Latin American Icons

The faces of Che, Frida, Evita, Carmen Miranda, and other icons represent Latin America both to a global public that sees these faces constantly reproduced, and to Latin Americans themselves. With equal parts idolatry and iconoclasm, Latin American Icons recognizes and interrogates those Latin Americans who have become larger than life. In trying to understand the meaning of iconic figures in modern Latin America, this volume ranges across every realm of political and cultural life—populist politicos, jet-setting ambassador-playboys, soccer players, and superstars—to examine the complex forces at work in the making and remaking of celebrities within and across national borders.