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Carmen Miranda

Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha (9 February 1909 – 5 August 1955), known professionally as Carmen Miranda (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈkaʁmẽj miˈɾɐ̃dɐ]), was a Portuguese-born Brazilian singer, dancer and actress. Nicknamed "The Brazilian Bombshell", she was known for her signature fruit hat outfit that she wore in her American films. As a young woman, she designed hats in a boutique before making her first recordings with composer Josué de Barros in 1929. Miranda's 1930 recording of "Taí (Pra Você Gostar de Mim)", written by Joubert de Carvalho, catapulted her to stardom in Brazil as the foremost interpreter of samba.

During the 1930s, Miranda performed on Brazilian radio and appeared in five Brazilian chanchadas, films celebrating Brazilian music, dance and the country's carnival culture. Hello, Hello Brazil! and Hello, Hello, Carnival! embodied the spirit of these early Miranda films. The 1939 musical Banana da Terra (directed by Ruy Costa) gave the world her "Baiana" image, inspired by Afro-Brazilians from the north-eastern state of Bahia.

In 1939, Broadway producer Lee Shubert offered Miranda an eight-week contract to perform in The Streets of Paris after seeing her at Cassino da Urca in Rio de Janeiro. The following year she made her first Hollywood film, Down Argentine Way with Don Ameche and Betty Grable and her exotic clothing and Lusophone accent became her trademark. That year, she was voted the third-most-popular personality in the United States; she and her group, Bando da Lua, were invited to sing and dance for President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1943, Miranda starred in Busby Berkeley's The Gang's All Here, which featured musical numbers with the fruit hats that became her trademark. By 1945, she was the highest-paid woman in the United States.

Miranda made fourteen Hollywood films between 1940 and 1953. Although she was hailed as a talented performer, her popularity waned by the end of World War II. Miranda came to resent the stereotypical "Brazilian Bombshell" image she had cultivated and attempted to free herself of it with limited success. She focused on nightclub appearances and became a fixture on television variety shows. Despite being stereotyped, Miranda's performances popularized Brazilian music and increased public awareness of Latin culture. In 1941, she was the first Latin American star to be invited to leave her hand and footprints in the courtyard of Grauman's Chinese Theatre and was the first South American honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Miranda is considered the precursor of Brazil's 1960s Tropicalismo cultural movement. A museum was built in Rio de Janeiro in her honor and she was the subject of the documentary Carmen Miranda: Bananas is My Business (1995).

Birth and Death Data: Born February 9, 1909 (Marco de Canaveses), Died August 5, 1955 (Beverly Hills)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1929 - 1950

Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, songwriter

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 180 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor 50134 10-in. 12/4/1929 Triste Jandaia Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo, with 2 guitars vocalist  
Victor 50135 10-in. 12/5/1929 Dona balbina Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo, with two guitars vocalist  
Victor 50144 10-in. 2/14/1930 O nego no samba Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50161 10-in. 1/22/1930 Burucuntum Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50162 10-in. 1/22/1930 Mamãe não quer... Choro Victor ; Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band vocalist  
Victor 50166 10-in. 1/23/1930 Iaiá, ioiô Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50169 10-in. 1/22/1930 Prá você gostar de mim Carmen Miranda ; Orchestra Victor [Brazil] Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band vocalist  
Victor 50192 10-in. 2/27/1930 Eu quero casar com você Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50193 10-in. 2/27/1930 O meu amor tem Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50218 10-in. 3/27/1930 Tenho um novo namorado Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50238 10-in. 4/22/1930 Neguinho Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50239 10-in. 4/23/1930 Gostinho diferente Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50318 10-in. 6/13/1930 A mulhé quando não qué Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50319 10-in. 6/13/1930 Miss sertão Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50325 10-in. 6/16/1930 De quem eu gosto Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo, with orchestra and guitar (violão) vocalist  
Victor 50328 10-in. 6/17/1930 Moreno bonito Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50344 10-in. 6/21/1930 Os hôme implica comigo Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist, songwriter  
Victor 50345 10-in. 6/21/1930 Será você? Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo, accompanied by orchestra and guitar (violão) vocalist  
Victor 50427 10-in. 8/4/1930 Esta vida é muito engraçada Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50428 10-in. 8/4/1930 Vou fazer trança Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50429 10-in. 8/5/1930 Veja você! Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo, with instrumental duet and vocal chorus vocalist  
Victor 50431 10-in. 8/5/1930 Prá judiá de você Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50432 10-in. 8/7/1930 É com você que eu queria Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
Victor 50433 10-in. 8/6/1930 Eu gosto da minha terra Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo, with instrumental duet and vocal chorus vocalist  
Victor 50438 10-in. 8/8/1930 Si no me quieres mas Carmen Miranda Female vocal solo vocalist  
(Results 1-25 of 180 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Miranda, Carmen," accessed October 31, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/104651.

Miranda, Carmen. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved October 31, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/104651.

"Miranda, Carmen." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 31 October 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/104651

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