I never had the pleasure of meeting Reynold Vincent “René” Anselmo (1926–1995) in person. To this day, I haven’t had the opportunity to meet or speak with any of his family members. However, my knowledge of him goes back to the early eighties. In fact, in 1986 (the year I graduated from Ithaca College, with a major in television and radio production, and a minor in “foreign” languages), I wrote a dissertation about him and the remarkable transformation of his creation, SIN (Spanish International Network), which is now known as Univisión. I was also aware that he co-founded PanAmSat, a satellite company, two years prior in 1984. I knew he was born in Massachusetts, the son of a postmaster. I was familiar with his military background and his work with the renowned Azcárraga family in Televisa, Mexico.
I envision a bestselling biography on René Anselmo. I imagine a professionally produced documentary about his life. I even foresee a trilingual dramatized version (similar to the Steve Jobs film) showcasing his life in Castilian (castellano), English, and Italian, with closed captions in those languages for the family scenes. Naturally, the production should include scenes from Massachusetts (his hometown), Connecticut, New York, and Mexico, with appropriate television technology from that era.
Of course, the iconic SIN (Spanish International Network) bumper (as shown above) should be played on 4:3 standard definition tube TVs of that era, along with key programs that SIN used to offer its viewers, accompanied by conversations between Anselmo and the producers. Some of the characters should be carefully chosen. I am genuinely surprised that none of these ideas have been brought to life yet. In fact, very few of my friends who currently or previously worked at Univisión have even heard of René Anselmo. That needs to change.
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