Evita's image appeared on a wide variety of products, including stamps, coins, postcards and calendars. This 1954 postage stamp commemorated the second anniversary of her "passing into immortality".

María Eva Duarte de Perón (most commonly known by the affectionate diminutive Evita) (May 7, 1919 - July 26, 1952) was the First Lady of Argentina and the second wife of President Juan Perón (1895-1974). Evita Peron stamp This image of a postage stamp may be copyrighted and/or have other restrictions on its reproduction imposed by the issuing authority. ... May 7 is the 127th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (128th in leap years). ... 1919 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... July 26 is the 207th day (208th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 158 days remaining. ... 1952 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... A First Lady is the female spouse of an elected male head of state such as a President, Prime Minister, Premier or Governor. ... Juan Domingo Perón (October 8, 1895 – July 1, 1974) was an Argentine military officer and the President of Argentina from 1946 to 1955 and from 1973 to 1974. ... 1895 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ...

She was born in Los Toldos, Argentina, one of five illegitimate but recognized children born to an unwed cook, Juana Ibarguren (1894-1971), and her married lover, ranch owner Juan Duarte (1872-1926), and was raised in nearby Junín. At age 15, she travelled to Buenos Aires with a travelling musician, where she became a radio and film actress, acting in B-grade movie melodramas and Radio El Mundo soap operas. She eventually came to co-own the radio company and she was considered to be a talented radio actress. She regularly appeared on a popular historical-drama programme Great Women of History in which she played Elizabeth I of England, Sarah Bernhardt and the last Tsarina of Russia. Her personal favourite movie was the 1938 epic Marie Antoinette, starring Norma Shearer. She met Colonel Juan Perón at a charity event to raise funds for the victims of San Juan earthquake. She and Perón married on October 21, 1945. Her impoverished roots and inclinations led her to assume the role of her husband's liaison with labor becoming a co-leader of the descamisados ("the shirtless"), the foundation for her husband's political support. Buenos Aires (Good Air in Spanish, originally meaning Fair Winds) is the capital of Argentina and its largest city and port, as well as one of the largest cities in South America. ... Film refers to the celluloid media on which movies are printed Film is a term that encompasses motion pictures as individual projects, as well as the field in general. ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ... The term B-movie originally referred to a film designed to be distributed as the lower half of a double feature, often a genre film featuring cowboys, gangsters or vampires. ... The first TIME cover devoted to soap operas: Dated January 12, 1976, Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes of Days of Our Lives are featured with the headline Soap Operas: Sex and suffering in the afternoon. A soap opera is an ongoing, episodic work of fiction, usually broadcast on television... Elizabeth I (7 September 1533 – 24 March 1603) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. ... Sarah Bernhardt (portrait by Nadar) Sarah Bernhardt (October 22, 1844 – March 26, 1923) was a French stage actress. ... Princess Alix of Hesse, as Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia (1872-1918) Her Grand Ducal Highness Princess Alix of Hesse and by Rhine (Alix Victoria Helena Louise Beatrice, 6 June 1872 - 17 July 1918), was the consort of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, the last Tsar of Russia. ... 1938 was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Marie-Antoinette, Queen of France and Archduchess of Austria (born November 1755 – executed 16 October 1793) Daughter of Maria Theresa of Austria, wife of Louis XVI and mother of Louis XVII. She was guillotined at the height of the French Revolution. ... Norma Shearer (August 10, 1902 - June 12, 1983) was an American actress born in Montreal, Quebec. ... Juan Domingo Perón (October 8, 1895 – July 1, 1974) was an Argentine military officer and the President of Argentina from 1946 to 1955 and from 1973 to 1974. ... Charity is a term in Christian theology (one of the three theological virtues), meaning loving kindness towards others; it is held to be the ultimate perfection of the human spirit, because it is said to both glorify and reflect the nature of God. ... Map of Argentina highlighting San Juan province San Juan is a province of Argentina, located in the west of the country. ... October 21 is the 294th day of the year (295th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 71 days remaining. ... 1945 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ...

She campaigned heavily for Perón during his 1946 presidential bid. Using her weekly radio show she delivered powerful speeches with heavy populist rhetoric urging the poor to rise up. Although she became quite wealthy from her radio and modeling successes, she would highlight her own humble upbringings as a way of showing solidarity with the impoverished classes. 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Populism is a political ideology or rhetorical style that holds that the common person is oppressed by the elite in society, which exists only to serve its own interests, and therefore, the instruments of the State need to be grasped from this self-serving elite and instead used for the...

After Perón was elected Evita immediately took a prominent political role in the government. She created the Eva Perón Foundation, an institution to assist the poor. It was incredibly popular and made valuable contributions to Argentine life. The hospitals and orphanages that the Foundation established endured long after Evita's own premature death. The Foundation also increased her political power within Argentina and soon she organized the women's branch of the Justicialist Party. By 1949, Evita was the most influential figure in Argentina. 1949 is a common year starting on Saturday. ...

She became the center of a vast personality cult and her image and name soon appeared everywhere. Despite her dominance and political power, Evita was always careful to never undermine the important symbolic role of her husband. Though she was very much in control of the president's agenda, Evita was always careful to justify her actions by claiming they were "inspired" or "encouraged" by the wisdom and passion of Perón. Privately, however the marriage was often tense. The couple never had any children. Adolf Hitler built a strong cult of personality, based on the Führerprinzip. ...

Though Evita was worshipped by her working-class followers, she was bitterly hated by Argentina's wealthy Anglophile elite. They detested her humble roots. Many felt that as a woman she was far too active in politics. Evita herself referred to them disparagingly as "The Oligarchs."

In 1946 Evita went on a much-publicized "Rainbow Tour" of Europe, meeting with numerous Heads of State, including Francisco Franco. It was aimed at being a massive public relations coup for the Perón regime, which in the post-World War II world was increasingly being viewed as fascist. She was well-received in Spain, where she visited the tombs of Spain's first absolutist monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, and handed 100-peseta notes to every poor child she met on her journey. She also met with the Pope in Rome and went to Paris. 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Francisco Franco Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco y Bahamonde Salgado Pardo de Andrade (December 4, 1892 - November 20, 1975), abbreviated Francisco Franco Bahamonde and sometimes known as Generalísimo Francisco Franco, was dictator of Spain from 1939 until his death in 1975. ... Public relations (PR) deals with influencing public opinion, through the presentation a clients image, message, or product. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler Fascism (in Italian, fascismo), capitalized, refers to the right-wing authoritarian political movement which ruled Italy from 1922 to 1943 under the leadership of Benito Mussolini. ... Ferdinand and his wife Isabella of Castile Ferdinand II (Fernando de Aragón in Spanish and Ferran dAragó in Catalan), nicknamed the Catholic (March 10, 1452 – June 23, 1516) was king of Aragon, Castile, Sicily, Naples, Valencia, Sardinia and Navarre and Count of Barcelona. ... Isabella of Castile (Spanish: Ysabel, Isabel or Isabela) (22 April 1451 - 26 November 1504) was queen of Castile. ... Location within Italy The Roman Colosseum Rome (Italian and Latin: Roma) is the capital city of Italy and of its Latium region. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ...

Eva and Juan Perón with a crowd of supporters (note their portraits in the background).

Eventually Evita sought to formalize her power by seeking the vice-presidency in 1951. This move angered many military leaders who despised Evita and her increasing powers within the government. Under heavy pressure, Juan eventually withdrew Evita's nomination from the post. Eva Peron with crowd- no copyright File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

A lover of auto racing, in November of 1951 she purchased a rare Maserati A6 G-1500 from Swiss racedriver, Ciro Basadonna who frequently came to Argentina on business. 1951 was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... See also: Mazarati, a 1980s band. ... Auto racing (also known as automobile racing or autosport) is a sport involving racing automobiles. ...

Like her husband's first wife, Eva Perón died of uterine cancer (although some sources claim it was leukemia), at the age of 33. Her body was embalmed and kept on display until a military coup overthrew her husband in 1955. Her body was then flown to Milan, Italy, and buried. Sixteen years later, in 1971, the body was exhumed and flown to Spain. Her husband returned from exile to Argentina as president. He died there in 1974, and Eva's body was returned to Argentina and (briefly) displayed beside his. She was reburied in the Duarte family tomb in La Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires. Endometrial cancer involves cancerous growth of the endometrium (lining of the uterus). ... Leukemia (leukaemia in Commonwealth English) is a group of blood diseases characterized by malignancies (cancer) of the blood-forming tissues. ... A coup détat (pronounced kū dā ta), or simply a coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government, usually done by a small group that just replaces the top power figures. ... 1955 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Location within Italy Piazza della Scala Milan (Italian: Milano; Milanese dialect: Milán) is the main city in northern Italy, and is located in the plains of Lombardy, the most populated and developed of Italian regions. ... 1971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... La Recoleta Cemetery is a famous cemetery located in the Recoleta district of Buenos Aires, Argentina. ... Buenos Aires (Good Air in Spanish, originally meaning Fair Winds) is the capital of Argentina and its largest city and port, as well as one of the largest cities in South America. ...

Her life and career are dramatized in the popular musical, Evita, co-produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber, which starred Elaine Paige in London's West End, Patti LuPone on Broadway, and Madonna in film. She has also been portrayed on television by Faye Dunaway. The art of singing and dancing in a prepared fictional play has been a time-honored tradition ranging to the early days of civilization. ... Madonna as Evita in the 1996 movie adaptation of the musical Evita is a musical/rock opera by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the life of Eva Perón. ... Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born March 22, 1948) is a highly successful British composer of musical theatre. ... On the cover of Elaine Paige Tour Programme 2004 Elaine Paige (born Elaine Bickerstaff on March 5, 1948 in Barnet, Hertfordshire) is a world-renowned British actress and singer, primarily in musicals. ... The term West End is most commonly used to refer to the West End of London, England. ... Patti LuPone (born April 21, 1949 in Northport, New York) is an American singer and actress. ... Madonna Ciccone Ritchie Madonna Ciccone Ritchie (born Madonna Louise Ciccone in Bay City, Michigan, August 16, 1958), simply known by the stage name Madonna, is an American singer frequently referred to as the Queen of Pop music. ... Faye Dunaway (born Dorothy Faye Dunaway on January 14, 1941 in Bascom, Florida) is an Academy Award winning actress. ...

External link

• Evita Peron Historical Foundation (http://www.evitaperon.org/)