Martita
Encyclopedia
Marta Rodríguez better known as Martita, is a coffee
maker who became famous with the Latin America
n public in the United States
and in some Latin American countries, when she was hired in 1998 by Univision
to serve daily coffee to her co-workers Raul De Molina
and Lily Estefan, during the transmissions of the "El Gordo y La Flaca
" television
show.
Rodríguez and her husband left Cuba
after he spent time in jail there during the early days of the Cuban Revolution
. They settled in New York, where she began to earn a living as a coffee maker. She has described the winters in New York as too cold and hard to get used to; Cuba is a Caribbean
island and Rodriguez had never been under cold weather before arriving at New York.
During the 1970s, she moved to Miami, Florida
. In Miami, she established a coffee stand close to the filming location of Univision
.
In 1998, after being hired by Univision as an in-house coffee maker for employees and entertainers alike, she was asked by "El Gordo y La Flaca" producer María López
if she was afraid of television cameras, because Lopez wanted Rodriguez in her show. Rodriguez answered that she wasn't, and soon enough, she began appearing on television on a daily basis.
During the early 2000s, she was recommended to write a book about her life by Don Francisco, who had Rodríguez as a guest in his Wednesday nights talk show. Her biography hit major American department stores in 2002.
Martita Rodríguez has served coffee to a large list of luminaries, apart from De Molina and Estefan. Among others, she remembers serving coffee to Ricky Martin
and to Julio Iglesias
.
On a September 2004 issue of People en Español, an article about Rodríguez was featured.
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
maker who became famous with the Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
n public in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and in some Latin American countries, when she was hired in 1998 by Univision
Univision
Univision is a Spanish-language television network in the United States. It has the largest audience of Spanish language television viewers according to Nielsen ratings. Randy Falco, COO, has been in charge of the company since the departure of Univision Communications president and CEO Joe Uva...
to serve daily coffee to her co-workers Raul De Molina
Raúl De Molina
Raúl “El Gordo” De Molina is the multiple Emmy award winning co-host of Univision Networks #1 rated entertainment news show El Gordo y la Flaca.-Biography:Raul de molina was born in Cuba but left at the age of 10...
and Lily Estefan, during the transmissions of the "El Gordo y La Flaca
El Gordo y la Flaca
El Gordo y la Flaca is a Spanish-language entertainment news show...
" television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
show.
Rodríguez and her husband left Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
after he spent time in jail there during the early days of the Cuban Revolution
Cuban Revolution
The Cuban Revolution was an armed revolt by Fidel Castro's 26th of July Movement against the regime of Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista between 1953 and 1959. Batista was finally ousted on 1 January 1959, and was replaced by a revolutionary government led by Castro...
. They settled in New York, where she began to earn a living as a coffee maker. She has described the winters in New York as too cold and hard to get used to; Cuba is a Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
island and Rodriguez had never been under cold weather before arriving at New York.
During the 1970s, she moved to Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
. In Miami, she established a coffee stand close to the filming location of Univision
Univision
Univision is a Spanish-language television network in the United States. It has the largest audience of Spanish language television viewers according to Nielsen ratings. Randy Falco, COO, has been in charge of the company since the departure of Univision Communications president and CEO Joe Uva...
.
In 1998, after being hired by Univision as an in-house coffee maker for employees and entertainers alike, she was asked by "El Gordo y La Flaca" producer María López
Maria Lopez
Maria Lopez is a Cuban-American former judge and a former television jurist on the syndicated television show Judge Maria Lopez....
if she was afraid of television cameras, because Lopez wanted Rodriguez in her show. Rodriguez answered that she wasn't, and soon enough, she began appearing on television on a daily basis.
During the early 2000s, she was recommended to write a book about her life by Don Francisco, who had Rodríguez as a guest in his Wednesday nights talk show. Her biography hit major American department stores in 2002.
Martita Rodríguez has served coffee to a large list of luminaries, apart from De Molina and Estefan. Among others, she remembers serving coffee to Ricky Martin
Ricky Martin
Enrique "Ricky" Martín Morales , better known as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican and Spanish pop singer and actor who achieved prominence, first as a member of the Latin boy band Menudo, then as a solo artist since 1991.During his career he has sold more than 60 million album copies worldwide...
and to Julio Iglesias
Julio Iglesias
Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva , better known simply as Julio Iglesias, is a Spanish singer who has sold over 300 million records worldwide in 14 languages and released 77 albums. According to Sony Music Entertainment, he is one of the top 15 best selling music artists in history,...
.
On a September 2004 issue of People en Español, an article about Rodríguez was featured.
External links
- Martita on Univision - in Spanish