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Roberta Close (born in Rio de Janeiro on 7 December 1964) is a Brazilian model. The first pre-operative transsexual model to have posed for the Brazilian edition of Playboy, Close is probably Brazil's most famous transsexual woman.

Close was born under the name of Luiz Roberto Gambine Moreira, and as an adolescent, began to adopt feminine attire and secretly began taking female hormone injections. By the age of seventeen, Close's career as a model and actress was beginning to take off. For a period of time, she was associated with the travestis, a Brazilian subculture of biologically male transgendered prostitutes.

Close won the "Miss Gay Brazil" beauty pageant at the age of twenty. That same year, she made headlines and was dubbed "The world's most beautiful model". She has played a cabaret singer on a popular soap opera, starred in the 1986 movie Si tu vas a Rio... tu meurs, hosted a late night talk show, and was the inspiration for a hit song by Roberto and Erasmo Carlos.

In 1989, Close underwent sex reassignment surgery at Charing Cross Clinic in London, England. Afterwards, she appeared in an extensive photo spread in the Brazilian men's magazine Sexy, and was subsequently voted the "Most Beautiful Woman in Brazil."

In 1993, Close married Roland Granacher. The wedding to her Swiss husband took place in Europe, as it would not have been legal in Brazil. Close lived with Granacher in Zurich and Paris until the pair separated in 2000.

Roberta's Portuguese-language autobiography, Muito Prazer, Roberta Close ("Much Pleasure, Roberta Close" or "Pleased to meet you, I'm Roberta Close") was published in 1998. In it, she claims to have been involved with numerous American celebrities including Eddie Murphy, George Clooney, and Robert De Niro. It has not been published in the United States.

Close was involved in a lengthy legal judicial battle to challenge the Brazilian laws which prevented her from declaring her sex as female on official documents. In 1997, the Brazilian Supreme Court ruled against her. Flávio Giron, the federal vice-prosecutor, argued that "the expert exams carried out have confirmed the male sexuality of the petitioner." On March 4, 2005, Roberta Close acquired legal status as a female in Brazil after Judge Leise Rodrigues de Lima Espiritu Santo of the 9th Family Court of Rio de Janeiro legally recognized Close as a woman. Close's lawyer, Leandro Paiva de Medeiros, said, "In the decision, the judge affirms that Roberta has been a woman from the time she was born; it was only that medical science in 1964 was not capable of identifying this, due to a physical problem that she had." She was issued a new birth certificate by the Office of Public Records of the 4th district of Rio de Janeiro, which states that on December 7, 1964, a child of the female sex was born and was given the name of Roberta Gambine Moreira.^[1]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Luiz Gambine Moreira - "Roberta Close"
• Roberta Close at the Internet Movie Database
• Colectivos piden en Parlamento Vasco inclusión en Sanidad Publica de cirugías reasignación

Jô Soares
Jô Soares in 2006
Birth name	José Eugênio Soares
Born	(1938-01-16) January 16, 1938 (age 74) Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Medium	Talk show host, stand-up, television, author, actor, musician, comedian
Nationality	Brazilian
Years active	Since 1954
Genres	Observational comedy, surreal humor, deadpan
Subject(s)	Self-deprecation, everyday life
Spouse	Teresa Austregésilo (1959–1979), Sílvia Bandeira (1980-1983), Flávia Junqueira (1987-1998)
Notable works and roles	Host of Programa do Jô (2000-Present), Jô Soares Onze e Meia (1988-1999), Viva o Gordo (1981-1987), Satiricom (1972-1975), Faça Humor, Não Faça Guerra (1970-1972)
Website	[1]

José Eugênio Soares, best known as Jô Soares (born January 16, 1938 in Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian comedian, talk show host, author, theatrical producer, director, actor, painter and musician. Soares was born in Rio de Janeiro. After being educated in Switzerland and the United States, Soares returned to Rio and worked at TV Rio in 1958, writing and performing in comedy shows for the station. He acted as an American in Carlos Manga's O homem do Sputnik. In 1970, Soares started working at Rede Globo.

In 1988, Soares moved to SBT, where he hosted a talk-show, Jô Soares Onze e Meia ("Jô Soares Eleven Thirty"), until 1999. In 2000, Soares took his show's format (very similar to David Letterman's) back to Rede Globo, where it was then called Programa do Jô, and presents the program until the present day.

He is known for his knowledge of culture and literature, and for speaking English, Spanish, Italian and French besides his native Portuguese.

His first novel O Xangô de Baker Street was written in 1995 and has already been published in several other countries; it was made into a film in 2000. He has put out various jazz CDs. He has also produced many plays including a recent version of Richard III.

Jô was married three times and has a son called Rafael, who has autism.

Books[link]

• O Xangô de Baker Street (A Samba for Sherlock) (1995)
• O Homem Que Matou Getúlio Vargas (Twelve Fingers) (1998)
• Assassinatos na Academia Brasileira de Letras (2005)
• As Esganadas (2011)

External links[link]

• Jô Soares at IMDB

Silvio Santos
Silvio Santos
Born	Senor Abravanel (1930-12-12)December 12, 1930 Rio de Janeiro,  Brazil
Nationality	Brazilian
Occupation	TV host, businessman
Known for	Brazilian media personality
Net worth	US$ 2.3 Billion (2011)[citation needed]

Silvio Santos (real name Senor Abravanel, born on December 12, 1930) is a Brazilian TV show host and entrepreneur.^[1] He is the owner of SBT, the third largest television network in the country.

Biography[link]

Santos was born in Rio de Janeiro, in the Lapa region. He is of Sephardi Jewish descent and was born to a Turkish mother and a Greek father.^[2] Despite his humble beginnings, working as a street vendor, he had a strong affinity for artistic endeavors and took up jobs on the radio, circus and television.

He became the major TV host in Brazil. His greatest achievement was founding SBT in 1981, where he still hosts various programs. His business, Grupo Sílvio Santos (GSS), also owns agribusiness ventures and hotels. He is the single biggest taxpayer natural person in Brazil.^[3] Additionally, Santos is known as a benefactor of the Jewish community.

He has influenced Brazilian television in many ways, particularly by producing local versions of popular international formats such as Celebrity Big Brother, Candid Camera, The Biggest Loser, Wheel of Fortune, Family Feud, Deal or No Deal, the RTL Idols franchise, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. He also was the host of Show do Milhão, a game show also broadcast by ITV in England. The show received was later ported to some videogames, as SEGA Mega Drive 3, with the game built-in, manufactured by Brazilian SEGA's distributor Tectoy, and for Microsoft Windows (with his original dubbing).

See also[link]

• Sistema Brasileiro de Televisão

Notes[link]

1. ^ In reais.
2. ^ http://www.colegiosaofrancisco.com.br/alfa/silvio-santos/silvio-santos-5.php
3. ^ Página do Silvio Santos (Portuguese)

References[link]

• Grinberg, Keila (2005). Os judeus no Brasil. Editora Record. ISBN 85-200-0699-X. 

Further reading[link]

• Silva, Arlindo (2002). A fantástica história de Sílvio Santos. Editora do Brasil. ISBN 85-10-03063-4. 

External links[link]

• Sílvio Santos at the Internet Movie Database
• Official SBT site

Erasmo Carlos, born Erasmo Esteves on June 5, 1941, in the Tijuca area of Rio de Janeiro, is a Brazilian singer and songwriter, most closely associated with his friend and longtime collaborator Roberto Carlos (no relation). Together, they have created many chart hits including "É Proibido Fumar".

A core member of the Jovem Guarda ("Young Guard") scene of 1960s Brazilian pop-rock, Erasmo often appeared on television, in magazines and feature films with fellow teen idols Roberto Carlos and Wanderléa.

In contrast to his simpler pop-rock early sound, Erasmo went on to produce several of the more moody and introspective MPB records of the 1970s, including Sonhos e Memórias and Carlos, Erasmo.

Early life and career[link]

Erasmo Esteves was born in the neighborhood of Tijuca in the North Zone of Rio de Janeiro. His unmarried mother left the state of Bahia while pregnant. Erasmo knew Sebastião Rodrigues Maia (who would later be known as Tim Maia) since childhood, but the friendship would only come in adolescence because of the rock and roll fever.

In 1957, Tim Maia built the band The Sputniks, the band members were Tim, Arlênio Livy, Wellington Oliveira and Roberto Carlos. Erasmo was introduced to Roberto by Arlênio Livy. After a fight between Tim and Roberto, the group disbanded. Wellington gave up music, was the sole remaining Arlênio the next year decided to call Erasmo and other friends from Tijuca, Robert and José Edson Trindade, known as "China", to form the vocal group "The Boys of Rock".

At the suggestion of Carlos Imperial, the group was renamed The Snakes. They backed both Roberto and Tim Maia in their respective shows.

Roberto Carlos needed the lyrics to the song Hound Dog, a hit by Elvis Presley. Arlênio Livy told him Erasmo had the lyrics, as he was a big fan of Elvis. Roberto then discovered other affinities with Erasmo, as both of them liked Bob Nelson, James Dean, Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe, and cheering for Vasco da Gama. As part of The Snakes, Tim Maia taught Erasmo how to play guitar. Erasmo decided to adopt the name Carlos in his stage name, in honor of Roberto Carlos and Carlos Imperial. Before going solo, Erasmo was also part of the band Renato e seus Blue Caps.

Erasmo participated effectively with Roberto Carlos and Wanderléa in the Jovem Guarda TV, show where he had the nickname "Tremendão" (The Big Tremendous), imitating the clothes and style of his idol Elvis Presley. His greatest successes as a singer in this phase were "Gatinha manhosa" and "Festa de arromba". He had been rumored to become the main presenter of the program, but Roberto Carlos ended up taking the spot. Roberto and Erasmo, as songwriting partners, were criticized for singing and writing rock music and being thus "americanized". As a response, "Coqueiro verde" was the first samba-rock recorded by Erasmo.

The 70s[link]

In the 1970s, Erasmo signed with Polydor. For the first half of the decade, his shows were very different from that of the Jovem Guarda movement. Influenced by the hippie culture and soul music, he releases Carlos, Erasmo in 1971. The album, which opens with "Noite na cama", written by Caetano Veloso for him, was a controversial ode to marijuana.

The 80s[link]

Erasmo Carlos begins the 80's with an ambitious project, which Erasmo called a pioneer project in Brazil. There were 12 songs performed as duets with artists like Wanderléa, Nara Leão, Maria Bethania, Gal Costa, A Cor do Som, As Frenéticas, Gilberto Gil, Rita Lee, Tim Maia, Jorge Ben and Caetano Veloso. The opening track of the album was the radio single: a cover of "Sentado à beira do caminho", featuring his longtime songwriting partner Roberto Carlos.

Recent years[link]

In 2001 Erasmo released a new record. Pra falar de amor brought his interpretations to songs written by different writers, such as Kiko Zambianchi and Marcelo Camelo. The highlight is "Mais um na multidão", a duet with Marisa Monte and Erasmo Carlos written by Marisa Monte and Carlinhos Brown. The following year, he released his first live DVD, plus a double CD.

On June 5, 2009, the day he turned 68 years, Erasmo released the album Rock 'n' Roll, a tribute to the genre that influenced him most, with 12 of his compositions, with seven in partnership: Nando Reis ("Um beijo é um tiro" and "Mar vermelho"), Nelson Motta (on "Chuva ácida" and "Noturno carioca"), Chico Amaral (in "Noite perfeita" and "A guitarra é uma mulher"), and Liminha and Patricia Travassos (in "Celebridade"). Another highlight is "Olhar de mangá" in which Erasmo names 52 female personalities (real or fictional) -- the song is inspired by the facial expressions used in manga Japanese comics. In 2011, he released an album called Sex.

External links[link]

• Official Site (in Portuguese)

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