Maria da Graça Xuxa Meneghel is a Brazilian presenter, actress, singer and businesswoman. Known as the "Queen of Little Ones", Xuxa built the largest Latin and Southern American children's entertainment empire. In the early 1990s, she presented television programs in Brazil, Argentina, Spain and the United States simultaneously, reaching around 100 million viewers daily. Xuxa has sold over 30 million copies of her records worldwide, which makes her the highest-selling Brazilian female singer. Her net worth was estimated at US$100 million in the early 1990s. Also successful as a businesswoman, she has the highest net worth of any Brazilian female entertainer, estimated at US$400 million.
Monica and Friends, previously published as Monica's Gang in Anglophone territories, is a Brazilian comic book series and media franchise created by Mauricio de Sousa.
TV Globo, formerly known as Rede Globo, is a Brazilian free-to-air television network, launched by media proprietor Roberto Marinho on 26 April 1965. It is owned by media conglomerate Grupo Globo. The TV station is by far the largest of its holdings. Globo is the largest commercial TV network in Latin America and the second-largest commercial TV network in the world behind the American Broadcasting Company and the largest producer of telenovelas. All of this makes Globo renowned as one of the most important television networks in the world and Grupo Globo as one of the largest media groups.
Antônio José da Silva Fagundes Filho is a Brazilian actor, playwright, voice actor, and producer. Renowned for his several performances in stage, film and television, where he frequently works in telenovelas.
Maitê Proença Gallo is a Brazilian actress, television presenter and writer.
Jogo do bicho is an illegal gambling game in Brazil, prohibited by federal law since 1946, but nevertheless very popular throughout the country. It is a lottery-type drawing, operated on a regional basis using the daily state lottery draw, by mobsters known as bicheiros or banqueiros ("bankers"). Despite its popularity, especially in Rio de Janeiro, it is illegal in 25 of the 26 states of Brazil plus the Federal District and those involved may be prosecuted. Paraíba is the only state where the game is legal and regulated by the state, even though federal law prohibits gambling. Unlike most state-operated lotteries, in jogo do bicho any amount can be wagered.
Castor Gonçalves de Andrade e Silva was a well-known bicheiro in Rio de Janeiro. From the 1980s, Castor de Andrade was the uncontested leader of all the main bicheiros of the city of Rio de Janeiro, and had more than 100 policemen and a number of public servants, prominent politicians, and judges working for him. Castor was also very involved in the Brazilian Carnival and in soccer—he was the major sponsor of Bangu Atlético Clube and even called the "owner of Bangu", and he was also the patron of samba school Mocidade Independente de Padre Miguel. He also helped found in 1984 the Liga Independente das Escolas de Samba do Rio de Janeiro, which has run the Rio de Janeiro Carnival ever since and has served as the legal cover for the "jogo do bicho cartel".
Ailton Guimarães Jorge, better known as Capitão Guimarães, is an illegal lottery operator (bicheiro) and the patron of samba school Unidos de Vila Isabel. He has been the president of the Independent League of Samba Schools of Rio de Janeiro (LIESA) from 1987 to 1993 and 2001–2007. An armed forces officer during the period of the military dictatorship, he is accused of participating in torture proceedings against political prisoners. After leaving the Army, he became a banker of the Jogo do Bicho.
Antônio Petrus Kalil, known as Turcão, was one of the operators of the jogo do bicho, a popular illegal lottery in Brazil. Kalil ran the game in a number of towns, including Niteroi, and was one of 14 bicheiros or banqueiros—"bankers" as the game's operators are known—who were sentenced to six years' imprisonment in May 1993 for operating a criminal association. Kalil's brother Jose, known as "Zinho", was among those convicted. Denise Frossard, the judge in the case, wrote in 2007 that it was the first time the existence of a mafia-type organization had been recognized in Brazil. According to Frossard, Kalil was one of the organization's bosses in 1981. In April 2007, he was among 24 people charged for involvement with the illegal lottery, as well as bingo parlours and the distribution of slot machines. On March 13, 2012, he was sentenced to 48 years in prison and a fine of BRL 11 million for conspiracy and corruption, together with the other bicho bosses Anísio Abraão David and Capitão Guimarães.
A Favorita is a Brazilian telenovela produced and broadcast TV Globo. It premiered 2 June 2008 to 17 January 2009 with a total number of episodes of 197. It is created by João Emanuel Carneiro and directed by Ricardo Waddington. It is also the first telenovela by the writer to air in the 9 pm timeslot.
Rafael Wihby Bracali is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He also held Italian citizenship.
Avenida Brasil is a Brazilian primetime telenovela created by João Emanuel Carneiro. It premiered on 26 March 2012 and ended on 19 October 2012 on TV Globo at 9 pm timeslot.
Vivianne Pasmanter is a Brazilian actress.
Alice is an original series created for the Brazilian branch of the HBO Latin America. The series was produced by HBO's local partner, Gullane Filmes, and directed by Karim Aïnouz and Sérgio Machado. The series debuted in Latin America on September 21, 2008, with a season consisting of thirteen episodes, ending on December 14, 2008. A special two episodes was introduced in 2010. One year later, the show was canceled by the channel.
The NBB All-Star Game is an annual game involving the All-Star players of each season of the Novo Basquete Brasil, which is the top-tier level Brazilian professional club basketball league. The players are chosen by votes on the Internet, and are then divided into two teams. The criterion for the selection of the teams has varied during the years. In the first edition of the NBB All-Star Game, the teams were divided into team Ubiratan, with light jerseys, and formed by the best players of each position; and team Rosa Branca, with dark jerseys, and formed by the second top players in each position. In the second edition, they were chosen by votes on the Internet, and divided into team Pedroca and team Kanela. In the third and fourth editions, the teams were selected in the same way, but formed into team NBB Brasil, formed by the best Brazilian players of the season, and team NBB Mundo, formed by the best foreign players of the season.
Amor à Vida is a Brazilian telenovela created by Walcyr Carrasco. It premiered on 20 May 2013 on TV Globo in the 9 pm timeslot and ended on 31 January 2014. It is directed by Wolf Maya and Mauro Mendonça Filho.
Thiago Moura Monteiro is a Brazilian professional tennis player.
The Suzano Massacre, also known as the Suzano school attack, was a school shooting that took place on March 13, 2019, at the Professor Raul Brasil State School in the Brazilian municipality of Suzano, São Paulo State. The perpetrators, 17-year-old Guilherme Taucci Monteiro and 25-year-old Luiz Henrique de Castro, both former students at the school, killed five students and two school employees. Before the attack, in a car shop near the school, the pair also killed Monteiro's uncle. After the shooting, Monteiro killed his partner and then committed suicide.
Amandha Souza Lee is a Brazilian actress.
Sacha Bali de Alencar Szerman is a Brazilian actor, author, theater producer and theater director.
