Sabado Gigante
"Sabado Gigante" airs its final episode Saturday. Reuters

After 53 years, "Sabado Gigante," the long-running, Spanish-language variety show is coming to an end Saturday. Millions of fans mourned when Univision announced the cancelation of the cultural institution known as "Sabado Gigante" earlier this year. Let's take a look back at television history. The final episode airs at 8 p.m. EDT on Univision.

Don Francisco

Born Mario Luis Kreutzberger Blumenfeld, he's known the world over as Don Francisco. Kreutzberger's Jewish parents arrived in Chile after fleeing Europe at the end of World War II, according to ABC News. Kreutzberger's father, Erick, was a Holocaust survivor. Kreutzberger went to New York in 1960 to become a tailor, but he quickly learned television was his passion. He pitched the idea of a variety program to a Chilean TV station in 1962 -- "Sabado Gigantes" -- which ran for 24 years. Univision would pick up the program -- changing the name to "Sabado Gigante" -- and it has been a staple of the network's programming for 30 years. As host of "Sabado Gigante," Kreutzberger is a boisterous personality. He has a huge voice and infectious personality, not unlike a ringleader, as the Los Angeles Times' profile of "Sabado Gigante" observed.

"I like to look forward ... because back is a story," Kreutzberger said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. Kreutzberger will continue hosting telethons and developing new shows at Univision.

Comedy, Contests And More

"Sabado Gigante" has something for everyone. There are comedy sketches, beauty pageants, contests to win money and prizes, car giveaways, musical segments and interviews. It's a throwback to a type of program that's not really seen on TV in 2015. A long-running segment is "El Chacal de la trompeta," a singing contest similar to "The Gong Show" where bad participants are stopped by a masked figure blowing a trumpet. There's also a children's beauty pageant called "Miss Chiquitita." Comedy segments are set in hospitals, space stations and telenovelas.

"Sabado Gigante" is not without its controversy. Some of the segments have been deemed sexist, with many pointing to "Miss Colita" -- a pageant that focuses on the buttocks -- as a clear example of this mentality. "So now the humor feels like an unwanted hangover from a previous era. When I watch now, I cringe. The show is shameless about its objectification of women. There's a whole series of contests based on looks," NPR commentator Cynthia Leonor Garza said in a recent segment.

Celebrities

"Sabado Gigante" has featured many Latin superstars from Selena to Shakira to Enrique Iglesias to Prince Royce. Kreutzberger has even interviewed U.S. President Barack Obama. For the "Sabado Gigante" finale, many familiar faces will appear: Shakira, Iglesias, Daddy Yankee, Juanes, Paulina Rubio, Marc Anthony and Gloria Estefan are just a few celebrities confirmed for the show, Billboard reported. But don't expect a very different show.