Elsie Lessa (1912 – 17 May 2000) was a Brazilian

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

and

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

of American descent. She was hired as a reporter for the newspaper ''

O Globo ''O Globo'' (, ''The Globe'') is a Brazilian newspaper based in Rio de Janeiro. ''O Globo'' is the most prominent print publication in the Grupo Globo media conglomerate. Founded by journalist Irineu Marinho, owner of ''A Noite'', it was orig ...

'' in 1946. From 1952 till her death in May 2000, she wrote continuously for the paper. No other writer had a permanent role with the paper for so long. She was considered one of the two most beautiful women of her day in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, along with

Adalgisa Nery Adalgisa Nery (October 29, 1905 – June 7, 1980) was a Brazilian poet, journalist and politician. Biography She was born in Rio de Janeiro as Adalgisa Maria Feliciana Noel Cancela Ferreira, the daughter of a civil servant. In 1922 she mar ...

). The writer

Rubem Braga Rubem Braga (12 January 1913 – 19 December 1990) was a Brazilian writer of '' crônicas''. He was born in Cachoeiro de Itapemirim city, state of Espírito Santo. Braga was raised in his hometown, but at an early age was sent to the city of Ni ...

tells of how he followed her for a long time through the streets of downtown

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

, just to enjoy her beauty and grace. The writer

Ruy Castro Ruy Castro (born 27 February 1948, in Caratinga) is a Brazilian author and journalist. In 1996 he was a co-winner of the Prêmio Jabuti. He is known for his writings concerning Bossa nova and for his biographies, profiling figures such as Garri ...

, in his book ''Ela é Carioca'' said of her: "Elsie has to be placed beside the greatest masters of a genre in the language, like

Paulo Mendes Campos Paulo Mendes Campos (February 28, 1922 – July 1, 1991) was a Brazilian writer and journalist. Biography Born in Minas Gerais, Mendes Campos was the son of the physician and writer Mario Mendes Campos and D. Maria José de Lima Campos. He bega ...

and

Fernando Sabino Fernando Tavares Sabino (October 12, 1923 – October 11, 2004) was a Brazilian writer and journalist. Life Sabino was born in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, the son of Dominic Sabino and D. Odette Tavares Sabino. He lived there until he was twe ...

". She was a granddaughter of the writer and grammarian

Júlio Ribeiro Júlio César Ribeiro Vaughan (April 16, 1845 – November 1, 1890) was a Brazilian Naturalist novelist, philologist, journalist and grammarian. He is famous for his controversial romance '' A Carne'' and for designing the flag of the State of ...

, patron of the 24th chair of the

Brazilian Academy of Letters The Academia Brasileira de Letras (ABL) ( English: ''Brazilian Academy of Letters'') is a Brazilian literature, literary non-profit society established at the end of the 19th century. The first president, Machado de Assis, declared its found ...

and the creator of the flag of the State of São Paulo. She was married to the writer Orígenes Lessa, with whom she had a son, the writer and journalist Ivan Lessa. Lessa later married journalist and writer Ivan Pedro de Martins. She is the grandmother of the writer Juliana Foster, and aunt and godmother of the writer and translator Sergio Pinheiro Lopes.

Books

A selection * ''Pelos caminhos do mundo'' (1950). Rio de Janeiro: A Noite. * ''A dama da noite: crońicas'' (1963). Rio de Janeiro: Livraria J. Olympio. * ''Crônicas de amor e desamor'' (1973). Rio de Janeiro: F. Alves. * ''Ponte Rio-Londres'' (1984). Rio de Janeiro: Editora Record. * ''Formoso tejo meu: (Crónicas)'' (1998). Lisbon: Editora Pergaminho. * ''Canta que avida é un dia. Crônicas reunidas.'' (1998). Rio de Janeiro: Razao Cultural.

References

Brazilian people of American descent Brazilian journalists 1912 births 2000 deaths 20th-century Brazilian women writers 20th-century journalists {{Brazil-journalist-stub