Antonio Sánchez (Puerto Rican host)

Infobox actor
name = Antonio Sánchez


imagesize =
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birthdate = birth date and age|1961|1|1
location =
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birthname = Antonio Sánchez
othername = El Gangster
homepage =
occupation = Host, producer and comedian
notable role =

Antonio Sánchez (born January 1, 1961 in New York) is a Puerto Rican radio and television personality, show host and producer. Very famous across Puerto Rico for his crass humor, he is also known for his nickname: El Gangster. As of 2008, his television show, "No te Duermas", has been in the air for 19 years.

Biography

Early life

Antonio Sánchez was born in New York to Antonio Sánchez, Sr. and Zoraida Casiano. He was the oldest of four children. When he was 9 years old, his family returned to Puerto Rico.

Radio Host

Sánchez started studying at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico in San Germán, and he began working as a disc jockey at college parties with his now partner Angél Santiago. He was also in the midst of the late 70's CB Radio craze where he used the handle "Tony Toyota".

In 1979, while studying, he started working at a local station called Radio Disco. He was then called to work at Cosmos 94 in Mayagüez with two shows called "La Hora del Rusheo" (1981) and "El Meneo" (1982). He also worked for Salsa 63. It is during this time that he donned the name of "El Gangster". According to him, he is extremely shy, and his radio persona was a way to let go a more extroverted attitude.

In 1983, he was asked to work in San Juan, so Sánchez left his studies and moved to the capital. He started working at QBS AM Radio with "El Pon de la Mañana" with "Funky Joe", and later started working in "El Gufeo Matutino" at Z-93 with "Moonshadow".

In 1994, he returned to work with his friend, hosting "El Bayú de la Mañana" at SalSoul radio station. They remained together in the show from 1994 to 2007 when they were replaced due to differences with the managemetn. On January 2008, they started hosting a new show called "El Circo" at La Mega radio station.

Television works

In 1985, Sánchez started working on several television shows like "A Gozar" (WAPA-TV), "El pueblito Nius" and "El Show del mediodía". The next year, he hosted the game show "Lo tomas o lo dejas".

In 1987, Sánchez and friend Hector Marcano were cast as co-hosts of television game show "La Hora de Oro" on Puerto Rico's Super Siete channel. The show enjoyed a successful run for two years in Puerto Rico, period in which Sanchez's face also became familiar to the Puerto Rican public. During this time, he also performed in comedies like "El Cuartel de la Risa" (1989) and "Adultos Solteros" (1990), both with Rafael José.

When Marcano moved in 1989 to Tele-Once to do a talk show named "Marcano, el Show", Sánchez was offered a job by Telemundo Puerto Rico, to make a show that would compete with Marcano's. However, Sánchez biggest success came with the show "No te Duermas" that started airing in 1989 and is still showing on Telemundo.

In 1992, Sánchez also began production of "Minga y Petraca", where he plays one of the main characters. The show was a spin-off of a sketch from "No te Duermas", where two ladies (played by Sánchez and Johnny Ray) would constantly gossip on their balcony about local celebrities. On March 2005, the show was cancelled due to the fact that Telemundo Puerto Rico wanted to open a new telenovela spot at 9:00pm, making all the sitcoms and programs at this spot to be axed, only leaving Sanchez's "No Te Duermas", as a daily show.

Other works

Sánchez also became a manager of other entertainers. Among the people he has managed is merengue singer, Giselle.

Personal life

Sanchez has been married for 24 years with Gladys Nelba, whom he met while studying. They have three children: Francheska, Gabriel, and Anaís. Sánchez has been known for rarely commenting about his personal life.

Sánchez enjoys fishing and is the owner of a Harley Davidson motorcycle.

Controversies and legal problems

On May of 2005, chaos broke in his "No Te Duermas" show when singer Banchy Serrano, the musical guest, slapped another show guest as the show was being shown live. As a consequence, both Serrano and Sánchez now face lawsuits and could lose 450,000 dollars each if found responsible for the act.

ee also

* No te Duermas
* List of talk show hosts
* Telemundo Puerto Rico

External links

* [http://www.primerahora.com/noticia/otros_asi/espectaculos_asi/realiza__audiciones_para_encontrar__sucesor/132629 Interview] at Primera Hora
* [http://www.prpop.org/biografias/a_bios/antonio_sanchez.shtml Biography]

[Category:Puerto Rican radio| [Sanchez(Puerto Rican host), Antonio|Gangster, El]