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Spanish language prime time serials, or telenovelas, are produced in all Spanish speaking countries, and the United States. Portuguese language telenovelas made in Brazil are also dubbed into Spanish for the Latin American market. Telenovelas are usually aired during prime time. Some of the most famous telenovelas have come from Puerto Rico, Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela. In Spain they are also called culebrón ("long snake") because of the convoluted plots and large number of episodes, usually in the hundreds.
However, unlike American soap operas, which can endure for decades with an ever rotating cast of players and characters, most Latin American telenovelas have an average run of three months, and have few cast changes within the course of a serial.
Telenovelas are not only immensely popular in Latin America, Spain, and in Hispanic communities in the United States, but also have a wide following in Russia, Eastern Europe, and Japan as well.
In Argentina, they are usually produced by TelefeTelevision Federal S. Telefe better known as Telefe is an Argentinan television network. It was established in 1989. It was created by Grupo Atlantida (80%) and News Corporation (20%). The station is currently the most viewed television station in Argenti, in Brazil they are usually produced by Rede Globo , SBTSBT stands for Sistema Brasileiro de Televisao (Brazilian Television System, "system" being the word that the portuguese language uses to describe a network of broadcasters). It is owned by Silvio Santos, a popular brazilian TV host. His real name is Seno or BandeirantesBandeirantes were participants in the Bandeiras, expeditions organised by the inhabitants of the then poor village of Sao Paulo dos Campos de Piratininga together with allied Indians to enslave other Indians, recaptured runaway slaves, and mainly to find, in Venezuela they are usually produced by Venevision or Radio Caracas Television , in Mexico by TelevisaTelevisa is Mexico's largest television network. It was created in 1973 as Television Via Satelite when Telesistema Mexicano (established in 1955) and Television Independiente de Mexico (established in 1968) merged. Televisa largely dedicates itself to th and TV AztecaTV Azteca is a Mexican television network. It was established in 1993, following the privatization, under Carlos Salinas de Gortari, of the state-owned Instituto Mexicano de la Television ("Imevision"). TV Azteca affiliates include Azteca America Network,, in Puerto Rico, they were produced by WAPA-TV or Telemundo Puerto Rico. In the United States, Telemundo and Univision are big producers of Spanish Telenovelas.
Arguably the most popular and influential telenovela ever was Simplemente María , which also gained popularity outside of Spanish-speaking regions.
Some of the most famous telenovelas in history include: