In yesterday's Miami Herald, an Associated Press article about a controversial Colombian soap opera contained an altered version of the soap's title: "Sin [Pechos] no hay Paraiso (Without Breasts There's No Paradise)." Similarly altered was a quote from the show's antagonistic character, Jessica.
A quick Google search reveals to Riptide that the real name of the show is, as suspected, Sin tetas no hay paraiso (Without Boobs There's No Paradise). Maybe the Herald translated "tetas" to "tits," in which case their reluctance to quote the title unchanged is understandable, "tits" -- or worse, "titties" -- being a little uncouth. Our Spanish-English dictionary (the VOX Compact) defines "tetas" as "boobs." Perhaps the Herald isn't allowed to print the word "boobs," an obstacle that must occasionally present difficulties when quoting residents of Miami. Since Riptide does not adhere to this prudish restriction (to say the very least) we wanted to clear the confusion up.
A visit to Canal Caracol is worth your time, if only to see the innovative graphic design for the show's logo, where the "S" in "Sin" is a dollar sign. The whole package (title, graphic design, subject matter) simply attests to a point we have repeatedly attempted to illustrate in the pages of New Times: Telenovelas are the most daring dramatic medium of our era — and, at least among English-speakers in this country, the most underappreciated.-Emily Witt
