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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?

 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
type
TVTItem
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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QuePasaUSA
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? was a bilingual sitcom produced by Miami, Florida PBS station WPBT from 1977 to 1980. The show centered on the humorous travails of a Cuban-American family living in the Little Havana neighborhood, the Peñas (parents Pepe and Juana; their teenaged children, Joe and Carmen; and Juana's parents, grandparents Adela and Antonio) as they struggle to adapt to American culture and customs while holding on to their Cuban roots. 39 episodes were produced.The use of language mirrored the typical real-world attitudes of Cuban-American families of the era: the oldest generation stubbornly avoiding learning any English, the middle-agers splitting about 50/50 between Spanish and English, and the youngest generation (mostly raised in the U.S.) speaking mostly in colloquial English, but still capable of communicating in Spanish.This 3-camera, videotaped production (with a live studio audience) was a unique and ambitious project for a local PBS station. Despite its humble origins and relatively low budget (by Hollywood standards), it was well-written and capably produced, and is still rerun by many PBS member stations.In 2018 a theatrical adaptation called ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? Today...40 Years Later debuted in Miami, FL.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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2023-07-06T01:29:55Z
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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2023-07-06T01:29:55Z
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DBTropes
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_1434e55c
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Amazingly Embarrassing Parents
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_1434e55c
comment
Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: And grandparents. At one point, they try playing matchmaker for Carmen and invite boys over while she is still in her bathrobe and bonnet. She shouts in Spanish that she has never been so embarrassed... except that she is so upset that she ends up screaming at the top of her lungs that she has never been so ''pregnant''note A false cognate: "embarazada" means pregnant, not "embarrassed". The word she probably was looking for was "avergonzada" (ashamed).
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Macho Latino
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comment
Macho Latino: Pepe. He sees himself as the one who wears the pants. He is outraged when Juana registers in a bookkeeping class without his permission, let alone his blessing.
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Revealing Hug
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Revealing Hug: Of the cheek kiss-cheek kiss variety. Adela goes to greet Marta with a big smile to Marta's face, but a "yuck" expression behind the woman's back.
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"Do It Yourself" Theme Tune
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"Do It Yourself" Theme Tune: The theme song for the series was written by the head writer Luis Santeiro, and performed by Paquito Hechevarría and the Fly Outs Band. Just like the show featured bilingual dialogue, the song featured lyrics in both English and Spanish.
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Immediate Self-Contradiction
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Immediate Self-Contradiction: In the "The Cuban Funeral" episode, Adela's friend Caridad decides to rest before leaving and asks Adela for some coffee. While Adela is off in the kitchen complaining of how Caridad is a pain in the ass, Antonio comes in, finds Caridad has passed away, and tells the rest of the family. Adela immediately bursts out with "¡AY DIOS MIO! ¡Mi amiga del almatranslation My closest friend!!"
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Parental Fashion Veto
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Parental Fashion Veto: Pepe and Juana frequently get on Carmen's case about what she wants to wear. And when they don't, Adela or Antonio pick up the slack. In an example, Pepe openly leers at Carmen's friend Sharon when she arrives in a tube top, but when Carmen turns up in a tube top as well, he orders her to her room to change. When the TV interviewer comes to interview the family, Carmen is wearing a perfectly decent sundress. Right on camera, Pepe tells her she must be cold and drapes the couch afghan over her shoulders like a shawl. The afghan comes in handy when Pepe denounces modern youth and announces that his daughter will remain a virgin till her wedding day and she drapes it over her head out of embarrassment. Deliberately averted when Carmen and Violeta plan to go out, but pretend they are having a girls' night in while Carmen's parents are out on a date. Violeta arrives wearing a raincoat but throws it off when the Peñas leave, revealing a halter top and Carmen likewise is dressed to party under a modest button-down shirt.
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Limited Wardrobe
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Limited Wardrobe: Joe often wears a gray T-shirt with "JOE" emblazoned on the back. Since Carmen is enrolled in Catholic school, she is often seen wearing her uniform. Pepe, who works in construction, is often seen in a blue button-down shirt and hard hat.
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Hidden Depths
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Hidden Depths: Violeta appears to just be a boy-crazy schoolgirl, but she is also quite knowledgeable about Santería and its Afro-Cuban roots. She is more than happy to counsel Carmen when it appears someone put a spell on her.
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Hormone-Addled Teenager
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Hormone-Addled Teenager: Violeta is the most boy-crazy of the teens in the cast, making sure to wear her cutest outfits and at one point, going off to see if Joe's friends have brothers her age. She even makes a play for her crush while attending a funeral.
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Child of Two Worlds
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Child of Two Worlds: Joe and Carmen's parents and grandparents pressure them to cling to traditions and values from a country they can't remember (Joe) or never experienced (Carmen). At the same time, outside the home they both experience pressure to assimilate to America and set aside their traditions.
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"Fawlty Towers" Plot
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"Fawlty Towers" Plot: The arrival of wealthy cousin Milagros. During her stay, she is snobby, treating the family like servants (even throwing her coat at Adela, who was about to greet her) and going on constantly about how rich and refined she is. Except nobody finds out until later that her family is bankrupt and that she was pretending to have lost her luggage.
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Disproportionate Retribution
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Disproportionate Retribution: Joe is interviewed on TV about being Cuban-American. The Peñas are very excited and proud until they hear him say that his parents and grandparents constantly complain about how everything in Cuba was better. They are all very upset with him already when Nosy Neighbor Marta comes over to proclaim that the neighbors are outraged because Joe made Cubans look bad, and are even collecting signatures to have him extradited from La Sagüeseranote a section of Miami settled by the first wave of Cuban refugees.
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Do Not Call Me "Paul"
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Do Not Call Me "Paul": Joe quickly corrects a TV interviewer who introduces him as "José Peña" before the man asks him about being Cuban-American.
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Back-Alley Doctor
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Back-Alley Doctor: An actually competent example. Antonio brings his friend Miguel to the house to examine Joe, who is laid up with stomach pains. After Miguel pulls his doctor's kit from a shopping bag, Carmen explains to her American friend Sharon that Miguel was a doctor in Cuba but does not have a license to practice because he does not speak English. He tells Carmen to hush because "the walls have ears". Miguel still has his drawbacks; in another episode, Juana tells Pepe not to take her father to Miguel for a checkup because Miguel cannot take Medicare for payments.
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Reports of My Death Were Greatly Exaggerated
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An obituary for a woman whose name is the same as Adela's goes out, and two overwrought friends of hers come to the house. They are shocked to see that Adela is very much alive.
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Mistaken for Gay
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Mistaken for Gay: In the aptly titled episode, "Is Joe Gay?", Juana find a stack of Joe's textbooks with titles like "El homosexual latente", "Behavior Patterns of the Modern Homosexual", and "Homosexuality Throughout The Ages". She tries to convince herself that the books don't mean anything, but then tells her husband. They start arguing as to whose "fault" it is. Not a spoiler: Joe is not gay.
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Action Figure Justification
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Action Figure Justification: Juana and Pepe wonder if their son Joe is gay when they find textbooks on the subject. He blames her for buying Joe dolls as Christmas presents. Juana points out that they were G.I. Joes.
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Nosy Neighbor
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Nosy Neighbor: Marta likes to drop-in unannounced and make trouble. She also flirts shamelessly with Pepe right in front of Juana.
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Maligned Mixed Marriage
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Maligned Mixed Marriage: When cousin Patria, who just married an English-speaking American, comes to visit with her husband and his cousin Lisa, the Peñas talk about how a marriage between an American man and a Cuban woman might just work, but the opposite (American woman and a Cuban man), not so much.
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Go to Your Room!
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Go to Your Room!: Juana and Pepe are constantly sending Carmen away to her room whenever they deem the subject unfit to her teenage ears. It even turns up as part of the Comic Role Play episode. As she protests in one instance:
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Culture Clash
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Culture Clash: It becomes evident when Joe has to go to the hospital to get his appendix out. Despite living in the US for more than 15 years, the Peñas are appalled at the hospital regulations that only allow them to be with Joe during visiting hours.
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Performance Anxiety
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Performance Anxiety: Carmen organizes a talent show with a Cuban-American theme. Her mother is set to sing an aria, but her nerves have her running to the bathroom multiple time. When it's her turn, she attempts to start her number three times but she breaks down and has to be escorted offstage. Later, once the whole audience is gone, her family and friends beg her to sing, which she is able to do.
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Token White
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Token White: Carmen's friend Sharon. Speaking English and only a little Spanish and not being of Cuban or any other Latin/Hispanic origin makes her stand out more than her race.
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Put on a Bus
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Put on a Bus: When Steven Bauer (credited as Rocky Echevarría) left after the third season, Joe was written out as going off to attend Miami University in Ohio. Pepe's nephew Iggy ended up occupying the "young Cuban-American teenaged boy" slot for the last 8 episodes.
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Comic Role Play
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Comic Role Play: The family calls their priest for advice in dealing with conflicts. He suggest they try this, with Joe and Carmen as the parents, Pepe and Juana as the children, and the grandparents as spectators. The latter spend the whole exercise interjecting observations:
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Significant Name Overlap
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Significant Name Overlap: Carmen brings over a boyfriend to meet the family. Pepe is weirded out when the young man turns out to also be named Pepe; Adela smirks that now he knows how it felt when she and Antonio met "Pepe #1". An obituary for a woman whose name is the same as Adela's goes out, and two overwrought friends of hers come to the house. They are shocked to see that Adela is very much alive.
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Out-of-Context Eavesdropping
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comment
Out-of-Context Eavesdropping: It happens a lot. In one example, the family is discussing doing something nice for Adela. Of course, Adela manages to overhear them make plans to surprise her by taking her to a plant nursery, but thanks to her tenuous grasp of English, thinks they are talking of dropping her off at a nursing home, scaring her.
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Serial Spouse
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Serial Spouse: Nosy Neighbor Marta barges in the middle of the evening, having overheard Pepe and Juana argue. She calls herself an expert in relationships, as she has been married four times.
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Large Ham
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Large Ham: The acting style is unsubtle, which actually made it easier to understand plot lines if you were not fully bilingual.
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Suspicious Ski Mask
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comment
Suspicious Ski Mask: The burglar that breaks into the Peña home is wearing one. When Adela first sees him, she thinks it's her Joe and smacks him upside the head. Antonio does the same thing. When the police arrives, the fam and Carmen's friends cannot agree on what he looks like.
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Bilingual Dialogue
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comment
Bilingual Dialogue: Enforced trope; the Department of Health, Education and Welfare required the dialogue be split to be 60% English and 40% Spanish. No matter which was your primary tongue (or your fluency in the second one, if any) you would still get most of the jokes.
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Ancestral Name
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comment
Ancestral Name: Father Pepe and son Joe have the same name: José Manuel Peña. Joe's nickname is an English version of his given name (befitting a Cuban-American teen who has grown up in the States and has no memories of Cuba). As for the fiercely proud Pepe, he goes by a common nickname for the Spanish name José.
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Visible Boom Mic
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_980647af
comment
Visible Boom Mic: Befitting the invokedNo Budget show, it happens quite often. An egregious example happens in the final third of the episode where Carmen and Sharon go on a double date.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_980647af
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Character Tics
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_9ae8eea9
comment
Character Tics: Carmen has a tendency to hide her head under a sheet or blanket (or whatever is available) whenever she is embarrassed, like when Pepe announces on live TV that she is going to remain a virgin until marriage.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_9ae8eea9
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_9ae8eea9
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_9cbf01d6
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Stay in the Kitchen
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_9cbf01d6
comment
Stay in the Kitchen: Pepe tries to discourage Juana from participating in efforts to prevent the city from turning a park into a parking lot. He does not succeed.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_9cbf01d6
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_a56e3cba
type
Language Barrier
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_a56e3cba
comment
Language Barrier: Played for Laughs. Grandparents Antonio and Adela speak Spanish, knowing only a couple of words of English, and often complain of always being left out of conversations. Joe was brought over from Cuba when he was three and Carmen was born in the US; they speak both languages but sometimes stumble in Spanish. Pepe and Juana's English skills are adequate but sometimes they still struggle. Sharon (Carmen's American friend) only speaks English, which limits her ability to follow conversations. When she tries to speak Spanish, she butchers it.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_a56e3cba
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b26b3e4b
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Faux Fluency
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b26b3e4b
comment
Faux Fluency: Averted when it came to Spanish – the principal actors were all actual Cuban refugees/transplants, many of whom had acted in their native country prior to fleeing Castro's regime. As for English, Juana and Pepe appear quite fluent but misspeak often enough (Pepe: "I am going to give him a piece of my head!"; Juana, who works outside the home, proudly announces on live TV that "I work in the street"). Adela and Antonio sometimes pretend they understand what's going on when it is obvious they don't.
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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b26b3e4b
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b58c51d8
type
My Beloved Smother
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b58c51d8
comment
My Beloved Smother: Joe needs to have his appendix removed. The entire family is appalled when they learn that hospital rules only allow them to be with Joe during visiting hours. Juana, who had packed a bag so she could stay overnight is so distraught, she scares away an expectant mother:
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b58c51d8
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b6cebad3
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Double Standard
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b6cebad3
comment
The Double Standard in parenting that requires Carmen to be chaperoned on dates and have her clothes policed by parents and grandparents, but allows plenty of freedom for Joe.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_b6cebad3
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_bc78e4a
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Mistaken Ethnicity
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_bc78e4a
comment
Mistaken Ethnicity: A burglar in a ski mask breaks in while Adela is home. As the Peñas (plus Violeta and Sharon) arrive, they all end up tied up while the robber steals their stuff. Fortunately a neighbor (Mrs. Allen, not busybody Marta) calls the police and the robber is caught. When the family sees the unmasked robber's blonde hair and fair skin, they make some disparaging about him being American. The robber retorts that he is "more Cuban than sugar".
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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_bc78e4a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_c6ed4005
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Candy Striper
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_c6ed4005
comment
Candy Striper: Carmen and Sharon get jobs as candy stripers. However, Antonio manages to get the impression that they are strippers. When the girls come out in their modest striped smocks, Antonio, who was expecting a more Stripperiffic outfit, grumbles, "OK, they start out all covered up."
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Unusual Euphemism
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_d848560f
comment
Unusual Euphemism: "Einstein's theory of relativity", for The Talk or any related topic.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_d848560f
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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_d848560f
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_d8e40b47
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El Spanish "-o"
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_d8e40b47
comment
El Spanish "-o": While Joe and Carmen speak Spanish, sometimes they resort to turning English words into Spanish, like Carmen reporting that the dentist found she had "caberías" instead of "caries" (cavities), or Joe reporting his teacher had "flonkeado" (flunked) his class. Mrs. Allen, the Peñas' American neighbor has come over to complain about someone parking on her lawn, and only finds Adela at first (she has been teaching English to Adela and Antonio, but they are not fast learners):
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e2d457
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The Ditz
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e2d457
comment
The Ditz: Sharon, one of Carmen's two best friends. Unlike Carmen or her other friend Violeta, she is not of Cuban or even Latin ancestry. Her Spanish is limited to a few words or expressions, which leads to her spouting all sorts of nonsense, and the occasional truth. She shows some signs of improvement in latter seasons.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e2d457
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type
The "Fun" in "Funeral"
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e4f48a7f
comment
The "Fun" in "Funeral": In "The Cuban Funeral", Joe and Carmen were miffed at having to cancel a party to attend a funeral. Once there, Joe meets his crush and Carmen gets to talk to a cute guy. They protest when Juana tells them it is time to leave and makes them say good-bye to the bereaved:
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e4f48a7f
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e5fb3d1f
type
Hey, Let's Put on a Show
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e5fb3d1f
comment
Hey, Let's Put on a Show: Carmen is running "Noche Cubana", a talent show centered on Cuban-American culture. The show features Violeta doing a dramatic piece with an English partner, Sharon as a last minute substitute for an ill cha-cha dancer, Juana succumbing to stage fright, and finally, Carmen and Joe dueting on a song they wrote together with lyrics in English and Spanish about their heritage.
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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e5fb3d1f
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e7011bb3
type
Garage Sale
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e7011bb3
comment
Garage Sale: A full episode dedicated to the Peñas holding one. Nosy Neighbor Marta comes over to flirt with Pepe right under Juana's nose: Other highlights include a Spanish-speaking couple who misunderstand the concept and ask about buying the garage. A rep from an antiques dealer shows up, hands Pepe his card, takes a look around... and takes the card back.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_e7011bb3
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_f329f2a2
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Got Volunteered
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_f329f2a2
comment
Got Volunteered: Antonio is set to testify at a hearing before the city commissioner board, and at the last minute he drafts "my American friend Sharon" to interpret for him. Together, they convince the chairwoman to cast the deciding vote to save the park.
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_f329f2a2
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_f9f2c33
type
Running Gag
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_f9f2c33
comment
Running Gag: Carmen hiding her face whenever her parents (or grandparents) embarrass her. Marta dropping in with a smirk, knowing exactly how annoying the Peñas find her, but that courtesy prevents them from not opening the door. The Double Standard in parenting that requires Carmen to be chaperoned on dates and have her clothes policed by parents and grandparents, but allows plenty of freedom for Joe. Adela and Antonio complaining about being left out when the rest of the family has conversations in English.
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Old Maid
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_ff2ceef1
comment
Old Maid: Antonio brings up this trope when he is discussing his niece Patria's marriage prospects. Meeting her new husband (he is not Cuban-American and cannot speak any Spanish) only reinforces his opinion:
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_ff2ceef1
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 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_ff7e9adf
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Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_ff7e9adf
comment
Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Sharon is a blue-eyed blond. As Adela is grieving for her friend, her grandchildren do not act very sympathetic. In contrast, Sharon does manage to express sincere condolences in her best (if awful) Spanish:
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_ff7e9adf
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¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
AcCENT upon the Wrong SylLABle / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Action Figure Justification / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Ancestral Name / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Back-Alley Doctor / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Bilingual Dialogue / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Candy Striper / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Child of Two Worlds / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Comic Role Play / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Disowned Adaptation / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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El Spanish "-o" / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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"Fawlty Towers" Plot / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Games of the Elderly / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Garage Sale / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Go to Your Room! / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Got Volunteered / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Hey, Let's Put on a Show / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Hormone-Addled Teenager / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Immediate Self-Contradiction / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Latino-American Media / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Maligned Mixed Marriage / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Mistaken Ethnicity / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Nosy Neighbor / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
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Old Maid / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Out-of-Context Eavesdropping / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Parental Fashion Veto / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Performance Anxiety / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Revealing Hug / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Series of the 1970s / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
The Ditz / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Token White / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Too Annoyed to Be Afraid / int_ec66836a
 ¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.?
hasFeature
Visible Boom Mic / int_ec66836a