They Said I Came Back Americanized...
No, not me! Carmen Miranda!! And that is the title of a song written for her by a couple of her buddies, when she came back to Brazil for the first time in 1940, a big Hollywood star and all. She wasn't treated so well by her compatriots, as you can imagine by this line. The lyrics are very humorous and full of barbs directed at her detractors. My friend Marcos Sacramento, who sings this samba like no one else but Carmen herself, is the main attraction at a series of celebrations in her honor tomorrow. Carmen is 100 years old this year, you see, or could have been, if the American star way of life hadn't killed her in 1955. I don't know how many people have any notion of who she really was or even a smidgen of an idea of how incredibly talented. Forget the bananas and assorted fruit on her head. This lady could sing! She was a hugely popular artist, a dazzling performer on radio and stage in Brazil, when Mr. Shubert whisked her away to fame and fortune abroad. She was also a fragile and generous woman: being The Brazilian Bombshell proved to be too much for her (not to mention what was going on in her love life). But she did become a music and fashion icon and remains one to this day, an inspiration to singers, bloggers (try Spinning in Air, best music blog ever), and shoe designers like Christian Louboutin.
The Carmen Miranda Museum in Rio is housed in the ugliest possible building on Avenida Rui Barbosa. But don't be discouraged, I think you'll enjoy your visit. It was one of the places my gringo husband had to see, when he first arrived here in 1978...Maybe someday someone will realize that she is worthy of so much more and they'll build a deservedly spectacular home for her platform shoes and utterly over-the-top hats. Meanwhile, you may get a taste online at Museu Carmen Miranda.
This biography by Ruy Castro is the best book I've read about Carmen Miranda so far. I don't think there's an English translation yet. If you understand Portuguese, the texts on the website, written by friends and people who remember her, make for a fascinating read too.
PS - Even that accent in the movies was fabricated in La La Land...She COULD speak English!
posted by Sheila Thomson at
10:50 AM
2 Comments:
Sheila,
Thanks very much for your "Maria-Brazil" site. From time to time I came back here to check things out and to show my "foreign" friends things about Brazil. I mean, you cannot believe that so many Americans have no idea what a cashew fruit looks like.
Anyway, I start to read your site at around 1996 or 1997 when I was living in South Africa and were looking for something about Brazil on the internet to show to one of my German friends.
Today, I live in Boston, Massachusetts, already for 10 years, but it is always a highlight to go back to my native Rio de Janeiro. I am enjoying a lot your blog and, who knows, maybe one of these days we will bump into each other either in Rio or some city in the States.
Once again, thank you!
Alverson
p.s should I have written this comment in Portuguese?
This is fine as it is! I thank you so very much for your kind words. I'm so happy to have been of help to you and your friends for so many years!!
Thanks!
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