May 16, 2002 (2002-05-16) – May 2, 2003 (2003-05-02)
Gata Salvaje (English: Wild Cat) is a telenovela which aired first on Venevisión in Venezuela on May 16, 2002. It was released some days later on the Spanish language US TV network Univision from mid-summer 2002 until May 2003. Later, it aired in Mexico on Canal de las Estrellas from January 2003 to December 2003.
Rosaura Rios is a beautiful, kind young woman who lost her mother. She lives with her drunkard father Anselmo, her sisters Mayrita and Karina, her stepmother Maria Julia, and her brother Ivan. She has no choice but to work during day as a lunch girl picking up food from the workers in the Arismendi's land; and at night, as a bartender in a nightclub in order to be able to sustain her family who lives in a small house next to the fabulous ranch of the wealthy Arismendi family. They lost their house due to the hurricane in Tampa.
Luis Mario Arismendi is a handsome, educated young man who is the heir to his family fortune. He loses his wife, Camelia, in an accident at sea, and she is never recovered. This event keeps him in a sentimental limbo for quite some time. But before that, both of them were together enjoying their honeymoon while Patricio, Camelia's former lover, called to threaten her that if she refuses to leave Luis Mario, he would tell Luis Mario that he and Camelia are lovers; and he is the only one who gives Camelia the kind of life that she desires and wants. But Camelia decided to leave Luis Mario forever to escape with him.
Luis Mario decides to return from New York to take over the family business – the ranch – which is not in good financial standing. As he returns, the small plane in which he travels suffers an accident very close by to the ranch. Rosaura, who is in the area, reaches him and rescues him. Luis Mario instinctively kisses Rosaura and Rosaura is smitten.
Eduarda, Luis Mario's sister, is determined to see Luis Mario married to Eva Granados, a beautiful but impulsive and demanding rich girl that will guarantee that they will not be financially ruined; but Luis Mario, in order to go against his sister, marries Rosaura, who is deeply in love with him although he doesn't share the same feelings.
When they get married, Eva kisses him on the mouth. Rosaura reacts by scratching him on the face, thus getting nicknamed "Wild Cat". Eduarda and Eva plan to make Rosaura and Luis Mario's lives miserable. They form a plan and murder Rosaura's father by running him over. After trapping Rosaura in their games and turning Luis Mario against her, they finally manage to break their marriage, which is also due to Rosaura's jealousy as women, Valeria, one of Eva closest friends, flaunts herself and publicly kisses Luis Mario. He also thinks her too wild to tame and too childlike, which finally causes him to divorce her. Sometime later, Luis Mario decides to leave for New York, hoping to make money to save his family ranch. He departs from his family in the airport, knowing that Rosaura is not far way, hiding behind a wall. When he boards the plane, he leaves not knowing that Rosaura is pregnant with his child. Later during Rosaura's revenge, she tells him this and he's saddened that she hadn't told him. She replied by saying "Now it doesn't matter (anymore)." It's not until later during the show that Rosaura revealed to Luis Mario that Eva was responsible murdering their unborn child by shooting her while she was riding on a horse.
Now Rosaura alone, penniless and sad begins a new life. But her luck is about to change when she finds out that she is the only descendant of Dona Cruz Olivares, a powerful and wealthy old lady who wants to find her granddaughter before she passes away. Her stepmother and half-sister try to rob her of this but Claudia, Dona Cruz's only daughter, who employs Rosaura and her brother Ivan, becomes suspicious. When Claudia meets Rosaura, she immediately likes her. One night, Claudia is searching through Rosaura's belongings and finds a hidden note, confirming that it is Rosaura the daughter of her deceased sister and deceased father Anselmo. Claudia decides to reveal the truth to Rosaura and unmask her stepmother and half sister. Rosaura becomes a sophisticated lady that will use her fortune to ruin all of those who harmed her in the past, and surely enough she does, including Luis Mario.
Her revenge begins on a night when Rosaura and Claudia attend a gallery show and sees Luis Mario, his believed-to-be dead wife, Camelia, Eva, and Eduarda. When Rosaura and Luis Mario make eye contact, Luis Mario walks up to her. He is impressed by her transformation. Rosaura tells Luis Mario: "I'm going to destroy your family Luis Mario. I'm going to destroy you." Luis Mario leaves in doubt but later he reveals to his best friend Gabriel, that he had taken her seriously and he was unsure of what to expect.
Luis Mario tries to reconquer her love but he gives up and lets Rosaura know that she is a different person. He asks her where is the feisty, innocent woman he fell in love with. She replied by saying that it was he who made her this way. Luis Mario ignores this and repeats she is a changed woman that wears too much makeup, overdresses instead of the woman who wore hair-ties and dressed like an ordinary everyday girl. Rosaura, the "Wild Cat", realizes that her transformation has turned her into a bitter and heartless woman, and she comes to understand that the love she feels for Luis Mario is unbreakable, and that aside from all the things she did to the Arismendi family, she passionately loves him. Finally, after another long period of going through troubles and fighting their enemies, they will both be able to regain the happiness that long time ago escaped them.
In the mid-spring to early summer of 2011, Telefurtura gained the rights to the soap opera. It was aired Monday-Friday at 10:00am.
Main character, daughter of Anselmo, half-sister of Iván and Mayrita, stepsister of Karina, stepdaughter of María Julia, granddaughter of Doña Cruz, niece of Claudia, ex-wife of Patricio, mother of Gabriela, in love with Luis Mario, Luis Mario's wife
Lead male character, adoptive brother of Eduarda and Jimena, adoptive cousin of Luisana, ex-husband of Camelia and Eva, son of Mercedes, half brother of Patricio, father of Gabriela, cousin of Adriana, in love with Rosaura and marries her twice
Main female villain, daughter of Rafael, sister of Silvia, half-sister of Karina, cousin of Maximiliano, mother of Luisito (the father is Gabriel), ex-accomplice of Eduarda, Luis Mario's ex-wife and in love with him (dies from the Everglades killed by the crocodiles)
Main female villain, Luis Mario is her adoptive brother, sister of Jimena, cousin of Luisana, Patricio's ex-wife (dies from her injuries after getting run over by a car)
Main male villain, later turns good, son of Mercedes, half brother of Luis Mario, ex-lover and husband of Camelia, ex-husband of Eduarda and Rosaura with whom he is in love, cousin of Adriana (ends up in hospital with severe injuries after trying to commit suicide and eventually dies after repenting)
Villain, later turns good, daughter of María Julia and Rafael, stepdaughter of Anselmo, stepsister of Rosaura, half-sister of Iván and Mayrita, half-sister of Eva and Silvia, in love with Rodrigo, then with Maximiliano, ends up with Rodrigo
Villain, later turns good, sister of Jacqueline, ex-wife of Silvano, in love with Luis Mario (killed by Eva by throwing her to the stairs because she told Rosaura that Eva and Eduarda killed Rosaura's dad.)
Villain, later turns good, Cousin of Julio, Patricio's former lover, in love with Gabriel, then with Maximiliano, whom she marries, remarries to Gabriel, stepmother Of Luisito
Daughter of Doña Cruz, aunt of Rosaura, in love with Rafael to whom she marries
Jéssica Cerezo
Silvia Granados
Villain, later turns good, daughter of Rafael, sister of Eva, half-sister of Karina, cousin of Maximiliano, ex-wife of Fernando, in love with Kike whom she marries in the end
Nephew of Rafael, cousin of Eva and Silvia, in love with Rosaura, then with Minerva whom he marries (drowned)
Fernando Carrera
Rafael Granados
Father of Eva, Silvia and Karina, uncle of Maximiliano, in love with Rosaura, then with Claudia whom he marries (accidentally poisoned and killed by Eduarda)
