By this point, Martin had begun a successful solo singing career, releasing his first eponymous album in 1988. Deciding to try his luck in Hollywood. the tall (6'2") handsome singer-actor with the chiseled jaw and dimpled chin landed a recurring role on the short-lived NBC sitcom "Getting By". He segued to American soap operas with a role as an orderly turned singing bartender on the popular "General Hospital" from 1993 to 1994. While he proved a charismatic presence onscreen, his character was never fully integrated into the serial's storylines, although he was allowed to occasionally display his vocal abilities. After checking out of "General Hospital", Martin fulfilled another dream by co-starring on Broadway in the musical "Les Miserables", playing the juvenile lead of Marius. All along, he was also pursuing his music career, releasing albums and making concert appearances. Recognizing his standing in the Latin/Hispanic community, Disney tapped him to sing the Spanish-language version of the theme to the animated feature "Hercules" (1997) and then hired Martin to perform the title character's vocals as well. In 1998, at the World Cup soccer games, Martin enlivened things with his rendition of "La Copa de la Vida/The Cup of Life" but it was several months later during that Grammy telecast when he truly stole the show (just moments before picking up an award) with a pelvis-thrusting, hip-swiveling performance of the same song. After that, it seemed one could not escape Martin. His English-language debut album (also called "Ricky Martin") debuted at Number One and contained the infectious number "Livin' La Vida Loca" which had become a staple on MTV. Martin appeared on virtually every conceivable TV show and was featured in practically every magazine (including gracing the covers of TIME and TV GUIDE). It was clear that Hollywood would soon be beckoning. What remained to be seen was whether at the dawn of the new century people would be saying "Ricky Who?" or that Martin would continue on his upward trajectory to stardom.