NO ONE BUT YOU: Snippet 2

Grief stricken,  Raquel catches a flight to Acapulco to attend Antonio's memorial service. She's accompanied by her sister, Martha  and find  the entrance to the mansion packed with reporters. She wonders if they were at the right house. Ezequiel is sent to the gate by Victoria to bring them inside, after one of the guards calls the house. 

 Raquel is very bewildered at the grand surroundings and wealth  Antonio never  mentioned he had, while Martha is thrilled. Victoria kindly welcomes her stepdaughter-in-law, showing her the marriage certificate for Raquel to verify. Raquel cannot understand why Antonio hid his wealth and family from her.  Camilla instantly takes a dislike to her brother's wife. Go fuck yourself freeloader.  

 Max of course keeps out of sight , under the pretence of carrying out thorough investigations about the crash. In Guadalajara, he tells Daniel the truth about himself and blackmails him.  Before he left, he removes a photo of Raquel and himself from the frame and replaces it with a doctored one of her and Tonio, in case journalists came over to interview Daniel. 

 Raquel and Martha are loaned mourning dresses by a very reluctant Camilla...what the hell is her problem?  Victoria comes in with purses for the two girls to use and finds Raquel sobbing in her pillow, poor thing.

Downstairs, Camilla is also crying for her brother. Claudio is bitter over Antonio's unexpected secret marriage , which entitled Raquel to be the heir of the vast estate instead of Camilla. All Camilla can think of was the idea of her brother marrying a low class woman instead of her good friend Maura, who is also angry about what he did. They all go to the memorial service.

Antonio staggers  until he reaches a road before passing out. A boy about 18 finds him and hurries to get his uncle Chucho. Chucho examines him but finds he's not dead. They carry him to their shack. The family returns and Victoria urges a subdued Raquel to go upstairs and rest. She asks a servant where Max was and is told he's not been home all day.

Antonio regains consciousness again and asks Chucho where he was. He checks the time but notices his gold Rolex was missing from his wrist and indignantly questions Chucho, who protests he only took it off to keep it for him (a likely story). Antonio asks him to find a way of contacting his family. Chucho replies that his nephew would do his best to get help when he goes to sell their wares.
Back in Acapulco, Max returns after everyone else had gone to bed. A servant tells him where Senora Raquel is sleeping. Max braces himself and goes upstairs...

Let's see how you intend on explaining yourself, Evil Max. 

A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE: NO ONE BUT YOU (Snippet 1)

Well, as I mentioned in my last post, things are a bit boring now that CATALINA y SEBASTIAN has wrapped up, although there's LA REVANCHA on STV and EL CUERPO DEL DESEO on AIT, GoTel as well as Superscreen (which was once called Clapperboard )but somehow I just don't fell inclined to follow them, which is why there are no posts about them in this blog.

Instead I'm taking my visitors waaaaayyy back in time to about 1993,when NTA presented us with a telenovela most people argued was as fabulous as its predecessor, THE RICH ALSO CRY. This was TU O NADIE or as we knew it then as NO ONE BUT YOU, a.k.a YOU OR NO ONE.

Starring Andres Garcia (currently playing Pedro José Donoso in EL CUERPO DEL DESEO) the lovely Lucia Mendez and Salvador Pineda as the villain, Max(see him as the very nasty and obsessive Lucio in ESMERALDA).

The story opens to the city of Guadalajara, Mexico.

Raquel Samaniego, the beautiful heroine of the story,  reddish brown curls framing her face,  is just returning from the shop where she had purchased her dress for her wedding to her love whom she had been dating for six months; a young engineer called Antonio Lombardo. She enters the humble apartment she shares with her disdainful younger pouty faced  sister Martha (Luz Maria Jerez) and their widowed (and simple minded) father, Don Daniel. Call me harsh but these two are going  cause poor Raquel a lot of  trouble several episodes from now. Moving on...

Raquel shows her wedding dress to Martha who admires it.  Raquel  then receives a phone call from her fiance, who promises to return from his business trip in time for their wedding day that very weekend. But as soon as he hangs up, the fiance's face visibly changes as his henchman, Luis (Tony Bravo) tells him his stepbrother, Antonio wanted to see him.
  
Ehh???

The viewers are initially confused but it's actually simple as we follow it.

 Raquel's fiance's real name is Maximilliano Alveniz and he's the stepbrother of the real Antonio Lombardo, a fabulously wealthy  man whose father, the late Alberto Lombardo,  married Max's widowed mother, Victoria. Alberto had left a huge trust fund and a permanent position in his company to Max in his Will but to the angry and greedy Max, he had been cheated as Antonio (the legal and true heir) had been given the entire estate, minus a big trust to Antonio's married sister Camilla. Let's go on...

Max sulkily goes to find Antonio, who is at the balcony watching the ocean view. We don't see his face immediately but  Antonio turns when Max demands to know what he wants.  The camera zooms in on   a very  handsome man roughly  in his mid or late thirties - the extremely yummy and manly looking hero of the story, played by  Andres Garcia.

 Max gives him the deep stink-eye (he's very good at that as viewers will find out for the rest of the telenovela) and  flares up as usual at the calm yet firm queries from his stepbrother about some business matters- Max had approved   a construction project Antonio didn't authorise. After Antonio informs him the project was a no go,  he walks out on him, running into  Mummy  Victoria (Magda Guzman; La Usurpandora  viewers will recognise as Fidelina) who guessed from the scowl on her son's face and snarky words  that there has been another   altercation between him and his stepbrother. 

 When she asks him what happened between him and his 'brother', Max coldly reminds her that just because she married Tonio's late father- Alberto- it doesn't make Tonio his brother and how unfair 'the old man' had been to him and Victoria, leaving the bulk of his wealth to Antonio.

  Is this guy for real? 

Back in Guadalajara, Marnie wonders why Raquel and Tony preferred to have a small civil ceremony, which will not be .attended by their friends. Raquel reminded her of their plan to  have a large church wedding after there's more money. Martha goes all sulky when Raquel tells her she will have to start paying the rent and other bills after the wedding, as their father will not be able to, apparently Raquel is the only one in the household that has a steady job and has been the primary provider. 

In Acapulco,  the  Lombardos are at dinner and Victoria tells Antonio that Maura (his girlfriend) came looking for him while he was out but Antonio doesn't seem interested in calling her back, as he was going to be busy the next day. Max tells them both he will be going out of town and gets angry when Antonio tells him he could go since there's nothing serious pending- snappishly telling him he didn't need his permission, storming off.   

Distressed, Victoria  discusses his latest argument with Max, urging him to see Max's  ( non existent) good qualities. Antonio calmly brushes Victoria's concerns aside, he's  more than used to Max's tantrums  and envy and reminds her that he only tolerated Max because of her. Planting an affectionate  kiss on his stepmother's  hand, he  bade her goodnight.

 

Don Daniel returns after celebrating his favourite daughter's upcoming wedding at the bar with his friends, brushing off Raquel's worry about him ruining his health with too much drink. 

At Guadalajara a few days later, Max and Raquel have their civil wedding in Raquel's apartment officiated by a judge. Max used Antonio's signature (he spent hours practising it)on the marriage certificate after the bride signed, then followed by Don Daniel, Martha and the judge's secretary who are the only witnesses.

The couple then go to his apartment where he begins to  passionately kiss her neck but she gently pulls away, reminding him that they were not yet married by the church. Yah... our heroine is old fashioned that way. He's about to argue when the phone rings. It's Luis, to tell him that Antonio was leaving on a business trip.

Raquel is very confused when he tells her the office demands his presence and takes her home, with the promise of calling her and arranging the big church wedding after he got back from his trip.
Antonio is mildly surprised to see Max back from his vacation, Max sullenly lies that he had some work to catch up on.

Antonio leaves the mansion and the villain asks Luis if the trap has been set... the reply... YES.

Oh no... the foreshadowing of murder afoot.  

Antonio and two men enter his private plane and take off. They haven't been in the air long before the plane makes odd noises and moves in an alarming way. The pilot does his best but is unable to prevent what happened next. The plane plunges down a valley and there's a huge CRASH!

Back in Guadalajara, Don Daniel talk with Raquel about Tony. When the subject of finances come up, Daniel tells Raquel a  rich old woman wishes to have an estate sale but Daniel's friend doesn't have the capital to buy several of the items. Raquel is appalled when Daniel coaxingly asks her to help him out with the  money. She doesn't approve of Daniel's relationship with his so called friend because he sells stolen goods. 

Back at the mansion, Antonio's sister Camilla and his voluptuous girlfriend, Maura (eww)  are at the pool, discussing him. They go in just as Max is about to relay the bad news to his mother... Antonio's plane had crashed and there were no survivors! The three women burst into tears.

Camilla runs to her house at the other end of the beach to tell her husband Claudio the bad news. He looks pensive then gently reminds her that Antonio's estate was now theirs. Very sensitive Claudio. 

Camilla is of course  furious. 'What are you talking about, Antonio was my brother!' and cries again.

As Victoria is grieving, Max gives her another surprise, he hands her a document he had found in Antonio's drawer in his room.To her amazement, it's a marriage certificate; why on earth had he gotten married without telling anyone and to a girl they did not know?

Finding the number in Antonio's address book(Max's doing), Victoria calls Guadalajara. Raquel is amazed when Victoria introduces herself as Antonio's stepmother as he'd told her many times that he had no family. Victoria gently gave her the bad news.

                             'NO!' Raquel cried out in anguish. 'IT CAN'T BE TRUE!'

Meanwhile, several miles away from Acapulco, Antonio, the only survivor, regains consciousness. Not knowing where he is, he  staggers away from the wrecked plane and the dead bodies of his friends.

                          To read ALL the episodes in the proper order click  HERE

A Message From Danielle Steel

March 2008

Dear Friends,

March can be a blustery month, with spring seeming to embrace us one day and retreating back into winter the next. St. Patrick's Day is a major event to some, although as I mention every year, there is no Irish blood in my family, so I can't claim it as "my" holiday. But those who do seem to enjoy it a lot!

Easter also comes in March this year... I've always loved coloring eggs and having Easter egg hunts with my kids. Religiously, the notion of resurrection and being reborn is very meaningful to me. After the dark days of Lent, Easter is a time of hope!

My newest hardcover, HONOR THYSELF, will come out this month. I love the book, which is about a woman who pieces her life back together--with the help of those who love her--after a terrorist attack in Paris. It is as much about finding and honoring oneself as it is about healing in important ways. I hope you love it, too! And I hope that March is a great month for you.

Love,

Danielle

P.S. You are always welcome to visit me at my home on the web:
http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/exW60Mx6Ij0V50H860EN

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LA USURPADORA: THE REST OF THE STORY

Hi all, a very Happy Valentine's Day. Things have been SO boring since CATALINA y SEBASTIAN wrapped up that I've been agonising over WHAT to now write about, then It suddenly hit me; for those who had watched LA USURPADORA on GALAXY, the telenovela ended on a happy note with Carlos Daniel Bracho marrying his sister-in-law, Paulina after his promiscous wife Paola's death, admist a lot of joy from his grandmother, brother, sister-in-law and his two children from his first wife(Paola was his second wife but never gave him children) and their friends. But there's more.

MAS ALLA USURPADORA  (Beyond The Usurper )is a sequel that further follows the lives of the Bracho family, many of the characters from the previous part featured.The story begins a year after Carlos Daniel and Paulina's wedding. They now have a little baby girl of their own whom they named PAULITA(after Paulina & Paola's late mother, Paula), as well as a nanny looking after the three Bracho kids, a young woman called Raquel, who is a diabolical woman obsessively in love with Carlos Daniel.

Pauly's blissful life comes crumbling down after a visit to her doctor one day; she is diagnosed with terminal cancer and has little time to live. Not wanting her husband to end up raising their children alone again, she decides to groom Raquel to take her place when the time came, after confiding in Abuela Piedad about her condition. Evil Raquel however tells Carlos Daniel about Paulina's illness later on. Pauly hears Paola's voice in her head and sees her image in a mirror taunting her...'It's your fault I'm dead, you bought me the car I had the accident in... Carlos Daniel won't be yours or mine, together we'll burn IN HELL!' In reply, Pauly smashes the mirror in terror.

Carlos Daniel comes in and consoles her, promising to consult the best doctors for a second opinion. Estefania, his sister who had been in a mental home after her sudden nervous breakdown, gradually recovered and asks for her son who is currently under the care of her other brother Roderigo and his wife Patricia who have no children and naturally, they are reluctant to hand the child back to her, BESIDES, she still was'nt completely stable.

Pauly unwisely tells diabolical Raquel of her plans for her, which makes her decide to kill Pauly, to speed up her death chosing to do that,of all days, at a party thrown to celebrate Paulina and Carlos Daniel's wedding anniversary. Meanwhile, Estephania goes to Rod and Pat's home and forcibly takes the little boy from the nanny left in charge. Raquel has the audacity to attempt to kiss Carlos Daniel when he comes to ask her to join the party but he pushes her away in disgust instead(why not, considering he almost lost Pauly due to stupidity and pride in the past). Abuela Piedad goes upstairs (after the maid whispered something in her ear) and has a few sharp words with her grandson, thinking he was up to something fishy that could ruin his marriage; since he was in a locked room with Raquel.

Raquel had already put the poison in a glass of wine for Pauly but Pauly's stepchildren-Carlitos and Lissette- unintentionally tampered with the glasses; Lissette picked the poisoned one up with the intention of taking a sip but Carlitos took it from her and placed it back, but in the wrong place. Raquel and Pauly drink a toast, the wicked girl watching Pauly evily. The children complain to their Mummy about the party being a bit boring. But Pauly suddenly goes out cold , to the children's horror. Carlitos starts to shout for help, and his uncle, Rodrigo hurries to her side, calling her name. Carlos Daniel comes down to find his wife on the couch and his brother Rodrigo and some of the other guests trying in vain to revieve her. EStephania and the baby arrive just as Pauly is rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. Diabolical Raquel feels pleased with herself but then faints too and is taken away as well; she had taken the fatal drink ! At the hospital, the doctor informs a very worried Carlos Daniel that it turns out they had given a wrong diagnosis, Pauly did NOT have cancer at all, her illness was simply a SECOND PREGNANCY! (praise ALLAH!)

After regaining consciousness, Raquel confesses her crime and begs the family for forgiveness and packs out of the mansion, out of the city and out of their lives(GOOD RIDDANCE!)

Days later, there is another family get together at the mansion- to celebrate Pauly's recovery and Estefania's return. They all sit down to pose for a family picture. All is well once again in the House of Bracho... FIN(THE END)

GIST!!!!

Gabriella Spanic(who played both Paola Bracho and Paulina Martinez Bracho) actually has an identical twin sister in real life, Daniela Spanic,(right) who is a famous model. I'm sure you are all wondering why Daniela did'nt play one twin and Gabriella the other twin in LA USURPADORA, personally I don't understand it either but I found out that Daniela appeared in ONE episode of the telenovela in a scene when Paola and Pauly had a physical battle, because it was'nt possible for any camera trick to pull that off successfully. Waste of time, they should have put both of them in it from the beginning to the fin, unless Daniela had other commitments or was'nt exactly into acting like Gabriella. Anyhow, here in Nigeria, if we had twins we would use BOTH twins.

A Message From Danielle Steel

February 2008

Dear Friends,

February is special because of Valentine's Day. Even in my childhood, I loved that day, making valentines and giving them to friends. I still love getting them and giving them--flowers, candy, and thoughtful gifts from friends.

This year, my book SISTERS will be on sale in paperback in February. I hope you decide that it will make a great Valentine's Day gift for someone you love. And I hope you get all the valentines you hope for and dream of this year!

Love,

Danielle

P.S. You are always welcome to visit me at my home on the web:
http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/ew730Mx6Ij0V50H860El
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CATALINA y SEBASTIAN: THE LAST BOW (Final Episode)

So very, very sorry folks for the long break in transmission, I've been so busy that I hardly had time to go browsing. Many thanks to my guest who commented on the blog's new look, it's my way of celebrating the New Year, besides, Blue is my favorite colour; another of my favorite things(laugh)!

Now, now... enough gist, let's get down to the last moments of CATALINA y SEBASTIAN a.k.a the last, FINAL episode; although there are a few things I was'nt really happy about, like Martina and Romero's breakup, Marcelo not being arrested and the audience not treated to a few moments of Catalina y Sebastian's new marriage or the sight of Cat giving birth. Well, you win some and you lose some...

Panchito tried to calm down the two very,very angry young men; reminding them that they had to respect Don Lupe whom they were burying that day. Carmelo relaxed but Sebastian broke free and to everyone's amazement, got into the car and drove off with Romero hurrying after him. Jessica read a mysterious document in her files, looked triumphant then hurried off to find Catalina and Sebastian. Carmelo, Cat still handcuffed to him, cries over the casket, more out of self pity than grief; blaming 'his Dad' for how things had ended up all because he never acknowledged him as his son. Panchito cleverly talks gently to him to get him off his guard so that he can both rescue Cat and learn a few truths. Carmelo unintentionally reveals that he did indeed kidnap Don Lupe and forged the Will, crying like the pathetic idiot that he was, everyone in the church listening intently.


Meanwhile, back in the city, the second person to be at the reading turned out to be Eduardo. Panchito was about to unlock the cuff off Catalina when Sebastian returns with a gun, threatening to shoot Carmelo if he didn't let Cat go. The shameless idiot dared him to, tauntingly telling him he was not so macho and was just jealous that he had Catalina and their father for a time. Sebastian replied that Lupe hadn't been with him willingly but under duress since his last thoughts had been for him and Martina. Carmelo recovered quickly; he sneeringly said it didn't matter anymore and shocked everyone(including myself) by kicking the casket! He was yelled at of course, but he replied that Don Lupe could go to Hell, he had all his money plus Catalina and he'll NEVER give her a divorce.

All of a sudden, Jessica's calm voice was heard; ' Catalina is NOT your wife.' and she appeared, holding some papers. Carmelo demanded to know what nonsense was she saying now and she dropped the bombshell. Catalina was not married to him and he was not a Mendoza. After the Will had been changed, he planned to have his name changed to Mendoza but went ahead to marry Catalina without waiting to get the name change formally registered, so the stupid idiot had signed 'Carmelo Mendoza' on the marriage licence, a name that didn't belong to him, so the document and his marriage to Catalina was void and meaningless by Law, so she was free to marry Sebastian again(I have to admit, I didn't see THAT coming).


In spite of the tense situation, Catalina and Sebastian couldn't help grinning at each other, while Carmelo accused Jessica of making it all up just to bother him, but was given the document that confirmed it was true. However, he stubbornly maintained that Catalina belonged to him and got infuriated when Sebastian told him  Catalina told him the whole truth about why she had to marry him in the first place and they NEVER slept together! He accused her of betraying him and displayed denial; reminding her that she was his wife and she was carrying their child but she tearfully begged him to give up, she was never his and the only man for her was Sebastian. The governor also informed him that the coroner has confirmed that Lupe had died very recently and therefore he was under arrest. Toni angrily told him to stop being so stubborn and give up once and for all, begging the Padre to do something and not allow a crime  be committed in the church! Carmelo shouted that they'll never prove it and as long as he had Cat as his prisoner, no one can follow him. Cat told him he could force her to follow him but it was Sebastian that she loved.

'Well, get ready to see you great love die' he shouts manically and aimed the gun at Sebastian. A shot rang out, but it from the governor who had shot Carmelo. He falls on Toni, who begins to scream hysterically...

Carmelo begins to bleed profusely while Sebastian grabs the keys from Panchito and finally unlocks the handcuffs off Cat's wrist and drags her away from the bastard. Petra finally tell the 2 sworn enemies the truth; that they were indeed mother and son but alas, neither party accepted the news, Carmelo whispered to Mummy, 'see you in Hell' and breathed his last.

Josepha blamed Toni for all the tragedy that had happened and did what I REALLY hoped; she packed her bag and walked out on her boss, never to come back.A police officer stopped by to tell Toni to claim her son's body at the morgue.

'I HAVE NO SON!!!!' she screams in great anger and orders him to get out of her house. Pulling down Don Lupe's photo from the shelf, she blames all her suffering and misfortune on him.

Back in the city, Silvia's lawyer plays a tape where Silvia is shown on the screen, reading her Will. To Ricardo, she left nothing but the memories she had spent with him(she's no fool at all) and to Eduardo her entire estate, ironically, he's on the same boat as her; he has money but no one to share it with.(serves him right)

In Alcatraz, Catalina looks pensive and silent when Romero remarked she and Sebastian would soon get married again; she briefly remembers how Sebastian had been unfair to her, but when Sebastian asked her what was wrong, she smiled and replied she was looking forward to their wedding but she had to go back to the capital to see Adela who is very ill.

Ricardo goes back to the penthouse and sees his father and Luisa with their suitcases. Since Alicia would be moving into Luis' apartment when they got back from their honeymoon, they would rent her house from now on. Ricardo indignantly said he'll never live there and Luisa tells him off before leaving.

Cat gently tells her now completely paralysed mother that she and Sebastian were soon to be remarried and Sebastian promised to get her the best doctors. Chucho informs Jessica that he left instructions in his Will for the agency to be sold since no one would trust Jessica after the foolish and wicked stunt she had pulled.

Ricardo finds a job at a restaurant; as a busboy!(ha, ha!)

On the wedding day...

Sebastian waits for the bride, who turns up in yet another beautiful wedding dress, as gorgeous as always, loud cheers from everyone. The mass begins, the couple exchange vows, the blessed rings exchanged and the rosary of Unity put on their shoulders by the bride's maids-Luisa and Martina. The couple are pronounced man and wife and they go out, arm in arm. At everyone's urging, Catalina and Sebastian  exchange a sensual kiss. 

PRELUDE TO THE GRAND CLIMAX!

Which is what every fan of this telenovela has been waiting for, the FINAL EPISODE OF CATALINA y SEBASTIAN, but let's not rush, first check this prelude to the fin...

Cat managed to find a pulse, which indicated that her mother was still alive. At first Creepy Carmelo thought it was a feigned crisis but reluctantly agreed to take her to the hospital when he saw it wasn't ' one of her tricks'.

Sebastian and Martina were told by Tonio that he was not their brother after all but Sebastian kindly told him that if he had to chose a brother, he'd have liked Tonio to be that brother.Toni got the biggest shock of her life when Tonio calmly told her what the 3 old women had told him; he wasn't her son and walked out on her amidst impassioned pleas from her; she had foolishly admitted(before he'd dropped the bombshell) that Don Lupe hadn't been the father of her child but had said so in order to trap him into marrying her.

Petra hurried to Alicia's to tell Gusatvo what had happened and phoned the hacienda to inform them that Carmelo was planning to come to the Mass, just as Rufina and Josefa were being questioned about who Carmelo's real parents were. On hearing the message, Sebastian furiously shouted that Carmelo will NOT be allowed in, even if he had to kill him.

At the hospital, the doctor tells Catalina and Luisa that Adela had a severe embolism and may never move or speak again, though she is aware of what's going on around her. Carmelo however refused to put up more money for her treatment. Adela tried hopelessly to tell her about her lottery win but couldn't open her mouth. Cat begged Carmelo to let her stay with her mother but was dragged away instead.
Sebastian rounds up the men of the town to prevent Carmelo from entering the church.

 The Governor assures Sebastian that he had more than enough men to arrest Carmelo(indicating that the coroner had given his report). Don Lupe's casket is carried into the church and everyone goes in , the two Mendoza children in front.

Cat begs Carmelo to slow down and gets more nervous when he creepily remarks about how happy he'd be if the he, Cat, her child and Don Lupe were together in Heaven.Toni hysterically confronts Josefa and Rufina about what they must have told Tonio, but they tell here to wait for Petra to show up.

Carmelo arrives, dragging a very reluctant and frightened Catalina by the arm, just as the Mass ended. Sebastian and the townsmen block his entrance, threatening to kill him if he dared to force his way into the church. He angrily demands to know who will prevent him from attending his ''father's Mass'';Panchito rashly tries to handcuff Carmelo to a tree but is flung away and Carmelo handcuffs poor Catalina to himself instead, threatening to punch her in the womb if anyone came nearer. Sebastian if restrained(with difficulty) from rescuing her, Toni tried to save her as well but is pushed away by a now clearly demented Carmelo who called her a 'crazy bitch.''

TO BE CONTINUED....