Evita, Gardel Still Big in Buenos Aires

B U E N O S  A I R E S, Argentina, Nov. 25, 2003 -- A fresh, red carnation adorns thestone lapel of Carlos Gardel's life-size statue in the Chacaritascemetery, and a real cigarette dangles from his marble fingers.

Hand in pocket, his knee jauntily bent, wide grin upon his face,the man who helped make the tango famous looks almost alive, andcertainly as debonair as he was in life.

Elsewhere in Buenos Aires stands a monument to Evita Peron, aradio actress who became the most important woman in Argentinepolitical history — so famous that her name is synonymous withcultlike political power.

Gardel died in a plane crash in 1935; Peron died from cancer in1952. Yet decades later, their memories still permeate thisvibrant, hectic city of 3 million. Gardel and Evita have their ownmonuments, museums and eponymous streets. And now the twopersonalities are helping to fuel a tourism boom in a city thatbecame a bargain for visitors following the country's 2001 economiccollapse.

The Argentine peso lost two-thirds of its value in 2002. Thoughbad for Argentines, that drop has been good for tourists, who cannow find delectable $3 steaks and bargain hotel rooms in what wasonce the most expensive city in South America.

The Quintessential Argentine Male

Tourists looking for Gardel and Peron won't be disappointed.Gardel's Humphrey Bogart-like face peers out from café windows,music shops and even drugstores. A baritone, he performed his tangosongs and portrayed a fun-loving sophisticate in a dozen movies.Though most of the movies were made for Paramount Pictures, all butone were filmed in Spanish.

Gardel could not read music; assistants wrote the scores to thesongs he composed. Yet he was considered a genius, and many of hissongs remain classics 70 years later. His mythic status grew fromhis talent, charisma and tragic death at the peak of his career,said Ignacio Varchausky, creative director of the government-fundedTango Orchestra School.

The tango originated in working-class dance halls in the late1800s, a fusion of Spanish music and Indian and African rhythms,with a scandalous dancers' embrace. But it became the rage ofballrooms in Paris and elsewhere in the early 1900s. Gardel, whowas born in France but had darkly handsome Latin looks, was theArgentine man "incarnate," said Varchausky.

Gardel "was strong, romantic. ... He had the perfect voice, theperfect smile," he added. "He composed some of the most beautifultangos ever."

The downtown Buenos Aires neighborhood of Abasto is virtuallyone large shrine to Gardel, who grew up there. A monument to himstands on Carlos Gardel Street. At Carlos Gardel Corner, the siteof one of his favorite hangouts, a restaurant now offers nightlydinner tango shows. Guests are packed so tightly into the diningroom that trips to the bathroom become daunting; black-and-whitefootage from Gardel's movies plays on a large screen as touristsdine on thick steaks, downed with house wine.

After dinner, a seven-piece band takes the stage. A Gardellookalike belts out classics like "El Dia Que Me Quieras," andtango dancers flash around the stage in a blur of swirlingcoattails and bright sequins.

Eugenio Cruz, visiting from Santiago, Chile, with his wife,Maria, raved about the performance.

"Everything was very good: the dancers, the choreography, themusic," Cruz said. "It was excellent."

Two blocks away, dusty, rundown Zelaya Street is also notablefor its display of Gardelian adoration. Scores for Gardel hits like"Volver" and "Golondrinas" are painted on the homes' vibrantpink, yellow, green and blue facades, along with oversizedportraits of the singer.

Gardel devotees can also visit the Carlos Gardel Museum, whichhouses a small but important collection.

Exhibits include the bluesmoking jacket Gardel wore in Tango on Broadway, aSpanish-language film distributed by Paramount; his Argentinepassport and personal effects gathered from the site of his fatalplane crash in Medellin, Colombia.

Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina …

The year Gardel died, Evita made her acting debut in a localvaudeville production. Last year, the Evita Museum opened in a 1923Spanish-style house that Evita's foundation once used as atemporary shelter for women.

Those looking for a balanced view of Evita won't find it at themuseum, which bases its perspective on her autobiography, MyLife's Cause. The museum displays memorabilia from the 1947woman's suffrage movement, which Evita spearheaded. There are alsoyellowing copies of her speeches and political tracts, along withher national identification card — the first to be issued to awoman.

Maria Victoria Faraone, a museum spokeswoman, said the museumhighlights Evita's fight to include women in civic life and toimprove the lives of downtrodden workers.

"Evita still represents the struggle for human rights anddignity [for the poor]," Faraone said. "We emphasize how she usedpolitical activity and her social work to help others."

The museum's first floor showcases Evita's life before shemarried Argentine strongman Juan Peron. Among the outfits andaccessories on display is a black velvet-and-sequin dress from heracting days, along with the many magazine covers that featured heras her fame grew.

Elsewhere in Buenos Aires, the Plaza de Mayo is home to thebalcony of the Casa Rosada where the fiery first lady famouslyharangued the adoring crowds below. There is also a monument to herin Plaza Ruben Dario, where a towering, Giacometti-like Evita canbe seen in mid-stride, so focused on what lies ahead that sheappears ready to walk right off the edge of her 6-foot-highplatform.

Evita's tomb, like Gardel's, has also become a shrine.

Though more modest than Gardel's, it is located in Recoletacemetery, the posh resting place for Buenos Aires' rich andpowerful. A visitor could easily get lost among the grandiosemausoleums, which jut out of labyrinthine paths populated by straycats.

Evita's tomb is decorated with plaques conveying lovingmessages, many from labor unions. Personal notes are jammed intothe door alongside bouquets of roses and carnations.

Back at the museum, a silver copy of Evita's death mask is ondisplay. The familiar braids, coiled at the nape of her neck, arethere, but the expression is quite different from the radiant smileprojected in old news photos from her life: She looks somber andpinched, almost schoolmarmish.

Evita, who lived her life so passionately, looks as though shefound death distasteful.

If You Go …

SAFETY: Buenos Aires has experienced increased muggings andthefts in the past two years. Visitors should only take taxismarked "Radio Taxi." Be extra cautious when traveling in Abasto.

LANGUAGE: English is not widely spoken. Basic Spanish, like theability to ask for directions, is very useful. The Evita Museum hassigns in English and Spanish but other museums do not.

SEASONS: Expect hot and muggy weather and higher prices Decemberthrough March, which is Argentina's summer. The best times tovisit, both in terms of weather and cost, are spring (September toNovember) and fall (April to June).

GARDEL SITES:

CHACARITAS CEMETERY: Guzman 730. Open daily 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.,Saturday and Sunday 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Ask a staff member fordirections to Gardel's tomb.

EL MUSEO DE CARLOS GARDEL: Located in the Casa del Teatro,Avenida Santa Fe 1243, phone 4813-5906 or 4813-3941. Tuesday andThursday, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Free.

EL MUSEO CASA CARLOS GARDEL: The house Gardel shared with hismother from 1927 to 1933. Jean Juares 735, phone 4964-2015 or4964-2071, www.museos.buenosaires.gov.ar Open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.,Monday and Wednesday through Friday. Admission $1.

CARLOS GARDEL CORNER: Carlos Gardel 3200, phone 4867-6363.www.esquinacarlosgardel.com.ar Dinner at 9 p.m., shows nightly at10:30 p.m. Reservations requires; about $47 per person includeshouse wine, appetizer, entree, dessert and show.

ZELAYA STREET: Between Jean Juares and Achorena

EVITA SITES:

MUSEO EVITA: Lafinur 2988, phone 4807-0306 or 4809-3168.asociacionmuseoevitaarnet.com.ar. Tuesday to Sunday, 2 p.m. to7:30 p.m.

RECOLETA CEMETERY: Junin 1760, phone 4803-1594. Open every day 7a.m. to 6 p.m. Cemetery maps available at Junin 1790. Look for theDuarte family tomb.

EVITA MONUMENT: Plaza Ruben Dario, Austria and Libertador.