Laurita Valenzuela
Encyclopedia
Laura "Laurita" Valenzuela (born Rocío Espinosa on 18 February 1931, in Seville
, Andalusia
, Spain
) is a Spanish television
presenter of the 1950s and 1960s.
Before becoming known in Europe
for hosting 1969 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest
, she was a model and appeared in many publications around the world. She was one of the first faces that Spain saw on television Televisión Española
made its debut in 1956.
Valenzuela has also acted in many films since the early 1950s up through the late 1960s. In 1971, when she married film director José Luis Dibildos and had her daughter, also presenter Lara Dibildos, she retired from public life, until she returned to TV in 1991 in the private channel Telecinco
. Later on, she returned to TVE. She retired again in the 2000s when she started her fight against breast cancer
. She is now healed but still remains retired, apart from occasional collaborations or interviews.
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, Andalusia
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) is a Spanish television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
presenter of the 1950s and 1960s.
Before becoming known in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
for hosting 1969 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1969
The Eurovision Song Contest 1969 was the 14th in the series. It was the first time that the contest resulted in a tie for first place, with four countries each gaining 18 votes. Since there was at the time no rule to cover such an eventuality, all four countries were declared joint winners...
, she was a model and appeared in many publications around the world. She was one of the first faces that Spain saw on television Televisión Española
Televisión Española
Televisión Española is the national state-owned public-service television broadcaster in Spain. TVE's activities were previously financed by a combination of advertising revenue and subsidies from the national government, but since it's been supported by subsidies only.TVE belongs to the RTVE...
made its debut in 1956.
Valenzuela has also acted in many films since the early 1950s up through the late 1960s. In 1971, when she married film director José Luis Dibildos and had her daughter, also presenter Lara Dibildos, she retired from public life, until she returned to TV in 1991 in the private channel Telecinco
Telecinco
Telecinco is a Spanish commercial television channel operated by Mediaset España. Launched in 1990 as Tele 5, it was the fifth of the national terrestrial television channels. In 1997, Tele 5 was rebranded as Telecinco, dropping the flower logo seen in other Mediaset channel...
. Later on, she returned to TVE. She retired again in the 2000s when she started her fight against breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
. She is now healed but still remains retired, apart from occasional collaborations or interviews.