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Carmen Miranda Collection

Born Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha, “the Brazilian Bombshell” Carmen Miranda helped to popularize Latin music and dance with enormous fruit-laden hats in big budget musicals.

Carmen Miranda

34 old time radio show recordings
(total playtime 17 hours, 281 min)
available in the following formats:

1 MP3 CD
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17 Audio CDs


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Play a sample episode from January 21, 1945:

"Radio Hall of Fame: Breakfast in Hollywood"



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Carmen Miranda
(1909 – 1955)

They called her "the Brazilian Bombshell". She seemed to drift north like a tropical storm and left the Norteamericanos on their collective ears. Credited for raising North American awareness of our Latin American neighbors, she faced derision at home for fusing the various Central and Southern American cultures into a simplistic mix that would appeal to a narrow North American lens.

Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha was born in Portugal in 1909, and her father moved the family to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, while she was still an infant, and opened a barbershop. Her father tagged her as Carmen to salute his admiration for the opera. This helped to encourage the little girl's love of singing and dancing, although the thought of his daughter in show business was an unhappy one for the barber of Rio.

When Carmen's older sister needed to return to Portugal to recover from tuberculosis, Carmen went to work in a millinery shop to help pay the medical bills. She soon created her own profitable line of hats. She was discovered in 1929 by composer Josue' de Barros who helped her to record her first album with Brunswick. Carmen Miranda became Brazil's first pop star and her rise was linked with the growing popularity of distinctly Brazilian samba music.

Carmen MirandaBroadway impresario Lee Shubert saw the Brazilian sensation during a visit to Rio in 1939, and immediately offered her a contract to sing in his summer musical, The Streets of Paris. Miss Miranda refused unless her band, "Bando da Lua", was included in the deal. Shubert refused, saying that there were plenty of good musicians in New York, but Carmen insisted, knowing that North American musicians could never get samba right. Finally, Brazilian dictator Getulio Vargas stepped in, believing that Carmen could serve as an ambassadress for Brazil, and the government paid for the band's passage to New York.

Broadway revues were having difficulty competing with the 1939 world's fair, and Carmen was credited as "the girl who saved Broadway from the World's Fair". Ironically, audiences had no clue as to what she was singing about except for the "gay rolling of Carmen Miranda's insinuating eyes". It was only a matter of time before Hollywood came to call.

She had an unbreakable contract with a New York club while her first film, Down Argentine Way, was being filmed. Her numbers were filmed in a New York studio and edited into the Hollywood film. Her success in the USA hurt her popularity in Brazil, where she was criticized for being too Americanized. In fact, audiences throughout Central and South America were offended that Carmen was cast less as a Brazilian and more as a "Latin American bimbo".

Her popularity during the War years is undeniable. She became the first Latina to have her hand and foot prints preserved in the sidewalk outside Grauman's Chinese Theater and the first South American to have a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

However, changing post War tastes brought an end to the big budget musicals that made Carmen Miranda famous. She continued to have limited success in night clubs, but clearly her star was fading. Her final performance was filming the TV variety program The Jimmy Durante Show on August 4, 1955. Durante saw that Carmen was "outa breath" and offered to take her lines. She refused and they were finished working around 11 PM. At four the next morning, Carmen Miranda suffered a fatal heart attack.

Although Carmen Miranda has been criticized for blurring the cultural distinctions between Brazil, Portugal, Argentina and Mexico, her iconic image has also helped to bring Latin culture into the North American mainstream. The enormous fruit-laden hats (which were made ridiculously high through movie special effects) continue to be an influence in fashion.

The Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame which honors Carmen Miranda's contributions to Motion Pictures lies at 6262 Hollywood Blvd.  See also:  Tales of Mexico, Fernando LamasLupe Velez, Tito Guizar, and Xavier Cugat.

Carmen Miranda

Text on OTRCAT.com ©2001-2024 OTRCAT INC All Rights Reserved. Reproduction is prohibited.

These classic recordings are available in the following formats:

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  • MP3 CDs are delivered by mail. These archival quality MP3 CDs are playable in your computer and many MP3 player devices.



    34 recordings on 1 MP3 CD for just $5.00. Total playtime 17 hours, 281 min
    34 recordings on 1 MP3 CD for just $5.00
    total playtime 17 hours, 281 min
    Add MP3 CD Collection to Cart

    1. 34 shows – total playtime 17 hours, 4 minutes
    2. 20th Century Fox Is On Air 410000 That Night In Rio.mp3
    3. 20th Century Fox Is On Air 420000 Springtime In Rockies.mp3
    4. Bergen Mccarthy 430221 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    5. Bergen Mccarthy 450107 Cornsilk Alley With Carmen Miranda.mp3
    6. Bergen Mccarthy 471123 Better W Carmen Miranda.mp3
    7. Big Show 510325 Judy Holliday, J Durante, Carmen Miranda.mp3
    8. Cp420329 005 G Jessel C Miranda T Bankhead.mp3
    9. Cp420804 025 Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Count Basie.mp3
    10. Cp430224 054 Hope Shore Crosby Miranda.mp3
    11. Cp440108 100 C.miranda Harry J.veronica Lake.mp3
    12. Cp440325 112 Don Ameche, Cass Daily.mp3
    13. Cp450201 160 Gloria De Haven, Carmen Miranda, Bing Crosby.mp3
    14. Cp450815 Victory Celebration Pt 1.mp3
    15. Cp450815 Victory Celebration Pt 2.mp3
    16. Cp460630 228 Janet Blair Danny Kaye Carmen Miranda.mp3
    17. Cp490208 357 Betty Grable Danny Kaye Carmen Miranda.mp3
    18. Danny Kaye 460215 43 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    19. Dinah Shore 470402 W Carmen Miranda.mp3
    20. Ford 470402 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    21. Fred Allen 460310 061 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    22. Hall Of Fame 450121 058 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    23. Hedda Hoppers Hollywood 501210 009 Eric Johnson.mp3
    24. Hello Americans 421115 01 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    25. Heres To Veteran 0003 460616 Sioux City Sue.mp3
    26. Jubilee 440626 086 Jimmie Lunceford, Nat King Cole.mp3
    27. Lux 440522 441 Springtime In Rockies.mp3
    28. Mail Call 441129 121 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    29. Radio Hall Of Fame 450121 060 Breakfast In Hollywood.mp3
    30. Treasury Hour 411021 Salute Navy Day Robert Montgomery.mp3
    31. Treasury Star Parade 004 Olsen Johnson.mp3
    32. Treasury Star Parade 005 Memory Of John Mcgee.mp3
    33. Treasury Star Parade 006 Mrs Mergatroids Dime.mp3
    34. Vallee Varieties 410522 064 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    35. Which Is Which 450131 Carmen Miranda.mp3
  • MP3 downloads are available instantly after purchase!



    34 recordings on 1 MP3 Collection Download for just $5.00. Total playtime 17 hours, 281 min
    34 recordings on 1 MP3 Collection Download for just $5.00
    469 MB – total playtime 17 hours, 4 min
    Add Instant Download Collection to Cart

    1. 34 shows – 469 MB – total playtime 17 hours, 4 minutes
    2. 20th Century Fox Is On Air 410000 That Night In Rio.mp3
    3. 20th Century Fox Is On Air 420000 Springtime In Rockies.mp3
    4. Bergen Mccarthy 430221 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    5. Bergen Mccarthy 450107 Cornsilk Alley With Carmen Miranda.mp3
    6. Bergen Mccarthy 471123 Better W Carmen Miranda.mp3
    7. Big Show 510325 Judy Holliday, J Durante, Carmen Miranda.mp3
    8. Cp420329 005 G Jessel C Miranda T Bankhead.mp3
    9. Cp420804 025 Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Count Basie.mp3
    10. Cp430224 054 Hope Shore Crosby Miranda.mp3
    11. Cp440108 100 C.miranda Harry J.veronica Lake.mp3
    12. Cp440325 112 Don Ameche, Cass Daily.mp3
    13. Cp450201 160 Gloria De Haven, Carmen Miranda, Bing Crosby.mp3
    14. Cp450815 Victory Celebration Pt 1.mp3
    15. Cp450815 Victory Celebration Pt 2.mp3
    16. Cp460630 228 Janet Blair Danny Kaye Carmen Miranda.mp3
    17. Cp490208 357 Betty Grable Danny Kaye Carmen Miranda.mp3
    18. Danny Kaye 460215 43 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    19. Dinah Shore 470402 W Carmen Miranda.mp3
    20. Ford 470402 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    21. Fred Allen 460310 061 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    22. Hall Of Fame 450121 058 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    23. Hedda Hoppers Hollywood 501210 009 Eric Johnson.mp3
    24. Hello Americans 421115 01 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    25. Heres To Veteran 0003 460616 Sioux City Sue.mp3
    26. Jubilee 440626 086 Jimmie Lunceford, Nat King Cole.mp3
    27. Lux 440522 441 Springtime In Rockies.mp3
    28. Mail Call 441129 121 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    29. Radio Hall Of Fame 450121 060 Breakfast In Hollywood.mp3
    30. Treasury Hour 411021 Salute Navy Day Robert Montgomery.mp3
    31. Treasury Star Parade 004 Olsen Johnson.mp3
    32. Treasury Star Parade 005 Memory Of John Mcgee.mp3
    33. Treasury Star Parade 006 Mrs Mergatroids Dime.mp3
    34. Vallee Varieties 410522 064 Carmen Miranda.mp3
    35. Which Is Which 450131 Carmen Miranda.mp3
  • Standard Audio CDs are delivered by mail on archival quality media with up to 60 minutes on each CD and play in all CD players



    34 recordings on 17 Audio CDs. Total playtime 15 hours, 36 min
    34 recordings on 17 Audio CDs
    total playtime 15 hours, 36 min

    Carmen Miranda Disc A001

    1. Treasury Star Parade 004 Olsen Johnson
    2. Treasury Star Parade 005 Memory Of John Mcgee
    3. Treasury Star Parade 006 Mrs Mergatroids Dime
    4. 20th Century Fox Is On Air 410000 That Night In Rio

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A002

    1. Vallee Varieties 410522 064 Carmen Miranda
    2. Treasury Hour 411021 Salute Navy Day Robert Montgomery

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A003

    1. 20th Century Fox Is On Air 420000 Springtime In Rockies
    2. Cp420329 005 G Jessel C Miranda T Bankhead

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A004

    1. Cp420804 025 Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Count Basie
    2. Hello Americans 421115 01 Carmen Miranda

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A005

    1. Bergen Mccarthy 430221 Carmen Miranda
    2. Cp430224 054 Hope Shore Crosby Miranda

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A006

    1. Cp440108 100 C.miranda Harry J.veronica Lake
    2. Cp440325 112 Don Ameche, Cass Daily

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A007

    1. Lux 440522 441 Springtime In Rockies

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A008

    1. Jubilee 440626 086 Jimmie Lunceford, Nat King Cole
    2. Mail Call 441129 121 Carmen Miranda

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A009

    1. Bergen Mccarthy 450107 Cornsilk Alley With Carmen Miranda
    2. Hall Of Fame 450121 058 Carmen Miranda

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A010

    1. Radio Hall Of Fame 450121 060 Breakfast In Hollywood

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A011

    1. Which Is Which 450131 Carmen Miranda
    2. Cp450201 160 Gloria De Haven, Carmen Miranda, Bing Crosby

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A012

    1. Cp450815 Victory Celebration Pt 1
    2. Cp450815 Victory Celebration Pt 2

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A013

    1. Danny Kaye 460215 43 Carmen Miranda
    2. Fred Allen 460310 061 Carmen Miranda

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A014

    1. Heres To Veteran 0003 460616 Sioux City Sue
    2. Cp460630 228 Janet Blair Danny Kaye Carmen Miranda

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A015

    1. Dinah Shore 470402 W Carmen Miranda
    2. Ford 470402 Carmen Miranda

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A016

    1. Bergen Mccarthy 471123 Better W Carmen Miranda
    2. Cp490208 357 Betty Grable Danny Kaye Carmen Miranda

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    Carmen Miranda Disc A017

    1. Hedda Hoppers Hollywood 501210 009 Eric Johnson

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