Aurora Miranda da Cunha Richaid (20 April 1915 – 22 December 2005) was a Brazilian singer and actress. She began her career at the age of 18 in 1933. Miranda appeared in several films, including ''

The Three Caballeros ''The Three Caballeros'' is a 1944 American live-action and animated musical propaganda anthology film produced by Walt Disney and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The film premiered in Mexico City on December 21, 1944. It was released in the ...

'', where she danced with

Donald Duck Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. Donald is an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit, sailor shirt and cap with ...

and

José Carioca José "Zé" Carioca (; ) is a cartoon anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic parrot created by the Brazilian cartoonist J. Carlos, José Carlos de Brito (J. Carlos) and shown to Walt Disney on his trip to Rio de Janeiro in 1941. The Walt Disney Compa ...

, singing the song, " Os Quindins de Yayá". Her sisters were

Carmen Miranda Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha (9 February 1909 – 5 August 1955), known professionally as Carmen Miranda (), was a Portuguese-born Brazilian singer, dancer, and actress. Nicknamed "The Brazilian Bombshell", she was known for her signature ...

and Cecilia Miranda.

Career

Aurora Miranda had a successful career in Brazil and the US, perhaps overshadowed by that of her sister,

. Aurora was six years younger than her sister. Aurora Miranda Tres Caballeros

In 1932, aged 18, she was asked to perform on the Mayrink Veiga radio station by Josué de Barros, the same composer who had launched her sister's career three years earlier. Soon she was snapped up by a rival station and within 12 months she had released her first record, ''Cai, Cai, Balão'' ("Drop, Drop Balloon") alongside the crooner then considered Brazil's ''rei da voz'' or "king of the voice", Francisco Alves. Alves was known for supporting up-and-coming artists such as Miranda. Years later, she appeared in the documentaries '' Once Upon a Mouse'' and '' Carmen Miranda: Bananas is My Business''. Miranda died at the age of 90 on 22 December 2005.

Personal life

In 1940, she married Gabriel Richaid clad in a gold-embroidered wedding dress shipped from the US by Carmen. Unlike her sister, Aurora preferred married life to her career. In 1951 she returned to Rio and settled down as wife and mother. She often spoke of her sister Carmen and appeared in many documentaries.

Legacy

Aurora Miranda carved out her own niche, first as a pioneering singer and later as one of the first human beings to interact with cartoons in a sound movie. She appeared in the

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...

production ''

'', a mix of cinema and animation in which Aurora starred alongside

. But perhaps her greatest legacy was the first recording of Rio de Janeiro's unofficial anthem, '' Cidade Maravilhosa'' (Marvellous City), in 1934. Tom Philips wrote in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' that Aurora Miranda "personified the spirit of Rio."

Filmography

References

External links