At
the 1987
Tejano Music Awards,
Selena won Best Female
Vocalist (and dominated
the award for the next
seven years).
In 1988, she released
two albums, Preciosa
and Dulce Amor.
In 1989, José Behar, the
former head of the Sony
Latin Music division,
signed Selena with
Capitol/EMI, a record
company he founded. He
later said that he
signed Selena because he
thought he had
discovered the next
Gloria Estefan.
Selena signed a contract
with
Coca-Cola
to become one of its
advertising spokesmen in
Texas that same year,
and her concerts drew
thousands of people.
Death
In
early 1995, the
Quintanillas discovered
that
Yolanda Saldívar,
the president of
Selena's fan club
(Texas-section) and the
manager of her
boutiques, was
embezzling
money from the fan club
and decided to
fire
her.Saldívar shot her
once in the back.
Critically wounded, She
died there from loss of
blood a 1:05 p.m., two
weeks before her 24th
birthday.
Legacy
Selena's death had
widespread impacts.
Major networks
interrupted their
regular programming to
break the news;
Tom Brokaw
referred to Selena as
"The Mexican
Madonna".
Among the celebrities
who were reported to
have immediately phoned
the Quintanilla family
to express their
condolences were
Gloria Estefan,
Julio Iglesias
and
Madonna.
In
October
1995, a
Houston
jury
convicted
Saldívar
of
first
degree
murder
and
sentenced
her to
life in
prison,
with the
possibility
of
parole
in
thirty
years.
The gun
used to
kill
Selena
was
later
destroyed
and the
pieces
thrown
into
Corpus
Christi
Bay.
Jennifer
Lopez
played
Selena
in
a film
about
her life.
Directed
by
Gregory
Nava,
the
biopic
opened
with
mostly
positive
reviews.
Over
20,000
people
auditioned
for the
leading
role in
the
movie.
The film
stirred
some
controversy
in the
Mexican-American
community,
since
Lopez is
Puerto
Rican-American
and
played
the role
of a
singer
of
Mexican
descent.
But
Selena's
fans
supported
the
movie,
and
Lopez's
acting
in the
film
helped
elevate
her
career.
Although
Lopez
succeeded
as a pop
star a
few
years
later,
Selena's
voice
was
dubbed
in for
all the
songs in
the
movie.
For her
role,
Lopez
was
nominated
for a
Golden
Globe
award
for Best
Actress
in a
Musical.
Selena
Fun
Facts
Selena's favorite restaurants were Pizza Hut and The Olive Garden.
Selena's favorite food was pizza. She loved to brag that she could polish off a whole medium pizza by herself.
Selena loved WhataburgersSelena loved tacos from Jack In The Box when she was touring. In the early days, Jack In The Box was her family's favorite fast food restaurant.
Selena found it impossible to turn down a dare.
Selena once filled the middle of Oreo Cookies with Mint Toothpaste, to play a joke on a fellow singer, but her father ate it.
Selena designed all of her stage outfits herself.
Selena's favorite lip color was the now discontinued "Brick" from Chanel.
Once Selena, bored on an airplane ride, got up and sang to her fellow passengers. She then put on an apron and asked them if they would like a drink.
Selena's family teased Selena, saying that the only reason she opened a salon was so that she could get pampered for free.
Selena Quintanilla Perez did not have a middle name.
Selena's favorite flowers were long stemmed, white roses.
Selena's favorite colors were purple and black. |
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