Paulo Alberto Moretzsohn Monteiro de Barros (3 January 1936 – 9 May 2008), better known by the pseudonym Artur da Távola, was a Brazilian politician,

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, journalist, and writer. Távola began his career as a journalist and writer. He authored twenty-three books during the course of his career. He did not enter politics until 1960. He was forced into exile in Bolivia and Chile from 1964 until 1968 due to Brazil's

military dictatorship A military dictatorship is a dictatorship in which the military exerts complete or substantial control over political authority, and the dictator is often a high-ranked military officer. The reverse situation is to have civilian control of the m ...

, which remained in power from 1964 until 1985. Távola adopted his well-known pseudonym "Artur da Tavola," which was a reference to

King Arthur King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...

. His adopted name allowed him to resume his career in journalism while the

was still in power. Távola returned to politics following the end of military rule in 1985. He participated in the 1988 constituent assembly and served as a

federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

deputy Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spai ...

from 1987 until 1995. He was elected to the

Brazilian Senate The Federal Senate ( pt, Senado Federal) is the upper house of the National Congress of Brazil. When created under the Imperial Constitution in 1824, it was based on the House of Lords of the British Parliament, but since the Proclamation ...

from Rio de Janeiro in 1994 and took office in 1995. He remained in office in the Senate until 2002. Távola was a founding member of the

Brazilian Social Democracy Party The Brazilian Social Democracy Party ( pt, Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira, PSDB), also known as the Brazilian Social Democratic Party or the Party of Brazilian Social Democracy,. is a political party in Brazil Brazil has a multi-pa ...

(PSDB), which governed the country from 1995 until 2002. However, Távola formally left the Brazilian Social Democracy Party in 1999 as the result of a dispute with

Brazilian President The president of Brazil ( pt, Presidente do Brasil), officially the president of the Federative Republic of Brazil ( pt, Presidente da República Federativa do Brasil) or simply the ''President of the Republic'', is the head of state and head o ...

Fernando Henrique Cardoso. Távola accused Cardoso, who was another founder of the PSDB, of abandoning the party's social democracy ideals for more conservative policies. Artur da Távola died of

heart disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...

in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro, at the age of 72 on May 9 2008.

References

External links

Folha Online: Artur da Távola dies at the age of 72 in Rio de Janeiro
(Portuguese) 1936 births 2008 deaths Writers from Rio de Janeiro (city) People from Rio de Janeiro (city) Brazilian journalists Brazilian Social Democracy Party politicians Members of the Federal Senate (Brazil) 20th-century journalists {{Brazil-politician-stub