Isaura: Slave Girl (1976– )
Trivia
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It was the first telenovela aired in the Soviet Union. Servia and Bosnia ceased fire in their war when the series went on air.
Produced and aired when Brazil was ruled by military dictatorship. The series was prohibited to feature the word "slave", which was then changed to "piece". A scene in which an angry Isaura destroys her bedroom was filmed but also ordered to be cut.
It was the most popular program in the history of Polish television and at the same time first telenovela (Latin American soap opera) screened in Poland (1986). On average it was watched by more than 81 percent of the total viewing audience (sometimes as much as 92 percent).
Sold to over 80 countries and incredibly successful all over the world. It was the first TV series allowed to be aired in China with a foreign actress in it.
Became a hit in the former Soviet Union, particularly among children. So much so that during its airing and afterward it became a common practice at many schools for the prettiest girl in each class to be referred to as "Isaura". Some appropriate students could also be "named" after other characters of the series.
Lucélia Santos is the first foreign actress to be awarded with the Golden Eagle of Best Actress in China for her role as Isaura. She received more than 300 million votes.
The character of Tobias, Isaura's love interest, was created by Gilberto Braga and is not featured in the source novel. Braga did not want Isaura to spend a large amount of time alone.
The original series consisted of 100 half-hour episodes. For international broadcasts, the series was reduced to 30 episodes of 30 minutes each.
In the late 1980s, thanks to "perestroika", Soviet citizens were allowed to own a small piece of land. Under the huge popularity of the series, those pieces of land were very often semi-seriously referred to as "fazendas", which is a Portuguese word for "farm", often used in the series for the large plantations, where the story takes place. "Fazenda" properly became part of their vocabulary.
Gilberto Braga was suggested by his former high school teacher to adapt Bernardo Guimarães' romance. After reading ten pages, he was convinced that the story was perfect for a telenovela.
Some scenes had to be filmed at Educativa TV and the prominent Brazilian voice acting studio Herbert Richards, after Rede Globo caught fire in 1976.
A contest to find Isaura and Leôncio look-a-likes was released in Poland, after the series became a hit.
