph Mercado. Guarded by his family, Mercado, who managed and recorded artists including Marc Anthony and Tito Puente, lost his battle with cancer, leaving behind a legacy of award-winning songs and seminal music concerts that helped define the salsa and Latin music industry.
What’s in a Name? Dressed in an impeccable suit, Donald Trump entered the Ritz Carlton ballroom and sat down flanked by his children Ivanka, Eric and Donald Jr. The ballroom filled to capacity; television cameras and reporters festooned the front row. The brouhaha could have easily been confused with a J-Lo sighting, but it was in fact a reception for one of the world’s foremost businessmen.
Gearing Up for Success The production of her first music video should have exhausted Maxinne. But the electro pop star, whose career is just blossoming, soldiers on, practicing choreographies, doing yoga and meditation and gearing up for her Puerto Rican media tour that begins this month.
World Baseball Classic:Play Ball! The World Baseball Classic, Major League Baseball’s answer—they hope— to the world craze over soccer, begins its second run on March 5. Sixteen nations are playing each other for the title of “world champ.”
Green Acres When it comes to the Puerto Rico Open, scheduled for March 9-15, perhaps the saying goes: “the second time is the charm.” The Donald Trump-owned championship golf course that hosts the open has been improved to enhance the degree of difficulty on those championship links.
Beautiful Minds Beauty of intellect, soul and character: Five of Puerto Rico's shining lights share with Metro San Juan the attitudes and philosophies that helped them overcome obstacles and build successful lives.
Comedy King Once the hearse and its accompanying cars drive past him, Santiago continues his commute home, silently. That scene became more poignant on Jan. 15, when Muñiz passed away at age 86 after battling ill health for over a decade.
New Kid on the Block Most Boricua audiences are just now hearing the name Jorge Alberti, but if you ask soap opera fans in Mexico and Chile, chances are they are very well acquainted with that name. The 31-year-old actor already has a well-established resume in Latin TV soaps with the fan base to go along with it.
Beating The Holiday Blues
The ghost of the recession has prevented some diners from enjoying a good night out, but Metro has found a way to beat the recession blues. This article serves as a map to some of the hottest, most relaxed and – above all cost effective– hangouts of the season.
Just A Girl Mayra Matos steps out of her navy-blue sedan, revealing long, elegant legs. They're covered in skin-tight jeans and her bell sleeve shirt reveals a hint of her smooth shoulders. She stands about 6 feet tall in high heels. She wears faux Dolce and Gabbana sunglasses and a frown.
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