Silvio Santos, Brazilian Television Icon, Dies at 93 in São Paulo
Present in the lives of Brazilians on Sundays for six decades, Silvio Santos has established himself as a successful businessman and owner of a conglomerate that includes SBT. According to the medical report, the communicator died due to bronchopneumonia.
Silvio is one of the greatest icons of Brazilian television - Photo Reproduction / SBT
One of the greatest icons of Brazilian television, the businessman and presenter Silvio Santos, 93 years old. The information was confirmed by SBT on social media. Silvio had been admitted to a private hospital in the capital since the beginning of this month. Silvio, whose real name is Senor Abravanel, on July 18, was admitted to the Albert Einstein Hospital, in São Paulo, to recover from an H1N1 infection. He was discharged two days later. On August 1st, he was hospitalized again, according to the broadcaster's press office, for imaging tests.
According to the medical bulletin, Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein announced with regret the death of Silvio Santos at 4:50 am, due to bronchopneumonia caused by influenza (H1N1) infection. The hospital also expressed solidarity with the family and everyone who is suffering from this loss.
Silvio Santos
Silvio Santos, born Senor Abravanel on December 12, 1930, in the Lapa neighborhood, Rio de Janeiro, built an empire in the world of entertainment and became an iconic figure on Brazilian television. Son of Sephardic Jewish immigrants, he began his career as a street vendor, where he demonstrated communication and entrepreneurship skills from an early age. He studied accounting and, in his free time, worked as a street vendor on the streets of Rio de Janeiro, selling pens and plastic covers for voter registration cards during the 1946 elections. It was also during this period that he began doing small jobs as a radio announcer. .
At the age of 18, in 1948, he served in the Army at the Parachute School. On Sundays, I worked for a radio station in Rio de Janeiro. After leaving military service, he continued working as an announcer and also became involved in other activities, such as selling advertisements on loudspeakers on the ferry Rio-Niterói. Silvio Santos's career on TV began in the 1950s, when signed the first fixed contract as announcer and auditorium entertainer at Rádio Nacional from São Paulo.
In 1958, he took over the company Baú da Felicidade, previously run by Manuel de Nóbrega. The following year, he began performing shows in circuses to promote the sale of the company's meats. His charisma and talent soon took him to television, where he led programs that marked an era. In the same year, on February 7, his first television program, "Hit Parade", premiered on TV Paulista. In 1962, Silvio Santos began presenting the program " Vamos Brincar de Forca " on TV Paulista (channel 5), which was acquired by TV Globo the following year.
Silvio Santos ran his program since 1963 - Photo Reproduction / Lourival Ribeiro / SBT
After the acquisition, the program was shown as "Programa Silvio Santos" on TV Globo, a program that became one of the most long-lasting and popular on Brazilian TV. In 1965, he also started presenting on TV Tupi, where programs were broadcast under different names, including "Festa dos Sinos", "Sua Majestade: o Ibope", "Cidade contra Cidade" and "Silvio Santos Different". With his unmistakable deep voice, lapel microphone and irreverence, Silvio won over generations of viewers.
In 1975, he won the competition to acquire Canal 11, in Rio de Janeiro, and the following year he opened TVS. In 1976, he left TV Globo, and his program began to be broadcast on TVs Tupi and TVS in Rio. Silvio Santos obtained new concessions and, in 1981, he founded SBT, which quickly became one of the main broadcasters in the country, competing directly with Rede Globo. Under his command, SBT launched programs that became classics, such as "Chaves", "A Praça é Nossa", "Roda a Roda Jequiti" and "Show do Milhão". Silvio also innovated by allowing the public to actively participate in his programs, creating a unique style of interaction with the audience.
The ability to keep the audience engaged in a variety program that lasted more than ten hours, along with controlling the audience and audience through catchphrases such as "Come here, come here" and "Who wants money?" , highlighted the presenter’s charisma. Silvio also stood out singing carnival marches, such as “Coração Corintiano” and “A Pipa do Vovô”, which were recorded on albums during the 70s to 90s. Throughout his career, Silvio Santos was recognized with several awards and honors , including the Imprensa Trophy, where he also served as a judge, and the "Communications Man of the Year" award.
Businessman and Personal Life
Its influence went beyond television, with investments in several sectors, including the financial sector, through Banco Panamericano, and in the cosmetics area, with the Jequiti brand. In 1989, Silvio Santos announced his candidacy for president of Brazil two weeks before the first round of the election. However, his application was rejected by the TSE a week later. Silvio Santos was also known for his discretion regarding his personal life, keeping his family out of the spotlight, despite his prominent position.
Married to Íris Abravanel since 1978, Silvio had six daughters, several of whom pursued careers on television and in the family business. In February 2001, Silvio Santos received a tribute at the Rio de Janeiro Carnival from the Tradição samba school. In August of that year, his daughter Patrícia was kidnapped and held captive for seven days. After being released, the kidnapper invaded Silvio's residence in São Paulo and held him hostage for seven hours. At the time, the governor of São Paulo, Geraldo Alckmin, arrived at the scene, spoke to the kidnapper and managed to persuade him to surrender.
In 2010, a billion-dollar hole was revealed at Banco Panamericano, one of the Silvio Santos Group companies. In 2018, seven former directors were convicted of fraud in connection with the case. In 2011, Silvio Santos sold Panamericano to BTG Pactual. In December 2020, Silvio Santos celebrated his 90th birthday discreetly, without public events, due to the pandemic, alongside his daughters. On August 1, 2021, after receiving two doses of the vaccine, Silvio returned to presenting his program for the first time since 2019. However, weeks after this return, he contracted Covid-19 and was hospitalized.
Despite his recovery and return to recording, his rhythm was not the same as before. At the opening of the program, to the sound of the song “Silvio Santos comes here”, he entered excitedly and exclaimed: “For everything, I'm already here. I’ve arrived!” This was the beginning of several jokes he made to make the audience happy in what would be his last program.
Brazilian TV icon
His death marks the end of an era in Brazilian television. Silvio Santos was not just a presenter, but a symbol of innovation, persistence, charisma and love for communication. Silvio Santos will be remembered as the "Man with the Trunk", the master of auditoriums, and one of the greatest communicators Brazil has ever had. His legacy will live forever on the screens, in the hearts and in the memories of all those who had the privilege of accompanying him, that is, with his departure, Brazil says goodbye to a communication giant, whose legacy will remain. I live on screens and in the hearts of Brazilians for many generations.
