Fallon Gold looks beyond the comedy, glitz and tutti frutti hats to reveal why we’ve chosen uber-camp icon Carmen Miranda as July’s Tragic Diva.

Most know Carmen Miranda as the over-the-top Latin movie star with a pile of fruit on her head. However, she was no South American caricature, there was a whole 3D woman (No? Gasp!) behind the bigger-than-life persona. So, who was Carmen and why do we love her?

Her style
She literally grew up on the docks of Rio de Janeiro amongst a melting pot of West African, Caribbean and European working class folks. That’s where she got all her influences, from her music to her look. The musical influence was Samba, which she adapted to sing with a rhythm unique to her. Her costume was that of the Baiana Women – working African Caribbean women. Carmen exaggerated it. She was already a big star in Brazil when she took all of that good stuff over to the states, first to Broadway and then Hollywood.

She created a persona but was not the butt of the joke
Although some might argue that she became more of a caricature of herself as time went on, Carmen’s broken English, machine-gun-fire delivery, and her exaggerated everything was a carefully curated character that would undercut any attempts to make fun of her. Although she was often the comic relief in Fox musicals against leading ladies Alice Faye and Betty Grable, she always stole the film. She was unique. There was no one near like her. Carmen was not a gimmick, she was a true star and her performances and records are wonderful, darlings. Check them out!

She had her own fashion line
She designed a range, including turbans, jewellery and shoes, that sold in Saks Fifth Avenue. Imagine women walking around New York dressed as Carmen!

She upset (upper class) Brazil and her response was a clapback
… in song, yet. When she made a return trip to Rio and was accused of being too Americanized, she wrote and performed a song about it, satirising the bougie Brazilians and their snobbishness. She knew they should be proud of their export.

The secret in her shoes
It is rumoured that those platforms were more practical than most footware – she would have a hidden drawer built into them to house her cocaine.

So, why was she tragic?
Like most of us divas she suffered from heartache – the men she fell in love with didn’t want to become Mr Miranda and the one she married she didn’t really love. But most tragically, she literally worked herself to death. At the start of her career she was in a Broadway show, cabaret performances at night, and filming scenes for her first films. She was also producing that fashion line, doing skits on radio shows and making public appearances. Carmen was yet another Hollywood victim of uppers and downers to keep going on such a constantly gruelling schedule. When the roles dried up she went home to Brazil where a doctor made her quit the drugs cold turkey – a hugely dangerous thing to do. She had a breakdown and was given shock treatment. Broke, Carmen returned to The States where she was back on the pills and overwork.

You know we said she worked herself to death..?
She was on television, The Jimmy Durante Show, when she suffered a heart attack. You can see the footage below. Her legs buckle from under her. But she continued her performance, not letting on what had happened. After the filming of the show, Carmen went home to her apartment but instead of resting she entertained friends until the early morning. By the time she went to bed she had another heart attack; this time it was fatal. She was 46. In Brazil, Carmen lay in state and nearly a million people viewed the body.