The Domingo Pena Show

Isidro Lopez with Steve Jordan on The Domingo Pena Show. A staple of Sunday morning viewing in the 60's and 70's.

Republished from The Handbook of Texas

PEÑA, DOMINGO (1917–1983). Domingo Peña, radio and television personality, was born on December 16, 1917, in Kingsville, Texas, the son of Placido Peña and Rose Everrett. He began his career in media before World War II as an advertising announcer on a Corpus Christi radio station. At age twenty-eight he became a disc jockey at the city's Spanish-language radio station, KCCT. In the mid-1950s he hosted a variety show with live musical entertainment on KVDO, Corpus Christi's first television station. He also promoted dances in Corpus Christi and across South Texas that became popular social affairs. In 1964 he began a talk and variety program on KIII-TV. This program, the Domingo Peña Show, was a highly rated Sunday-morning feature for more than sixteen years, during which Peña's name was a household word in the city and its environs. The program featured prerecorded musical artists and live performers; it also included a full range of guests, whom Peña interviewed in his unrehearsed, free-form manner. Using his television program as a community forum, Peña was especially important in spotlighting the activities of the League of United Latin American Citizens, the American G.I. Forum, and many other civic and charitable organizations, as well as allowing local Hispanic business, civic, and political leaders to reach the Mexican-American television audience. He regularly helped people who were in financial distress by having them appear on his program to publicize their situation. It was his practice to give his own money to assist these individuals, thus prompting others to contribute. Altogether, he promoted the fortunes of numerous musicians, entertainers, community leaders, and average citizens. During its time, the Domingo Peña Show was recognized as the most effective way to reach the Corpus Christi-area Hispanic community. Peña's show was successful in large part because of his spontaneous (sometimes outrageous) style, humor, and openness. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Corpus Christi Caller-Times, November 17, 1978, December 4, 1981, January 12, 1983. Domingo Live (http://www.kiiitv.com/category/197951/domingo-live), accessed November 10, 2011. Tejano R.O.O.T.S. Hall of Fame 2000 (http://www.tejanorootshalloffame.org/2000.html), accessed January 18, 2008.