Classic Nica YouTube

Submitted by jmac on 17 May, 2008 - 19:42.

A Guy Lombardo music video celebrates an earlier Nicaraguan real estate and sex tourism boom...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9p3iw-b6dXw

I believe that's the current domestic air terminal shown..

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Pan Am Promo Film

Submitted by mjt on 17 May, 2008 - 21:28.

The video clip is not really a "music video" as the phrase is normally used today, but instead footage someone has attached to the Lombardo song. The lyrics of the mid-1940's Albert Gamse song (he wrote other catchy tunes for movies, like "Mucho Dinero!") were at one time used in conjunction with promotion films for Pan Am Airlines (the Pan Am tarmac stair gate can be seen near the end of the film clip, and perhaps in the intro with the plane has been edited). It is a more or less meaningless song and wasn't really celebrating much of anything, but not likely a real estate boom, and certainly not sex tourism. In fact, the lyrics point out that while you might get that house for real cheap, the same is not true for that beautiful woman - who you won't get at all (hence the phrases):

Managua, Nicaragua is a beautiful town

You buy a hacienda for a few pesos down

You give it to the lady you are tryin' to win

But her papa doesn't let you come in!

&

Managua, Nicaragua is a heavenly place

You ask a señorita for a 'leetle' embrace

She answers you, "Caramba! scram-ba bambarito"

In Managua, Nicaragua, that's "No!"

With the exception of the few seconds of baseball (being played by women -- an this might be the most interesting part of the video, historically), the women seen at the start and end of the film montage, and briefly in the middle, are clearly wealthy tourists and the high class of Tacho's Nicaragua. They are in the best locales, or accompanying Nicaraguan elites, sometimes seen in tuxedos. One would have needed a lot more than a few pesos for such women, and even if you had a lot more than that one would be going it alone - per the tune anyway; the song is about striking out, not succeeding, and striking out is not a good promo for sex tourism.

Tongue in cheek..

Submitted by jmac on 18 May, 2008 - 10:27.

mjt..tongue in cheek all the way. But thanks for the analysis and additional info. I assume that is Tacho (in big hat) and Tachito shown in the stands.

Pan Am

Submitted by mjt on 18 May, 2008 - 11:31.

T&C, but I just wasn't sure! The song is a far cry from Bruce Cockburn's lyrics of the same country (for the songs, "Nicaragua" & "If I had a Rocket Launcher"). It would be interesting to see the entire film with the original audio.

This may or may not be connected, but I think it was the late 1940's when Pan Am sponsored a "countries of the world" learning program. I can't remember the exact name and it probably wasn't the whole world, but at least those places on the map for Pan Am. I think only licensed teachers qualified for the materials, which amounted to a film to be shown in class, then some sort of work booklets free to every student in their classes. I think the students had to learn about the history of the place and inserted stickers into the book (country flag, presidential palace, export crops, animal life, national past time, etc.), or something like that. I am not sure there is a book in addition to any film for Nicaragua, but I have seen ones for Ecuador and Peru. I was reminded of the Pan Am film for Peru as soon as I saw the quick edits on this video.