Carmen Miranda
Encyclopedia
Carmen Miranda, GCIH (ˈkaɾmẽȷ̃ miˈɾɐ̃dɐ 9 February 1909 – 5 August 1955) was a Portuguese-born
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

ian samba singer
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...

, Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...

 actress and Hollywood film star popular in the 1940s and 1950s. She was, by some accounts, the highest-earning woman in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and noted for her signature fruit hat
Fruit hat
A fruit hat is a festive and colorful hat type popularized by Carmen Miranda and associated with warm locales. This type of hat has been worn by fashionistas, in films, by comic strip characters, and for Halloween.-History:...

 outfit she wore in the 1943 movie The Gang's All Here. Though hailed as a talented performer, her movie roles in the United States soon became cartoonish and she grew to resent them. She is considered the precursor of Brazil's Tropicalismo
Tropicalismo
Tropicália, also known as Tropicalismo, is a Brazilian art movement that arose in the late 1960s and encompassed theatre, poetry, and music, among other forms. Tropicália was influenced by poesia concreta , a genre of Brazilian avant-garde poetry embodied in the works of Augusto de Campos, Haroldo...

.

Early life

Carmen Miranda was born Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha in Várzea da Ovelha e Aliviada, a village in the northern Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 municipality of Marco de Canaveses. She was the second daughter of José Maria Pinto da Cunha (17 February 1887 – 21 June 1938) and Maria Emília Miranda (10 March 1886 – Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

, 9 November 1971). In 1909 when she was 10-months old, her father emigrated alone to Brazil and settled in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

, where he opened a barber shop. Her mother followed in 1910 with their daughters Olinda and Maria. Maria never returned to Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

, but retained her Portuguese nationality. In Brazil, her parents had four more children: Amaro (1911), Cecília (1913), Aurora
Aurora Miranda
Aurora Miranda da Cunha was a Brazilian entertainer. Her sister was Carmen Miranda. Miranda began her career at the age of 18 in 1933...

 (1915–2005) and Óscar (1916).

She was christened
Infant baptism
Infant baptism is the practice of baptising infants or young children. In theological discussions, the practice is sometimes referred to as paedobaptism or pedobaptism from the Greek pais meaning "child." The practice is sometimes contrasted with what is called "believer's baptism", or...

 Carmen by her father because of his love for the opera comique, and also after Bizet's masterpiece Carmen
Carmen
Carmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself possibly influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...

. This passion for opera influenced his children, and Miranda's love for singing and dancing at an early age. She went to school at the Convent of Saint Therese of Lisieux. Her father did not approve of her plans to enter show business
Show business
Show business, sometimes shortened to show biz, is a vernacular term for all aspects of entertainment. The word applies to all aspects of the entertainment industry from the business side to the creative element ....

. However, her mother supported her and was beaten when her husband discovered Carmen had auditioned for a radio show. Carmen had previously sung at parties and festivals in Rio. Her older sister Olinda contracted tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...

 and was sent to Portugal for treatment. Miranda went to work in a tie shop at age 14 to help pay her sister's medical bills. She next worked in a boutique, where she learned to make hats and opened her own hat business which became profitable.

Career

Her extraordinary talent was discovered when Miranda was first introduced to composer Josué de Barros, who went on to promote and record her first album with a Brunswick, a German recording company in 1929. In 1930, she was known to be Brazil's gem singer, and in 1933 went on to sign a two-year contract with Rádio Mayrink Veiga, becoming the first contract singer in the radio industry history of Brazil. In 1934, she was invited as a guest performer in Radio Belgrano in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

. Ultimately, Miranda wound up with a recording contract with RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...

. She pursued a career as a samba singer for ten years before she was invited to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 to perform in a show on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...

. As with other popular singers of the era, Miranda made her screen debut in the Brazilian documentary A Voz Do Carnaval (1933). Two years later, Miranda appeared in her first feature film entitled Alô, Alô Brasil. But it was the 1935 film Estudantes that seemed to solidify her in the minds of the movie-going public. In the 1936 movie Alô Alô Carnaval, she performed the famous song Cantoras do Rádio with her sister Aurora, for the first time.

Miranda signed a movie contract with Hollywood and arrived in the United States in 4 May 1939 with her band, the Bando da Lua. Carmen grew to fame in the country quickly, having formally been presented to President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...

 at a White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...

 banquet shortly after arrival. She was encouraged by the United States government as part of President Roosevelt’s Good Neighbor policy
Good Neighbor policy
The Good Neighbor policy was the foreign policy of the administration of United States President Franklin Roosevelt toward the countries of Latin America. Its main principle was that of non-intervention and non-interference in the domestic affairs of Latin America...

, 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. By 1946 she was Hollywood's highest-paid entertainer and top female tax payer in the United States, earning more than $200,000 that year (=$2.2 million in 2010 adjusted for inflation), according to IRS
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...

 records.

Against her family's wishes, she married on 17 March 1947 to failed American movie producer David Alfred Sebastian, born in Detroit on 23 November 1908. In 1948 she became pregnant, but suffered a miscarriage after a show. The marriage lasted only a few months, but Carmen, who was Catholic, would not accept getting a divorce. Her sister Aurora later would state in the documentary Bananas is My Business that "he was very rude, many times even hit her. The marriage was a burden in her life; he only married her for her money. He did not like our family".

Miranda made a total of fourteen Hollywood films between 1940 and 1953 and was dubbed The Brazilian Bombshell. Her Hollywood image was one of a generic Latinness that blurred the distinctions between Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, and Mexico as well as between samba, tango
Tango music
Tango is a style of ballroom dance music in 2/4 or 4/4 time that originated among European immigrant populations of Argentina and Uruguay . It is traditionally played by a sextet, known as the orquesta típica, which includes two violins, piano, double bass, and two bandoneons...

 and habanera
Habanera (music)
The habanera is a genre of Cuban popular dance music of the 19th century. It is a creolized form which developed from the contradanza. It has a characteristic "Habanera rhythm", and is performed with sung lyrics...

. 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." However there were times that Miranda performed barefoot on stage because she could move more easily in bare feet than in the towering platform sandals.

Career difficulties

During a visit to Brazil in 1940, Miranda was heavily criticized for giving in to American commercialism and projecting a false image of Brazil. She responded with the Portuguese language
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...

 song "Disseram que Voltei Americanizada
Disseram que Voltei Americanizada
"Disseram que voltei americanizada is a samba song written by Luiz Peixoto and Vicente Paiva especially for Carmen Miranda. It is a direct answer to accusations that Miranda put her Brazilian roots aside to become famous enough in Hollywood. Miranda recorded it on September 2, 1940 for Odeon Records...

", 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 fourteen years.

After returning to the United States, Miranda made her final film appearance in the 1953 film Scared Stiff with Martin and Lewis
Martin and Lewis
Martin and Lewis were an American comedy team, comprising singer Dean Martin and comedian Jerry Lewis as the comedic "foil". The pair first met in 1945; their debut as a duo occurred at Atlantic City's 500 Club on July 24/25, 1946....

.

In the later years of her life, in addition to her already heavy smoking and alcohol consumption, Miranda began taking amphetamines and barbiturates, all of which took a toll on her body.

Death

On 4 August 1955, Miranda suffered a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...

 during a segment of the live NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

 television series, The Jimmy Durante Show
The Jimmy Durante Show
The Jimmy Durante Show is a 51-episode half-hour comedy/variety program presented live on NBC from October 2, 1954 to June 23, 1956.-Production background:...

. After completing a dance number (which was later aired on A&E Network
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...

's Biography
Biography (TV series)
Biography is a documentary television series. It was originally a half-hour filmed series produced for CBS by David Wolper from 1961 to 1964 and hosted by Mike Wallace. The A&E Network later re-ran it and has produced new episodes since 1987...

episode about Miranda), she fell to her knees, and Durante instinctively told the band to "stop da music!". He helped Miranda up to her feet as she laughed, "I'm all out of breath!". "Dat's OK, honey, I'll take yer lines", Durante replied. Miranda laughed again and quickly pulled herself together, finishing the show. At the end of the broadcast, she smiled and waved, then exited the stage. She died later that night after suffering a second heart attack at her home in Beverly Hills.

In accordance with her wishes, Miranda's body was flown back to Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

 where the Brazilian government declared a period of national mourning. 60,000 people attended her mourning ceremony at the Rio town hall, and more than half a million Brazilians escorted the funeral cortège to her resting place. She is buried in the Cemitério São João Batista
Cemitério São João Batista
Cemitério São João Batista is a private cemetery in the neighborhood of Botafogo, Rio de Janeiro owned and operated by the Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Rio de Janeiro a charitable organization with a Catholic identity founded by the Portuguese]] in Rio during the colonial era...

 in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

.

Tributes

For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Carmen Miranda has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...

 at 6262 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...

.

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

Miranda's enormous, fruit-laden hats are iconic visuals recognized around the world. These costumes led to Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue is a luxury American specialty store owned and operated by Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises , a subsidiary of Saks Incorporated. It competes in the high-end specialty store market in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, i.e. 'the 3 B's' Bergdorf, Barneys, Bloomingdale's and Lord & Taylor...

 developing a line of turbans and jewelry inspired by Carmen Miranda in 1939. 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 (recently featured on America's Next Top Model Cycle 12 Ep. 10). Fruit jewelry is still popular in jewelry design today. 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
Camp (style)
Camp is an aesthetic sensibility that regards something as appealing because of its taste and ironic value. The concept is closely related to kitsch, and things with camp appeal may also be described as being "cheesy"...

, and today, the "Carmen Miranda" persona is popular among drag performers
Drag queen
A drag queen is a man who dresses, and usually acts, like a caricature woman often for the purpose of entertaining. There are many kinds of drag artists and they vary greatly, from professionals who have starred in films to people who just try it once. Drag queens also vary by class and culture and...

. 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
Slick Hare
"Slick Hare" is a 1947 Merrie Melodies Bugs Bunny cartoon, directed by Friz Freleng. It parodies the Mocambo nightclub in Los Angeles—in the cartoon referred to as "The Mocrumbo". Mel Blanc voices Bugs and an impression of Humphrey Bogart, while Arthur Q. Bryan voices Elmer Fudd...

, featuring Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...

, who escapes from Elmer Fudd
Elmer Fudd
Elmer J. Fudd/Egghead is a fictional cartoon character and one of the most famous Looney Tunes characters, and the de facto archenemy of Bugs Bunny. He has one of the more disputed origins in the Warner Bros. cartoon pantheon . His aim is to hunt Bugs, but he usually ends up seriously injuring...

 by hiding in the fruit hat. Bugsy himself mimics Miranda briefly in What's Cookin' Doc?
What's Cookin' Doc?
What's Cookin' Doc? is a 1944 Warner Bros. cartoon in the Merrie Melodies series, directed by Bob Clampett and starring Bugs Bunny. The title is a variant on Bugs' catch-phrase "What's up Doc?". It also hints at one of the scenes in the picture....

Tex Avery
Tex Avery
Frederick Bean "Fred/Tex" Avery was an American animator, cartoonist, voice actor and director, famous for producing animated cartoons during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. He did his most significant work for the Warner Bros...

 also used it in his MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...

 short Magical Maestro
Magical Maestro
Magical Maestro is a 1952 animated short film directed by Tex Avery and produced by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio. It tells the story of Poochini, a canine opera singer who spurns a magician. The magician is able to replace Poochini's normal conductor prior to the show through disguise...

when an opera singer is temporarily changed into the persona, fruit hat and all, via a magician's wand.

Brazilian singer Ney Matogrosso
Ney Matogrosso
Ney de Sousa Pereira, known as Ney Matogrosso is a Brazilian singer who is distinguished for his uncommon sopranino voice.-Biography:...

's album Batuque brings the period and several of Miranda's early hits back to life in faithful style. Caetano Veloso
Caetano Veloso
Caetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso , better known as Caetano Veloso, is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicalismo which encompassed theatre, poetry and music in the 1960s,...

 paid tribute to Miranda for her early samba recordings made in Rio when he recorded "Disseram que Voltei Americanizada" on the live album Circuladô Vivo in 1992. He also examined her iconic legacy of both kitsch
Kitsch
Kitsch is a form of art that is considered an inferior, tasteless copy of an extant style of art or a worthless imitation of art of recognized value. The concept is associated with the deliberate use of elements that may be thought of as cultural icons while making cheap mass-produced objects that...

 and sincere samba
Samba
Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival...

 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....Carmen Miranda da da da" as the final lyrics of the song. Singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett
Jimmy Buffett
James William "Jimmy" Buffett is a singer-songwriter, author, entrepreneur, and film producer. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffett's musical hits include "Margaritaville" , and "Come Monday"...

 included a tribute to Carmen Miranda on his 1973 album A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean
A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean
A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean is the third album by American popular music singer–songwriter Jimmy Buffett and the first major-label album in Buffett's Don Gant-produced "Key West phase"...

, entitled "They Don't Dance Like Carmen No More." In the early 1970s a novelty act known as Daddy Dewdrop
Daddy Dewdrop
Daddy Dewdrop is a pseudonym for an American songwriter named Dick Monda , backed up by some studio musicians, including Tom Hensley who later became the musical director for Neil Diamond, and Butch Rillera who later became a member of the group Redbone...

 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. The band Pink Martini
Pink Martini
Pink Martini is a 13-member "little orchestra" from Portland, Oregon, formed in 1994 by pianist Thomas M. Lauderdale. They draw inspiration from music from all over the world – crossing genres of classical, jazz and old-fashioned pop.-History:...

 recorded "Tempo perdido" for their Hey Eugene! Album on 2007.

Brazilian author Ruy Castro
Ruy Castro
Ruy Castro is a Brazilian author and journalist. In 1996 he was a co-winner of the Prêmio Jabuti. He is known, in part, for his writings concerning Bossa nova.- References :...

 wrote a biography of Carmen Miranda entitled Carmen, published in 2005 in Brazil. This book has yet to appear in English.

Visitors to Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

 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
Marco de Canaveses
Marco de Canaveses is a city and municipality of the Porto district, in northern Portugal. The city itself has a population of 9,042.It is the birth place of Carmen Miranda.- Geography :...

, 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.

A hot air balloon in her likeness was conceived in 1982 at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a yearly festival of hot air balloons that takes place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA during early October. The balloon fiesta is a nine day event, and has around 750 balloons...

 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.

The singer Leslie Fish
Leslie Fish
Leslie Fish is a filk musician, author, and anarchist political activist.-Music:Along with The DeHorn Crew, in 1976 she created the first commercial filk recording, Folk Songs for Folk Who Ain't Even Been Yet...

 created a song called "Carmen Miranda's Ghost Is Haunting Space Station Three", in which a space station
Space station
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock. A space station is distinguished from other spacecraft used for human spaceflight by its lack of major propulsion or landing...

 is inundated with fresh fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...

. A science fiction anthology
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...

 later had the same title.

John Cale
John Cale
John Davies Cale, OBE is a Welsh musician, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the experimental rock band The Velvet Underground....

, a member of the Velvet Underground, issued a song called "The Soul of Carmen Miranda" on his album Words for the Dying.

Jimmy Buffet wrote a song entitled "They Don't Dance Like Carmen No More" which is on his 1973 album "A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean."

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

Carmen Miranda Square

On 25 September 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
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. Brazil's Consul General Jorió Gama was on hand for opening remarks, as were members of Bando da Lua, Carmen Miranda's original band.

Carmen Miranda Square is only one of about a dozen Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

 city intersections named for historic performers. The square is located at the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...

 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
United Service Organizations
The United Service Organizations Inc. is a private, nonprofit organization that provides morale and recreational services to members of the U.S. military, with programs in 160 centers worldwide. Since 1941, it has worked in partnership with the Department of Defense , and has provided support and...

.

Filmography

Film
Year Film Role Notes
1933 A Voz do Carnaval Herself at Rádio Mayrink Veiga
1935 Alô, Alô, Brasil
1935 Estudantes Mimi
1936 Alô Alô Carnaval
1939 Banana-da-Terra
1940 Laranja-da-China
1940 Down Argentine Way
Down Argentine Way
Down Argentine Way is a 1940 Technicolor musical film made by Twentieth Century Fox. It made a star of Betty Grable in her first leading role for the studio, and introduced American audiences to Carmen Miranda. The film also starred Don Ameche, The Nicholas Brothers, Charlotte Greenwood, and J....

Herself
1941 That Night in Rio
That Night in Rio
That Night in Rio is a 1941 musical comedy film starring Alice Faye, Carmen Miranda and Don Ameche . It is one of several film adaptations of a play called The Red Cat by Rudolph Lothar and Hans Adler...

Carmen
1941 Week-End in Havana
Week-End in Havana
Week-End in Havana is a 1941 Fox musical film directed by Walter Lang. The movie stars Alice Faye and Carmen Miranda. It was the second of three pictures the two stars made together and the second Faye film to have a Latin-American theme, typical for Fox musicals of the early 1940s...

Rosita Rivas
1941 Meet the Stars #5: Hollywood Meets the Navy Herself Short subject
1942 Springtime in the Rockies Rosita Murphy
1943 The Gang's All Here Dorita Alternative title: The Girls He Left Behind
1944 Greenwich Village Princess Querida
1944 Something for the Boys Chiquita Hart
1944 Four Jills in a Jeep
Four Jills in a Jeep
Four Jills in a Jeep is a 1944 film starring Kay Francis, Carole Landis, Martha Raye, and Mitzi Mayfair as themselves, re-enacting their USO tour of Europe and North Africa during World War II.-Cast:*Kay Francis as Herself*Carole Landis as Herself...

Herself
1945 The All-Star Bond Rally Herself (Pinup girl)
1946 Doll Face
Doll Face
Doll Face is a 1946 American film directed by Lewis Seiler starring Vivian Blaine as "Doll Face" Carroll. The film is also known as Come Back to Me in the United Kingdom.- Plot summary :...

Chita Chula Alternative title: Come Back to Me
1946 If I'm Lucky Michelle O'Toole
1947 Copacabana Carmen Novarro/Mademoiselle Fifi
1948 A Date with Judy
A Date with Judy (film)
A Date with Judy is a 1948 MGM musical film starring Wallace Beery, Jane Powell, and Elizabeth Taylor. Directed by Richard Thorpe, the movie was based on the radio series of the same name....

Rosita Cochellas
1950 Nancy Goes to Rio
Nancy Goes to Rio
Nancy Goes to Rio is a musical comedy film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1950. It was directed by Robert Z. Leonard and produced by Joe Pasternak from a screenplay by Sidney Sheldon, based on a story by Ralph Block, Frederick Kohner and Jane Hall...

Marina Rodrigues
1953 Scared Stiff Carmelita Castinha

Television
Year Title Role Notes
1947 Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...

Herself (Voice) 1 episode
1949 Texaco Star Theater
Texaco Star Theater
Texaco Star Theater is an American comedy-variety show, broadcast on radio from 1938 to 1949 and telecast from 1948 to 1956. It was one of the first successful examples of American television broadcasting, remembered as the show that gave Milton Berle the nickname "Mr...

Herself 1 episode
1949 The Ed Wynn Show Herself 1 episode
1951 What's My Line?
What's My Line?
What's My Line? is a panel game show which originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, with several international versions and subsequent U.S. revivals. The game tasked celebrity panelists with questioning contestants in order to determine their occupations....

Mystery Guest 1 episode
1951–1952 The Colgate Comedy Hour
The Colgate Comedy Hour
The Colgate Comedy Hour is an American comedy-musical variety series that aired live on the NBC network from 1950 to 1955. The show stars many notable comedians and entertainers of the era, including Eddie Cantor, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, Fred Allen, Donald O'Connor, Bud Abbott and Lou...

Herself 2 episodes
1953 Toast of the Town
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....

Herself 1 episode
1955 The Jimmy Durante Show
The Jimmy Durante Show
The Jimmy Durante Show is a 51-episode half-hour comedy/variety program presented live on NBC from October 2, 1954 to June 23, 1956.-Production background:...

Herself 2 episodes

Brazilian Singles

  • Taí (Pra Você Gostar de Mim) (Tahi, For You to Like Me)(written with Victor Orchestra on 27 January 1930)
  • Goodbye, Boy (recorded with Orquestra Victor Brasileira on 29 November 1932)
  • Moleque Indigesto (Kid Indigesto) (recorded with Lamartine Babo and Old Guard Group on 5 January 1933)
  • Chegou a Hora da Fogueira (Bonfire Time) (recorded with Mario Reis and Hell Heaven on 5 June 1933)
  • As Cinco Estações do Ano (The Five Seasons) (recorded with Lamartine Babo, Mario Reis, Admiral Group and Lefty on 6 July 1933)
  • Alô… Alô? (Hello...Hello?)(recorded with Mario Reis Group and Lefty on 18 December 1933)
  • Eu Também (Me Too)(recorded with Lamartine Babo and Hell Heaven on 5 January 1934)
  • Na Batucada da Vida (Life in Batucada) (recorded with the Devils in Heaven 20 March 1934)
  • Ao Voltar do Samba (Arlequim de Bronze) (At the Back of Samba (Harlequin Bronze)) (recorded with Grupo do Canhoto on 26 March 1934)
  • Isto É Lá com Santo Antônio (She is with San Antonio ) (recorded with Mario Reis and Hell Heaven on 14 May 1934)
  • Minha Embaixada Chegou (My Ambassador Has Arrived) (recorded with Lefty in the Group 28 September 1934)
  • Primavera no Rio (Spring in Rio) (recorded with the Devils in Heaven 20 August 1934)

1935

  • ANOITECEU
  • ENTRE OUTRAS COISAS
  • ESQUECI DE SORRIR
  • FOI NUMA NOITE ASSIM
  • FOGUEIRA DO MEU CORAÇÃO
  • FRUTO PROIBIDO
  • COR DE GUINÉ
  • CASAQUINHO DE TRICOT
  • DIA DE NATAL
  • FALA, MEU PANDEIRO
  • DEIXA ESSE POVO FALAR
  • Sonho de Papel (Dream Role) (recorded with Orchestra Odeon on 10 May 1935)
  • E Bateu-Se a Chapa (And Hit The Plate) (recorded with Regional de Benedito Lacerda on 26 June 1935)
  • O Tique-Taque do Meu Coração (The ticking of My Heart) (recorded with Regional de Benedito Lacerda on 7 August 1935)
  • Adeus, Batucada (Goodbye Batucada) (recorded with Odeon Orchestra on 24 September 1935)
  • Querido Adão (Dear Adam) (recorded with Orchestra Odeon on 26 September 1935)

1936

  • ALÔ, ALÔ CARNAVAL
  • DUVI-D-Ó-DÓ
  • CAPELINHA DO CORAÇÃO
  • CUÍCA, PANDEIRO, TAMBORIM...
  • BEIJO BAMBA
  • BALANCÊ
  • ENTRA NO CORDÃO
  • COMO EU CHOREI
  • Cantores do Rádio (Singer's Radio) (recorded with Aurora Miranda
    Aurora Miranda
    Aurora Miranda da Cunha was a Brazilian entertainer. Her sister was Carmen Miranda. Miranda began her career at the age of 18 in 1933...

     and Orchestra Odeon on 18 March 1936)
  • No Tabuleiro da Baiana (The Board of Bahia) (recorded with Louis Barbosa and Regional Luperce Miranda on 29 September 1936)
  • Como "Vaes" Você? (Recorded with Ary Barroso and Regional Luperce Pixinguinha and Miranda on 2 October 1936)

1937

  • DANCE RUMBA
  • EM TUDO, MENOS EM TI
  • CANJIQUINHA QUENTE
  • CABARET NO MORRO
  • BAIANA DO TABOLEIRO
  • DONA GEISHA
  • Cachorro Vira-Lata (Underground Dog) (recorded with Regional de Benedito Lacerda on 4 May 1937)
  • Me Dá, Me Dá (Give Me, Give Me) (recorded with Regional de Benedito Lacerda on 4 May 1937)
  • Camisa Amarela (recorded with the Odeon Group on 20 September 1937))
  • Eu Dei (recorded with Regional Odeon on 21 September 1937)

1938

  • ENDEREÇO ERRADO
  • FALAR!
  • ESCREVI UM BILHETINHO
  • BATALHÃO DO AMOR
  • E A FESTA MARIA?
  • CUIDADO COM A GAITA DO ARY
  • A PENSÃO DA DONA STELLA
  • A VIZINHA DAS VANTAGENS
  • Samba Rasgado (Torn Samba) (recorded with Odeon Group on 7 March 1938)
  • E o Mundo Não Se Acabou (And the world would not end) (recorded with Regional Odeon on 9 March 1938)
  • Boneca de Piche (Doll of Boneca) (recorded with Admiral and Odeon Orchestra on 31 August 1938)
  • Na Baixa do Sapateiro (The lowly shoemaker of Bahia) (recorded with Orchestra Odeon on 17 October 1938)

1939

  • A PRETA DO ACARAJE
  • DEIXA COMIGO
  • CANDIEIRO
  • AMOR IDEAL
  • ESSA CABROCHA...
  • A NOSSA VIDA HOJE É DIFERENTE
  • COZINHEIRA GRANFINA
  • O Que É Que a Bahiana Tem? (What is that Bahian?) (Recorded with Dorival Caymmi and Regional Assembly on 27 February 1939)
  • Uva de Caminhão (Grape Truck) (recorded with Joint Odeon on 21 March 1939)
  • Camisa Listada (Listed Shirt) ((recorded with Bando da Lua on 28 August 1939))

1940

  • Voltei pro Morro (I Returned to the Hill) (recorded with Joint Odeon on 2 September 1940)
  • DIZ QUE TEM...
  • DISSO É QUE EU GOSTO
  • Disseram que Voltei Americanizada
    Disseram que Voltei Americanizada
    "Disseram que voltei americanizada is a samba song written by Luiz Peixoto and Vicente Paiva especially for Carmen Miranda. It is a direct answer to accusations that Miranda put her Brazilian roots aside to become famous enough in Hollywood. Miranda recorded it on September 2, 1940 for Odeon Records...

     (They Say I've Come Back Americanized)
    (recorded with Odeon Set on 2 September 1940)
  • BRUXINHA DE PANO
  • O DENGO QUE A NÊGA TEM
  • É UM QUÊ QUE A GENTE TEM
  • BLAQUE-BLAQUE
  • Recenseamento (Census) (recorded with Joint Odeon on 27 September 1940)
  • GINGA-GINGA

1939

  • South American Way (recorded with Bando da Lua and boy on 26 December 1939)
  • TOURADAS EM MADRID
  • MARCHINHA DO GRANDE GALLO
  • MAMÃE EU QUERO (I WANT MY MAMA)
  • BAMBÚ - BAMBÚ

1941

  • I Like You Very Much (Ai, Ai, Ai) (recorded with Bando da Lua on 5 January 1941)
  • ALÔ ALÔ
  • Chica-Chica-Bum-Chic
    That Night in Rio
    That Night in Rio is a 1941 musical comedy film starring Alice Faye, Carmen Miranda and Don Ameche . It is one of several film adaptations of a play called The Red Cat by Rudolph Lothar and Hans Adler...

    (recorded with Bando da Lua on 5 January 1941)
  • BAMBALÊ
  • Cai, Cai
    Nancy Goes to Rio
    Nancy Goes to Rio is a musical comedy film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1950. It was directed by Robert Z. Leonard and produced by Joe Pasternak from a screenplay by Sidney Sheldon, based on a story by Ralph Block, Frederick Kohner and Jane Hall...

     (Yes, Yes) (record with Bando da Lua on 5 January 1941)
  • ARCA DE NOÉ
  • A WEEK-END IN HAVANA
  • DIZ QUE TEM...
  • WHEN I LOVE I LOVE
  • Rebola, Bola
    Week-End in Havana
    Week-End in Havana is a 1941 Fox musical film directed by Walter Lang. The movie stars Alice Faye and Carmen Miranda. It was the second of three pictures the two stars made together and the second Faye film to have a Latin-American theme, typical for Fox musicals of the early 1940s...

     (Roll, Ball)(recorded with the Bando da Lua on 9 October 1941)
  • THE MAN WITH THE LOLLYPOP SONG
  • NÃO TE DOU A CHUPETA
  • MANUELO
  • THANK YOU, NORTH AMERICA

1942

  • Chattanooga Choo Choo
    Chattanooga Choo Choo
    "Chattanooga Choo Choo" is a song by Harry Warren and Mack Gordon . It was recorded in a big-band/swing manner by Glenn Miller and his orchestra and featured in the 1941 movie Sun Valley Serenade, which starred Sonja Henie, John Payne, Glenn Miller and his orchestra, The Modernaires, Milton Berle...

    (recorded with Bando da Lua and boy on 25 July 1942)
  • TIC-TAC DO MEU CORAÇÃO
  • O PASSO DO KANGURÚ (BRAZILLY WILLY)
  • BONECA DE PIXE

1947

  • THE MATADOR (TOURADAS EM MADRID)
  • Cuanto Le Gusta (Andrews Sisters recorded with Vic Schoen Orchestra, and on 29 November 1947)

1949

  • ASI ASI (I SEE I SEE) (Andrews Sisters recorded with Vic Schoen Orchestra)
  • The Wedding Samba (Andrews Sisters recorded with Vic Schoen Orchestra)

1950

  • BAIÃO "CA - ROOM' PA PA (Andrews Sisters recorded with Vic Schoen Orchestra)
  • IPSE-AI-O (YIPSEE-I-O)

External links

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