'Sabado Gigante' Ending: Don Francisco Bids Farewell After 53 Years of Air Time

Don Francisco wrapped up the 53-year reign of "Sabado Gigante" over the weekend.

The Spanish-language TV show ended on an emotional note as U.S. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama gave their praises through a video clip, Yahoo! News reported from The Associated Press. A number of Latin acts also graced the variety show's last airing.

Don Francisco, whose real name is Mario Kreutzberger, commended the production team and the performers for contributing to the program's long-standing success, Yahoo! News added. "Sabado Gigante," which was watched by millions of U.S. households, holds the record for the longest-running variety show with the same host.

"A show is not done by one person," Kreutzberger, 74, said as he said his goodbyes to his audience, as quoted by the news outlet. "It is done by a team, by many people, many of whom you do not see, you do not know who they are, but they work hard, they put their hearts into it and their talent into it."

Enrique Iglesias, Juanes, Prince Royce, Paulina Rubio, Laura Pausini, Marc Anthony, Gloria Estefan, Luis Fonsi, Espinoza Paz, and Intocable are among the list of performers in the final episode of "Sabado Gigante," Billboard listed from Univision.

Through a video, Marc Anthony recounted being on the show for the first time in 1993. "That was a very important moment for me, because I was young and insecure and I felt as if I had graduated, and then I was surprised to find out that my father was there," he said, as quoted by Yahoo! News.

Kreutzberger's wife, brother, children, and grandchildren also joined the TV host onstage, Yahoo! News added.

Colombian recording artist Juanes, Shakira, Puerto Rican artist Daddy Yankee, and Spanish opera singer Placido Domingo also had high praises for Kreutzberger's work, the news outlet noted. Jorge Ramos, the Univision journalist who recently clashed with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a press conference, lauded the veteran TV host not just for entertaining the public but also for being informative. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Florida Republican, honored Kreutzberger with a congressional merit award.

After saying goodbye on air, Kreutzberger told reporters that he would still keep on working in media, but gave no further explanations about his plans.

"I never thought we would get this reaction. It's very emotional to see that this show had such an impact, that we showed to the very last day how professional we are," he said, Yahoo! News reported from The Associated Press.

"Sabado Gigante" premiered on Chile's Channel 13 in 1962, with production moving to Miami, Florida in 1986, Fox News Latino wrote.