Renny Ottolina
Encyclopedia
Renaldo José "Renny" Ottolina Pinto (December 11, 1928 in Valencia, Carabobo – March 16, 1978) was a Venezuela
n-born producer and entertainer. His mother died when he was two years old. At the age of six his father (an Italian emigrant) moved him to Caracas with his paternal grandmother, for he was going to Germany. Renny didn't graduate high school, but was a fast learner and he was mostly self-taught. At the age of seventeen, he started working in one of only a handful of radio station
s that existed at the time in Caracas, as a broadcaster. With his perfect diction and harmonic voice, he quickly became a favorite among listeners. He learned English by working at the American embassy.
took note of him and brought him to New York, to star in his own TV show. Even though he had a Latin accent, after a short time they moved him to compete with Jack Paar
. After almost a year, ABC acquired 45% of the stocks in a new Venezuelan TV station
, where they offered Ottolina the post of "Head Manager". He accepted and put together the entire staff that would populate the station. He resigned when he solicited stocks in exchange of his full attention. RCTV
snatched him as an independent producer, and gave him two shows: El Show de Renny
and Renny Presenta would be the cornerstone of RCTV's programing. The first was a variety show
and the second would focus on Venezuela and its natural beauties. After two years, he decided "to take and give you a break" for a year, and moved to Italy. This would become common practice for him, taking sabbaticals in France and London.
In the seventies Ottolina started to enter Venezuelan politics and made many criticisms of corruption to Carlos Andrés Pérez
, then President of Venezuela. He lost his spot on RCTV, when management decided Renny was making more money in his time slot than the network was. From there he moved to TVN-5, where after a few months the same thing happened; he was more popular than the stations who carried his shows. It was at this point the three TV stations
in Venezuela decided not to allow independent productions. Since they could not compete with, nor control, Ottolina's hipnotic charisma. An old friend working as a radio manager convinced Renny to come back to his roots in radio. He did.
On the air again, he began to take a political stand. This served as a platform for the presidential campaign of 1978
when he ran for President. He died on March 16, 1978 in a plane crash during the presidential campaign which was ultimately won by Luis Herrera Campins
. His untimely death led to popular suspicion and numerous rumors.
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
n-born producer and entertainer. His mother died when he was two years old. At the age of six his father (an Italian emigrant) moved him to Caracas with his paternal grandmother, for he was going to Germany. Renny didn't graduate high school, but was a fast learner and he was mostly self-taught. At the age of seventeen, he started working in one of only a handful of radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
s that existed at the time in Caracas, as a broadcaster. With his perfect diction and harmonic voice, he quickly became a favorite among listeners. He learned English by working at the American embassy.
Career
ABCAmerican Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
took note of him and brought him to New York, to star in his own TV show. Even though he had a Latin accent, after a short time they moved him to compete with Jack Paar
Jack Paar
Jack Harold Paar was an author, American radio and television comedian and talk show host, best known for his stint as host of The Tonight Show from 1957 to 1962...
. After almost a year, ABC acquired 45% of the stocks in a new Venezuelan TV station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
, where they offered Ottolina the post of "Head Manager". He accepted and put together the entire staff that would populate the station. He resigned when he solicited stocks in exchange of his full attention. RCTV
RCTV
Radio Caracas Televisión Internacional is a Venezuelan cable television network headquartered in the Caracas neighborhood of Quinta Crespo. It was sometimes referred to as the Canal de Bárcenas. Owned by Empresas 1BC, RCTV Internacional was inaugurated as Radio Caracas Televisión on 15 November...
snatched him as an independent producer, and gave him two shows: El Show de Renny
El Show de Renny
El Show de Renny was a Venezuelan variety show hosted by Renny Ottolina that aired from 1958 to 1971 on Radio Caracas Televisión . Ottolina also wrote and produced the show, becoming one of the first independent television producers in Venezuela.The show featured Las Chicas de Renny...
and Renny Presenta would be the cornerstone of RCTV's programing. The first was a variety show
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
and the second would focus on Venezuela and its natural beauties. After two years, he decided "to take and give you a break" for a year, and moved to Italy. This would become common practice for him, taking sabbaticals in France and London.
In the seventies Ottolina started to enter Venezuelan politics and made many criticisms of corruption to Carlos Andrés Pérez
Carlos Andrés Pérez
Carlos Andrés Pérez Rodríguez , also known as CAP and often referred to as El Gocho , was a Venezuelan politician, President of Venezuela from 1974 to 1979 and again from 1989 to 1993. His first presidency was known as the Saudi Venezuela due to its economic and social prosperity thanks to...
, then President of Venezuela. He lost his spot on RCTV, when management decided Renny was making more money in his time slot than the network was. From there he moved to TVN-5, where after a few months the same thing happened; he was more popular than the stations who carried his shows. It was at this point the three TV stations
Television channel
A television channel is a physical or virtual channel over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, "channel 2" refers to the broadcast or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with carrier frequencies of 55.25 MHz for NTSC analog video and...
in Venezuela decided not to allow independent productions. Since they could not compete with, nor control, Ottolina's hipnotic charisma. An old friend working as a radio manager convinced Renny to come back to his roots in radio. He did.
On the air again, he began to take a political stand. This served as a platform for the presidential campaign of 1978
Venezuelan presidential election, 1978
General elections were held in Venezuela on 3 December 1978. The presidential elections were won by Luis Herrera Campins of Copei, who received 46.6% of the vote. Although Copei received more votes, Democratic Action won the most seats in the Chamber of Deputies, whilst the two parties won 21 seats...
when he ran for President. He died on March 16, 1978 in a plane crash during the presidential campaign which was ultimately won by Luis Herrera Campins
Luis Herrera Campins
Luis Antonio Herrera Campins was President of Venezuela from 1979 to 1984. He was elected to one five-year term in 1978. He was a member of the COPEI party.- Early Life and career:...
. His untimely death led to popular suspicion and numerous rumors.
- In 2005 Carlos Alarico Gómez made a biographical book about the life of Renny Ottolina, for the Biblioteca Biográfica Venezolana, with the seal of El NacionalEl NacionalEl Nacional is a Venezuelan publishing company under the name C.A. Editorial El Nacional, most widely known for its El Nacional newspaper. It, along with Últimas Noticias and El Universal, are the most widely read and circulated daily national newspapers in the country, and it has an average of...
.
External links
- Photos and commentaries about Renny Ottolina
- La patria es del tamaño del corazón de quien la quiere, Reflexions of Renny Ottolina, biography and hypothesis about his death
- Juicio a la televisión venezolana, Article of Renny Ottolina published by the Resumen magazine