Chapter 2 - Stardom during the rise of television and the 1960s film wave

Summary

The Revolución Libertadora [Liberating Revolution]'s 1955 coup d’état put an end to Perón's government and its Peronist star system. Many of the iconic artists from the period, such as Hugo del Carril, Tita Merello and Zully Moreno, were persecuted and had to live in exile (Mazzaferro 2018: 120). After years of lack of investment in new equipment, new talents and foreign distribution, the industry suffered another crisis (Maranghello 2005: 114). The production of low-cost films for general entertainment which moved away from a rich cinematographic local tradition resulted in Argentine cinema losing its influence in Latin American markets and, therefore, many studios had to close their doors (Maranghello 2005: 114). This closure was also the outcome of the annulment of the Peronist Film Law, which up until this point had supported the industry by granting a screen quota to national productions and by offering various forms of subsidies to the sector (Kriger 2009: 91).

Even once the witch-hunt of Peronist supporters in the industry diminished, there were some artists who never recovered – such as Fanny Navarro (Posadas 1994: 236). With the disarticulation of the domestic show business came a renewed focus on foreign stars and their systems – mainly from Hollywood and Europe (Mazzaferro 2018: 120). By 1958, when elections were called once more, most of the covers of Antena magazine were dedicated to foreign performers. Local figures such as Mirtha Legrand, Mecha Ortiz, Laura Hidalgo and Lolita Torres had to share their spotlight with Marilyn Monroe, Debbie Reynolds, Paul Newman, Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, James Dean, Anita Ekberg and Gina Lollobrigida (Mazzaferro 2018: 138). As these names suggest, at an international level the 1950s saw the transformation of film stars into glamorised objects charged with sex appeal. The crisis in Hollywood studios brought with it an exacerbation of the stars’ features more than the restructuring of the stellar model (Mazzaferro 2018: 152). This was particularly the case for female stars, whose bodies became the centre of attention of the industry.