'El Chavo del 8' 45th Anniversary: 8 Fun Facts About The Beloved Comedy Show

The beloved comedy show “El Chavo del 8” had its debut on June 20, 1971 and with its characters, El Chavo, Doña Florinda, Kiko, Profesor Jirafales, Ñoño, La Chilindrina, Don Ramón and La Bruja del 71, the show quickly became one of the most beloved comedy series in Latin America, Spain and the U.S. of all time.

To celebrate the 45th anniversary of its debut, here is a compilation of some fun facts about the funny show:

1. A good run: The show lasted for almost 10 years as it went on for 290 episodes until its series finale on January 1, 1980. The episodes have been translated into over 50 languages.
2. The name: The sitcom was originally called only “El Chavo” and they added the 8 after since it was transmitted on Channel 8, an independent TV channel in Mexico. Televisa later bought it and began transmitting it on primetime at 9:00 p.m. so they had to say the 8 was the number of Chavo’s apartment.
3. Opening music: French composer Jean-Jacques Perrey wrote the very characteristic and playful tune called “The Elephant never forgets.”
4. Chavo’s real name: The main character’s name was never actually revealed in the show. Every time he was going to say it, someone interrupted him, which became one of the long-standing jokes of the show as well.
5. The ending that never was: Star and creator Roberto Gomez Bolaños said in an interview that he had projected a tragic ending to his character. The boy was going to get killed after being run over by a car, but Bolaños’ daughter and the rest of the cast advised him against it and it never happened.
6. Huge ratings: During its peak, the show was seen by over 300 million people per week.
7. Kiko's cheeks: Carlos Villagrán’s character Kiko always looked like he had stuffed his cheeks with cotton balls but in reality the actor blew up his cheeks all the time and spoke at the same time.
8. The show’s transcendence: Goméz Bolaños wrote a book titles “El diario del Chavo del Ocho” in 1995, which revealed that the main character had escaped from an orphanage and an old lady from the neighborhood had taken him in two days before dying. His apartment and the lady were never seen on the show; instead most though El Chavo lived in a wooden barrel. Aditionally, a cartoon series of “El Chavo” began in 2006 and there