She was an international superstar famed for her beauty, singing, dancing and flamboyant costumes. What’s less known is that the so-called ‘Brazilian Bombshell’ was Portuguese by birth.
It’s impossible to overstate how popular Carmen Miranda was. Even today, nearly 70 years after her passing, she remains one of the most significant figures in popular culture. A brilliant, intelligent, multilingual businesswoman, at one point Carmen Miranda was the best-paid star in Hollywood.
“She was born in Portugal, her parents were from Portugal, just like her grandparents. She doesn’t have any Brazilian DNA,” wrote one fan upon hearing the sad news of Carmen Miranda’s passing.
Carmen Miranda was born in 1909 in Marco de Canaveses, in the district of Porto. She was baptised Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha and was the second daughter of the barber José Maria Pinto da Cunha and his wife, Maria Emília Miranda. Before her birth, Carmen’s parents had already planned their emigration to Brazil. Upon falling pregnant, Carmen’s mother decided to stay here in Portugal while her father travelled ahead, to begin their new life in South America.
Carmen came to prominence in Brazil in the early 1920s. Initially, she was a singer at a local radio station in Rio de Janeiro before securing a recording contract. By the end of the decade, Carmen was a household name in Brazil and within a few years, like many popular singers of that era, she had made the transition into the movies. In late 1939, she became the first Brazilian (and Portuguese-speaking) star to make a breakthrough in the USA. Initially, she appeared on Broadway before then heading to Hollywood.
Carmen Miranda made many successful films and appeared with some of the biggest names of the time, including Elizabeth Taylor, Groucho Marx and Dean Martin. In the 1940s, she was the highest-paid female performer in Hollywood. Such was her influence that Carmen had it stipulated in her contracts with the movie studios that when she was singing and dancing in a film, the camera should always stay on her – there should be no cutting away from her to other actors. This tactic was one way of ensuring she remained the centre of attention, but it also gave a hint to what soon would become an issue – her stereotyping as the vivacious samba-singing siren from South America.
The frustrations of her being stereotyped, along with a deeply unhappy marriage and the pressures from the movie industry, all combined to take Carmen down a dark path of alcoholism and drugs, both of which impacted badly on her overall health. Tragically, at just 46 years of age, Carmen suffered a massive heart attack. Her body was flown from Hollywood back to her adopted country of Brazil, where her death was declared a period of national mourning.
To this day, Carmen’s legacy lives on amongst her many fans. The debate continues as to whether she should be remembered as the Brazilian Bombshell or a daughter of Portugal. In truth, both interpretations are valid, with each country contributing to the story of ‘The Little Remarkable’ who travelled from a small village in the north of Portugal, via Brazil, to the heights of Hollywood.
Did you know…
Carmen Miranda is the only Brazilian and/or Portuguese star to be immortalised in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Carmen Miranda was only 1.52 metres tall. In addition to being called ‘The Brazilian Bombshell’, she was also known as ‘A Pequena Notável’ (The Little Remarkable).
