Carmen Miranda
from the film The Gang's All Here (1943)
Born	Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha February 9, 1909(1909-02-09) Marco de Canaveses, Portugal
Died	August 5, 1955 (aged 46) Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California
Other name(s)	The Brazilian Bombshell
Spouse(s)	Dave Sebastian (17 March 1947 - 5 August 1955)

Carmen Miranda, pron. IPA: ['kaɾme͂j mi'rɐ͂dɐ], (February 9, 1909 – August 5, 1955); birth name Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha, GCIH) was a Portuguese-born^[1] Brazilian^[2] samba singer and motion picture star most active in the 1940s. She was nicknamed Carmen by her father, because of his love of the opera Carmen by Georges Bizet. Carmen was instrumental in popularising samba. The Gangs All Here is a 1943 musical film produced and released by Twentieth Century Fox. ... is the 40th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1909 (MCMIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Marco de Canaveses is a city and municipality of the Porto district, in northern Portugal. ... is the 217th day of the year (218th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see: Beverly Hills (disambiguation). ... Flag Seal Nickname: City of Angels Location Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates , Government State County California Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 1,290. ... This article is about the U.S state. ... Look up pronunciation in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... is the 40th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1909 (MCMIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 217th day of the year (218th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ... The Order of Infante D. Henrique (Portuguese: Ordem do Infante D. Henrique) is a Portuguese honorific order that distinguishes relevant services for Portugal, in the country or in foreign ones, in the expansion of the Portuguese culture, its history and its values. ... Samba is the most famous of the various forms of music arising from the amalgam of African and Portuguese music in Brazil. ... For other uses, see Opera (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Carmen (disambiguation). ... Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (October 25, 1838 – June 3, 1875) was a French composer and pianist of the romantic era. ... This article is about the music Samba. ...

Life and career

Carmen Miranda was born in the small northern Portuguese town of Marco de Canaveses to Portuguese parents. She was the second daughter of José Maria Pinto Cunha (1887 - 1938) and Maria Emília Miranda (1886 - 1971). Shortly after her birth, her father, José Maria, emigrated to Brazil and settled in Rio de Janeiro, then the capital of Brazil, where he opened a barber's shop. In 1910, her mother followed, together with her eldest daughter, Olinda, and Carmen. Carmen never returned to Portugal. Once in Brazil, her parents had further children, namely: Amaro (1911), Cecília (1913), Aurora (1915 - 2005) and Oscar (1916). Marco de Canaveses is a city and municipality of the Porto district, in northern Portugal. ... This article is about the Brazilian city. ... Aurora Miranda (20 April 1915 - 22 December 2005) was a Brazilian entertainer. ...

Carmen went to school at the Convent of Saint Therese of Lisieux. Her very Catholic parents did not approve of her dreams of pursuing show business, so she kept them secret for years. In her spare time, she often sang at parties and festivals around town. Carmen's sister, Olinda, contracted tuberculosis and returned to Portugal for treatment. Carmen got her first job, in a tie shop at age 14, to help pay for her sister's medical treatment. She later worked in a boutique, La Femme Chic, where she learned to make hats. In no time, she started her own small hat business which became quite profitable. Olinda, meanwhile, remained in Portugal until her death in 1931. Saint Thérèse de Lisieux (January 2, 1873 - September 30, 1897), or more properly Sainte Thérèse de lEnfant-Jésus (Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus), born Marie-Françoise-Thérèse Martin, was a Roman Catholic nun who was canonised as a... Show business is a vernacular term for the business of entertainment. ... Tuberculosis (abbreviated as TB for tubercle bacillus or Tuberculosis) is a common and deadly infectious disease caused by mycobacteria, mainly Mycobacterium tuberculosis. ...

Before long, she was discovered and began singing on a local radio station. Ultimately, Carmen wound up with a recording contract with RCA. One thing led to another, and she pursued a career as a samba singer for 10 years before she was invited to New York City to perform in a show on Broadway. By 1928, she was a genuine superstar in Brazil. As with other popular singers of the era, Carmen eventually made her way into the film world. She made her debut in the Brazilian documentary "A Voz Do Carnaval". Two years later Carmen appeared in her first feature film entitled "Alo, Alo Brasil". But it was "Estudantes" that seemed to solidify Carmen in the minds of the movie-going public. New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... For other uses of Broadway, see Broadway. ...

In Brazil, she was noted as a musical innovator, and was one of the first samba superstars long before her arrival in the United States. She also made six films in Brazil. This article is about the music Samba. ...

Carmen arrived in the United States in 1939 with her band, the Bando da Lua, and achieved stardom in the early 1940s. She was encouraged by the United States government in her American career as part of President Roosevelt’s Good Neighbor Policy, designed to strengthen links with Latin America and Europe; it was believed that in delivering content like hers, the policy would be better received by the American public. She was the country's highest-paid entertainer for several years in the 1940s, and in 1945, was the highest-paid woman in the United States, earning more than $200,000 that year, according to IRS records. The Good Neighbor policy was the policy of the United States Administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in relation to Latin America and Europe during 1933-45. ... Seal of the Internal Revenue Service Tax rates around the world Tax revenue as % of GDP Part of the Taxation series        IRS redirects here. ...

Carmen made a total of 14 Hollywood films between 1940 and 1953. As a singer, she sold more than 10 million copies worldwide.^{[citation needed]}. She was given the nickname "The Brazilian Bombshell". ... // A nickname is a name of an entity or thing that is not its proper name. ...

Carmen’s Hollywood image was one of a generic Latinness that blurred the distinctions between Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico as well as between samba, tango and habanera. It was carefully stylized and outlandishly flamboyant. She was often shown wearing platform sandals and towering headdresses made of fruit, becoming famous as "the lady in the tutti-frutti hat." At only 5 feet tall (1.52 m), these accoutrements made her appear almost larger-than-life on screen. This article is about the music Samba. ... Tango is a style of music that originated among European immigrant populations of Argentina and Uruguay. ... The habanera is a musical style or genre from Cuba with a characteristic Habanera rhythm; it is one of the oldest mainstays of Cuban music and the first of the dances from Cuba to be exported all over the world. ...

She was well aware of the tensions in her career. During a visit to Brazil in 1940, she was heavily criticized for giving in to American commercialism and projecting a false image of Brazil. She responded with the Portuguese language song "Disseram que Voltei Americanizada," or "They Say I've Come Back Americanized." Another song, "Bananas Is My Business," was based on a line in one of her movies and directly addressed her image. She was greatly upset by the criticism and did not return to Brazil again for 14 years. Portuguese (  or língua portuguesa) is a Romance language that originated in what is now Galicia (Spain) and northern Portugal from the Latin spoken by romanized Celtiberians about 1000 years ago. ...

Carmen did not drink or smoke until her late 30s.^{[citation needed]} In addition to her addiction to alcohol and tobacco, Carmen regularly used amphetamines and barbiturates, all of which weakened her heart.^{[citation needed]} Alcoholism is the consumption of, or preoccupation with, alcoholic beverages to the extent that this behavior interferes with the drinkers normal personal, family, social, or work life, and may lead to physical or mental harm. ... Shredded tobacco leaf for pipe smoking Tobacco can also be pressed into plugs and sliced into flakes Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the fresh leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. ... Amphetamine is a synthetic drug originally developed (and still used) as an appetite suppressant. ... Barbiturates are drugs that acts as central nervous system (CNS) depressants, and by virtue of this they produce a wide spectrum of effects, from mild sedation to anesthesia. ... The heart and lungs, from an older edition of Grays Anatomy. ...

Scared Stiff (1953) with Martin and Lewis was her final performance on the silver screen. On August 4, 1955, Carmen suffered a heart attack during a segment of the live The Jimmy Durante Show, although she didn't realize it at the time. After completing a dance number, Carmen unknowingly suffered a mild heart attack , and nearly collapsed. Durante was at her side, and helped keep her on her feet. She laughed "I'm all out of breath" and Durante replied "Dat's OK, honey, I'll take yer lines!" Carmen laughed again, quickly pulled herself together and finished the show. At the end of the broadcast, she danced backwards out of the door, turned to the audience, blew a big kiss, and was gone for the last time. Scared Stiff is a 1953 comedy/musical horror movie directed by George Marshall and starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. ... Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. ... Heart attack redirects here. ... “Inka Dinka Doo” redirects here. ...

"The Brazilian Bombshell" died early the following morning of heart failure at the age of 46.

The A&E Network Biography episode featuring Carmen Miranda contained the final tragic kinescope footage from her August 4 appearance. Biography is one of A&Es longest-running and most popular programs. ... Kinescope (IPA: ) originally referred to the cathode ray tube used in television monitors. ... is the 216th day of the year (217th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

The official cause of death given on her death certificate was untreated toxemia^{[citation needed]} and heart failure^{[citation needed]}. Her body was flown back to Brazil soon afterwards and the Brazilian government declared a period of national mourning. She was buried in the Cemitério São João Batista in Rio de Janeiro^[3]. Her funeral cortège, en route to the cemetery, was accompanied by about half a million people. Toxemia is another term for blood poisoning, or the presence in the bloodstream of quantities of bacteria or bacterial toxins sufficient to cause serious illness. ... Cemitério São João Batista is a municipal cemetery in the neighborhood in Botafogo, Rio de Janeiro. ... This article is about the Brazilian city. ...

Tributes

For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Carmen Miranda has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6262 Hollywood Boulevard. Buskers perform on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. ... Hollywood Boulevard as taken from the Kodak Theatre Hollywood Boulevard is an avenue in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States, beginning at Sunset Boulevard in the east and running northwest to Vermont Avenue, where it straightens out and runs due west to Laurel Canyon Boulevard. ...

Helena Solberg made a documentary of her life, Carmen Miranda: Bananas Is My Business in 1995.

Carmen's enormous, fruit-laden hats are iconic visual recognized around the world. These costumes lead to Saks Fifth Avenue developing a line of turbans and jewelry inspired by Carmen Miranda in 1939. ^[4] Many costume jewelry designers made fruit jewelry also inspired by Carmen Miranda which is still highly valued and collectible by vintage and antique costume jewelry collectors. Fruit jewelry is still popular in jewelry design today by jewelry designers such as Julia Bristow and Kristy Lee. Much of the fruit jewelry seen today is often still fondly called "Carmen Miranda jewelry" because of this. Her image was much satirized and taken up as camp, and today, the "Carmen Miranda" persona is popular among female impersonators and drag performers. The style was even emulated in animated cartoon shorts. The animation department at Warner Brothers seemed to be especially fond of the actress's image. Animator Virgil Ross used it in his short Slick Hare, featuring Bugs Bunny, who escapes from Elmer Fudd by hiding in the fruit hat. Bugsy himself mimics Miranda briefly in What's Cookin' Doc? Tex Avery also used it in his MGM short Magical Maestro when an opera singer is temporarily changed into the persona, fruit hat and all, via a magician's wand. In 2000, the internet cartoon Homestar Runner featured a character dressing up as Miranda and being mistaken for Chiquita Banana. Saks Fifth Avenue is a chain of upscale American department stores that is owned and operated by Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises (SFAE), a subsidiary of Saks Incorporated. ... Camp is an aesthetic in which something has appeal because of its bad taste or ironic value. ... Drag queens are performers - usually gay men, sometimes transgendered women - who dress in drag, clothing associated with the female gender, usually highly exaggerated versions thereof. ... Drag artist Lypsinka. ... Warner Bros. ... Virgil Walter Ross (August 8, 1907 - May 15, 1996) was an American artist, cartoonist, and animator best known for his work on the Warner Bros. ... Slick Hare is a 1947 Looney Tunes Bugs Bunny cartoon, directed by Friz Freleng. ... Bugs Bunny is an animated rabbit/hare who appears in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of animated films produced by Warner Bros. ... Elmer J. Fudd is a fictional cartoon character and one of the most famous Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies characters. ... Whats Cookin Doc? is a 1944 Warner Bros. ... Frederick Bean Fred/Tex Avery (February 26, 1908 – August 26, 1980) was an American animator, cartoonist, and director, famous for producing animated cartoons during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. ... For alternate meanings of MGM, see MGM (disambiguation). ... Magical Maestro is a 1952 animated short film directed by Tex Avery and produced by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio. ... Homestar Runner is a Flash animated Internet cartoon. ... Chiquita Center in downtown Cincinnati Chiquita Brands International Inc. ...

Serious musical tributes and references are relatively infrequent. Brazilian singer Ney Matogrosso's album Batuque brings the period and several of Carmen's great early hits back to life in faithful style. Caetano Veloso paid tribute to Carmen out of love for her early samba recordings made in Rio when he recorded Disseram que eu voltei americanizada on the live album Circuladô Vivo in 1992. He also examined her iconic legacy of both kitsch and sincere samba artistry in an essay in the New York Times. Additionally, on one of Veloso's most popular songs, "Tropicalia", Veloso sings "Viva a banda da da da....Carmem Miranda da da da" as the final lyrics of the song. Singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett included a tribute to Carmen Miranda on his 1973 album A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean, entitled "They Don't Dance Like Carmen No More." In the early 1970s a novelty act known as Daddy Dewdrop had a top 10 hit single in the US titled "Chick-A-Boom," one of Carmen's trademark song phrases, although the resemblance ended there. Ney Matogrosso (full name, Ney de Souza Pereira) born 1st August 1941, in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, on the border of Brazil and Paraguay, is a singer. ... Caetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso (born August 7, 1942), better known as Caetano Veloso, is a Grammy Award-winning composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. ... Kitsch is a term of German origin that has been used to categorize art that is considered an inferior copy of an existing style. ... This article is about the music Samba. ... The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ... Jimmy Buffett tours Pearl Harbor with United States Navy Admiral Jonathan Greenert, June 12, 2003 James William Jimmy Buffett (born December 25, 1946) is a singer, songwriter, author, businessman, and recently a film producer best known for his island escapism lifestyle and music including hits such as Margaritaville (No. ... A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean is Jimmy Buffetts third album, containing many of what would later become his most popular songs. ... Daddy Dewdrop (born Richard Monda, Cleveland, Ohio, 1952) was an American novelty song artist. ...

Brazilian author Ruy Castro wrote a monumental biography of Carmen Miranda entitled Carmen After Four Years of Interviews, published in 2005 in Brazil. This book has yet to appear in English.

Visitors to Rio de Janeiro can find a museum dedicated to Carmen Miranda in the Flamengo neighborhood on Avenida Rui Barbosa. The museum includes several original costumes, and shows clips from her filmography. There is also a museum dedicated to her in Marco de Canaveses, Portugal called "Museu Municipal Carmen Miranda", with various photos and one of the famous hats. Outside the museum there is a statue of Carmen Miranda. This article is about the Brazilian city. ... Marco de Canaveses is a city and municipality of the Porto district, in northern Portugal. ...

A hot air balloon in her likeness was conceived in 1982 at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta by Jacques Soukup and Kirk Thomas. Named "Chic-I-Boom", the craft was built by Cameron England, and was the first special-shaped hot-air balloon ever to fly at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. The original Chic-I-Boom was retired from flight in 1996, and a new Chic-I-Boom was built by Aerostar. Chic-I-Boom's bananas are each 50 feet long. Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a yearly gathering of hot air balloon enthusiasts from around the world, occurring in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, during the first week of October. ...

The singer Leslie Fish created a song called "Carmen Miranda's Ghost is Haunting Space Station Three", in which a space station is inundated with fresh fruit. A science fiction anthology later had the same title.

John Cale, a member of the Velvet Underground, issued a song called "The Soul of Carmen Miranda" on his album Words for the Dying. The Velvet Underground and Nico (from left to right: John Cale, Nico, Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison, and Maureen Tucker) The Velvet Underground (Affectionately known as The Velvets, or V.U. for short) was an American rock and roll band of the late 1960s. ...

A suburb in Sydney, Australia called "Miranda" has a night club called "Carmens" thus being Carmens Miranda.

Carmen Miranda Square

On September 25, 1998, a city square in Hollywood was named Carmen Miranda Square in a ceremony headed by longtime honorary mayor of Hollywood, Johnny Grant, who was also one of the singer's personal friends dating back to World War II. The effort was spearheaded by concert promoter Jean Chakanaka and Carmen Miranda's grandniece, Cheryl Cunha, herself a songwriter, singer and performer who adopted the stage name "Miranda" and performs many of her aunt's songs in tribute. Brazil's Consul General Jorió Gama was on hand for opening remarks, as were members of Bando da Lua, Carmen Miranda's original band. is the 268th day of the year (269th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ... Johnny Grant is a television producer and the honorary Mayor of Hollywood. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

Carmen Miranda Square is only one of about a dozen Los Angeles city intersections named for historic performers. The square is located at the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Orange Drive across from Grauman's Chinese Theater. The location is especially noteworthy not only since Carmen Miranda's footprints are preserved in concrete at the Chinese Theater's famous collection, but in remembrance of an impromptu performance at a nearby Hollywood Boulevard intersection on V-J Day where she was joined by a throng of servicemen from the nearby USO. Flag Seal Nickname: City of Angels Location Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates , Government State County California Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 1,290. ... Hollywood Boulevard as taken from the Kodak Theatre Hollywood Boulevard is an avenue in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States, beginning at Sunset Boulevard in the east and running northwest to Vermont Avenue, where it straightens out and runs due west to Laurel Canyon Boulevard. ... This article or section cites very few or no references or sources. ... 15 August 1945 marked Victory over Japan or VJ Day, taking a name similar to Victory in Europe Day, which was generally known as VE Day. ... The United Service Organizations The United Service Organizations Inc. ...

Filmography

• The Voice of the Carnival (1933)
• Hello, Hello, Brazil (1935)
• Students (1935)
• Hello, Hello, Carnival (1936)
• Bananas of the Land (1939)
• Orange of China (1940)
• Down Argentine Way (1940)
• That Night in Rio (1941)
• Meet the Stars: Hollywood Meets the Navy (1941) (short subject)
• Week-End in Havana (1941)
• It's All True (1942) (documentary) (unfinished) (voice only) (released in 1993)
• Springtime in the Rockies (1942)
• The Gang's All Here (1943)
• Four Jills in a Jeep (1944)
• Greenwich Village (1944)
• Something for the Boys (1944)
• Doll Face (1945)
• The All-Star Bond Rally (1945) (short subject)
• If I'm Lucky (1946)
• Copacabana (1947)
• A Date with Judy (1948)
• Nancy Goes to Rio (1950)
• Scared Stiff (1953)

Down Argentine Way was a 1940 Technicolor musical released by Twentieth Century Fox. ... Its All True is a 1993 documentary about Orson Welless unfinished three-part film about South America. ... Springtime in the Rockies is a Technicolor musical comedy film released by Twentieth Century Fox in 1942. ... The Gangs All Here is a 1943 musical film produced and released by Twentieth Century Fox. ... This article is about Greenwich Village in New York City. ... Something for the Boys was a 1943 musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter and a book by Herbert Fields and Dorothy Fields. ... A Date with Judy was a American radio program during the 1940s. ... Nancy Goes to Rio is an 1950 MGM musical film. ... Scared Stiff is a 1953 comedy/musical horror movie directed by George Marshall and starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. ...

References

1. ^ FAST FACTS
2. ^ [1]Carmen Miranda's Bio at the Internet Movie Database
3. ^ {http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=1588 FindAGrave.comlink to her burial site]
4. ^ McGowan & Pessanha, 1991

• Tobar, Hector. Los Angeles Times, September 26, 1998. "City Squares Bring Lives Full Circle"
• Carmen Miranda, Bright Lights Film Journal

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Carmen Miranda

• Carmen Miranda at the Internet Movie Database
• Carmen Miranda's Gravesite