Ricky rocks Toronto

Thousands go 'loca' for Latin pop superstar

TORONTO -- Latin pop sensation Ricky Martin drove thousands of screaming fans "loca" on Yonge St. last night.

A roar of shrieks and cheers erupted just after 6 p.m. when the 27-year-old Martin, dressed in a black shirt and cream-coloured pants, stepped onto a podium outside the flagship Sunrise Records store.

He carried a microphone, but Martin, a former star on the soap opera General Hospital, could barely be heard above the screaming of the thousands of mostly teenage girls.

The sexy Latin singer didn't sing a note of his hit single Livin' La Vida Loca, but instead thanked the crowd and flashed the peace sign before retreating inside to sign autographs for a select group of 400 who camped outside the store Thursday for wristbands.

"I shook his hand. I don't think I'll ever wash it again," said a trembling Christina Goldberg, 28, after emerging from the store, her autographed CD tucked securely away.

'You're beautiful'

Goldberg, along with her sister Jennifer Rizzo, came to Toronto from Succasunna, New Jersey, located about 45 minutes north of New York City, on a two-day mission to get the singer's autograph.

The sisters snared front row seats for Martin's June 11 appearance on the Today show, but got nowhere near the superstar when he met with fans at a New York City record store.

"I did most of the talking," said the married Goldberg, who praised the singer, whose picture decorates her office, during their brief meeting.

"He said, 'Thank you, you're beautiful.' He made my day. I had direct eye contact. I'll never forget it."

Martin emerged from the store just before 8 p.m. to wave goodbye to the fans who were treated to an endless cycle of Livin' La Vida Loca over a loudspeaker as they waited outside in the hopes of a second appearance.

Spying a sign that urged the crowd to "Get topless for Ricky," Martin pointed and laughed before teasing fans with a "See you next time" -- a hint at a possible concert date in Toronto.

Tears poured down the cheeks of 16-year-old Mandana Nikoui as she clutched her autographed CD and asked to kiss the pen that another fan had secured from Martin.

"He blew me a kiss. He said, 'Go ahead take as many pictures as you want. Finish the roll,'" Nikoui said, checking her camera that hung around her neck.

"I love him. He's the best. I want to see him again, he was so nice. I was crying from the time he was outside."

The face of one teenage fan crumpled into tears of devastation when she was told that she never responded to Martin's repeated thank yous inside the store.

"He thought I was rude? He probably hates me," she sobbed.

A section of Yonge St. was closed to traffic to accommodate the crush of fans, many carrying posters and homemade signs that pledged their love for the Puerto Rican singer.

Toronto Police said there were no problems although a few fans had to be treated with water and cold packs after wilting in the heat.

Although many fans said they've admired Martin's singing since his days with the group Menudo, their admiration for his voice was outdone by their fevered praise for his chiseled looks.

Little swivel

"He's sexy. Write that down. He's sexy," said Toronto's Kasi Dalakas, 15, who screamed a line of Spanish that she refused to translate. "My mom would kill me."

Barbara Castillo, 30, left her two young children with her mother at 6 a.m. to get a spot pressed against the barricades that lined Yonge St. outside the store.

"I sacrificed my whole day for him," Castillo said.

"He's Latino. He's gorgeous and that little swivel that he does -- I love it."

Wayne Willis braved the crush of young fans in the hopes of making some money from the "I love Ricky" buttons that he was selling at $2 a piece.

"He's all right," Willis said with a shrug.

"I may need more when he comes out."