telenovela

[ tel-uh-noh-vel-uh ]

/ ˌtɛl ə noʊˈvɛl ə /

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noun

(in Latin America and Hispanic communities) a television soap opera, usually having a limited number of episodes.

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Origin of telenovela

First recorded in 1960–65; from Spanish, equivalent to tele- tele-¹ + novela “novel, serial drama”; see novel¹

Fiallo’s show “Cristal,” which premiered on Venezuelan television in 1985, became the most popular telenovela in the history of Spain, reaching as many as 18 million people a night, according to the Madrid daily El País.
Delia Fiallo, screenwriter known as ‘the mother of the telenovela,’ dies at 96|Harrison Smith|July 1, 2021|Washington Post
In a phone interview, he added that while telenovelas traditionally catered to women, most screenwriters were men.
Delia Fiallo, screenwriter known as ‘the mother of the telenovela,’ dies at 96|Harrison Smith|July 1, 2021|Washington Post
They marry and start a family, while she transitions from radio to television and writes prime-time telenovelas, bringing a typewriter into the hospital to keep working after she gives birth.
Delia Fiallo, screenwriter known as ‘the mother of the telenovela,’ dies at 96|Harrison Smith|July 1, 2021|Washington Post
Reaching an audience of millions, she signs a reported eight-figure television contract and becomes known as “la madre de la telenovela,” the mother of the telenovela.
Delia Fiallo, screenwriter known as ‘the mother of the telenovela,’ dies at 96|Harrison Smith|July 1, 2021|Washington Post

Such was the life of Delia Fiallo, who said she was “born to write telenovelas,” the Spanish-language soap operas in which love usually conquers all, including class divides and disapproving stepmothers.
Delia Fiallo, screenwriter known as ‘the mother of the telenovela,’ dies at 96|Harrison Smith|July 1, 2021|Washington Post
The love scene was just a sex dream—explaining a bit why it was so over the top, like an R-rated telenovela.
Inside True Blood’s Steamy Gay Sex Scene|Kevin Fallon|June 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Her thwarted escape from Rio was the stuff of a bad telenovela.
Pope Francis, ‘the Maker of Traffic Jams’|Mac Margolis|July 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The press is eager to cover the soap opera, and the public seems eager to engage in the real-life telenovela.
Eliot Spitzer’s Comeback Plan: A Run for New York City Comptroller|John Avlon|July 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
One D.C. wag compares the whole tawdry mess to a steamy telenovela, and even casts the key roles.
Crisis-Management Experts Weigh In on How to Handle Petraeus Scandal|Sandra McElwaine|November 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Forget reality TV; this entire saga has the makings of a great telenovela.
Let Alpha Males Like David Petraeus Cheat!|Michelle Cottle|November 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST