Reality TV producer planning new Menudo reality competition show
UPI News Service, 02/10/2005
Reality TV producer Ben Silverman wants to revive Menudo, the bilingual band that spawned Ricky Martin, through an "American Idol" kind of competition.
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The goal, he said, is to bring some young blood back to the group which was formed in 1977.
"It will start off with 'American Idol,' but then it turns into 'Making the Band,'" Silverman told Variety.
Menudo's hallmark was its rotational lineup: Boys, including Martin and Marc Anthony, were pushed out as soon as they turned 16. Since hitting it big in the United States in the early 1980s, the band has never captured the same stateside popularity.
Boys of any ethnic background may audition as long as they're fluent in both Spanish and English. And in keeping with tradition, the age limit is still 16.
