# Girl from Ipanema celebrates its 50th birthday - and the lady who inspired the hit ... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 22, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075 "2012-07-22T21:11:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/1 "2012-07-22T21:11:41Z")
I’d read before that the _Girl from Ipanema_ was based on a real person. Love that song by bossa nova. She looks really good these days. Happy Birthday!!! _Girl from Ipanema_ https://www.youtube.com/embed/kDGUZeZWKZo?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque > **[The Girl from Ipanema tune celebrates its 50th birthday](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2177056/The-Girl-Ipanema-tune-celebrates-50th-birthday.html)** > > The Girl From Ipanema, the bossa nova tune inspired by a woman on her way to the sea and introduced Rio de Janeiro to the world, is turning 50 years old. > [@](#): > > The bossa nova classic tune that introduced Rio de Janeiro to the world is turning 50 years old. > > ‘Tall and tan and young and lovely…’ You’ve heard of her. The Girl From Ipanema. > > To its legions of fans, the decades have only heightened the allure of the quintessential song, inspired by a young woman who passed the songwriters in a beachside bar on her way to the sea. > [@](#): > > Except the girl herself. Because there was a girl: Heloisa Eneida Menezes Paes Pinto, then 17 years old, known among her friends as Helo. > > The teenager’s days were spent between home, school and the beach, a path that often took her by the bar where de Moraes and Jobim spent long hours nursing their drinks. Their eyes would follow Helo when she passed, entranced with her glowing skin and long dark hair. > > Helo had no idea. When she first heard the hit on the radio, she liked it. She’d whistle it sometimes. But she never suspected she’d inspired the lyrics. > > There were rumors from the guys at the bar, but she wouldn’t believe them. Finally, in 1965, Moraes offered the definitive proof, writing in a magazine that Helo was the beauty behind the song, ‘the golden girl, mix of flower and mermaid, full of light and grace, but whose sight is also sad because it carries within it, on the way to the sea, the sense of youth that passes, of beauty that doesn’t belong only to us.’ ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2012, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/2 "2012-07-22T21:27:53Z")
She looks better as a brunette, imo, but she looks stunning for nearly 70!! ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2012, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/3 "2012-07-22T21:29:18Z")
I had no idea. Interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2012, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/4 "2012-07-22T21:51:27Z")
I always liked Astrid’s singing, but in that film clip, she looks embarrassingly wooden. I advise listening to it with your eyes closed. > [@](#): > > The girl from Ipanema’s was 17-year-old when she passed the bar… So she was a lawyer back then? > [@](#): > > …where the songwriters spent long hours nursing their drinks and they were entranced with her glowing skin and long dark hair… Oh. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2012, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/5 "2012-07-22T21:58:35Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Happy Birthday!!! _Girl from Ipanema_ > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDGUZeZWKZo&feature=related](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDGUZeZWKZo&feature=related) Astrud Gilberto is always so heartbreakingly icy. Except not. She tries, but the smile of a young woman having fun on the edge of her comfort zone is playing in her mouth and eyes. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2012, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/6 "2012-07-22T23:28:42Z")
Not Astrud’s best performance for sure. 😉 I really prefer Frank Sinatra’s version. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/U4mCzmNDEIk/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AG-AoAC8AGKAgwIABABGGcgZyhnMA8=&rs=AOn4CLBStTZzbjWNmcIs3wRyT5z8etN8aQ "Frank Sinatra - The Girl From Ipanema") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4mCzmNDEIk) Astrud I’m not as familiar with. Here’s her Wikipedia entry. > **[Astrud Gilberto](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrud_Gilberto)** > > Astrud Gilberto (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}Portuguese: \[asˈtɾud ʒiwˈbɛʁtu\]; born Astrud Evangelina Weinert; March 29, 1940 – June 5, 2023) was a Brazilian and American bossa nova and samba singer and songwriter. She gained international attention in the mid-1960s following her recording of the song "The Girl from Ipanema", fo... > [@Musicat](#): > > I always liked Astrid’s singing, but in that film clip, she looks embarrassingly wooden. I advise listening to it with your eyes closed. > > So she was a lawyer back then?Oh. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/7 "2012-07-23T00:46:42Z")
A [different clip](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5Z11obllEQ) with Astrud. Arguably the best version – certainly [my favorite](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5QfXjsoNe4) – with vocals in both Portuguese (Vinicius de Moraes) and English (Astrud again) and splendid guitar, sax, and piano work. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/8 "2012-07-23T14:05:13Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Astrud Gilberto is always so heartbreakingly icy. Except not. > She tries, > but the smile of a young woman having fun on the edge of her comfort zone is playing in her mouth and eyes. You couldn’t sing that, in Portuguese with syncopated guitar, could you? (Stan Getz playing sax would be optional) ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/9 "2012-07-23T14:18:03Z")
I’d say I’d like to look that great when I’m 68, except I’m certain I have never looked that good at _any_ age! ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/10 "2012-07-23T14:22:13Z")
Anyone know who the [Boy From…](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CII7E_RjGU) is? Why When I speak does he vanish? Why Is he acting so clannish? I wish I understood Spanish! When I tell him I think he’s the end, He giggles a lot with his friends. Tall and slender, like an Apollo, He goes walking by and I have to follow him, The Boy From… ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/11 "2012-07-23T14:43:20Z")
> [@Quercus](#): > > You couldn’t sing that…with syncopated guitar, could you? She TRIES, but the SMILE of a YOUNG woMAN having FUN on the EDGE of her COMfort ZONE is plaaaaaaaying in her mouth and eyessssssss… ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/12 "2012-07-23T15:36:57Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Not Astrud’s best performance for sure. 😉 I really prefer Frank Sinatra’s version. > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4mCzmNDEIk](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4mCzmNDEIk) > > Astrud I’m not as familiar with. Here’s her Wikipedia entry. > [Astrud Gilberto - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrud_Gilberto) Nobody has nailed the song like Getz and the Gilbertos did. In fact, that entire album is flawless. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Peyote_Coyote)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/13 "2012-07-23T19:54:28Z")
If you’re reading this, Heloisa, have a very happy birthday. “The Girl from Ipanema” is one of the most beautiful songs ever. ---
**Author:** ![phxjcc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phxjcc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phxjcc)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/14 "2012-07-23T20:02:37Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Nobody has nailed the song like Getz and the Gilbertos did. In fact, that entire album is flawless. Yup. If you have the album, read the liner notes on how she came to sing this song. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/15 "2012-07-23T22:41:10Z")
> [@phxjcc](#): > > Yup. > If you have the album, read the liner notes on how she came to sing this song. The song mesmerized me, as it did many at that time. I was 17 when the English version hit the airways in '64. Already hooked on the rhythms of Dave Brubeck, this exotic semi-samba music got me hooked on Latin rhythms, a fondness that lasts to this day. ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/16 "2012-07-23T22:59:35Z")
Read about her years ago in Time. She must have been 50 then but still fetching in a bikini. The title of the article was “Tall and Tan and Young and Lovely Forever.” ---
**Author:** ![phxjcc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phxjcc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phxjcc)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/17 "2012-07-24T21:34:34Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > The song mesmerized me, as it did many at that time. I was 17 when the English version hit the airways in '64. Already hooked on the rhythms of Dave Brubeck, this exotic semi-samba music got me hooked on Latin rhythms, a fondness that lasts to this day. If you like that genre, I suggest the Diana Krall DVD of her in Rio de J. Excellent sound quality on the Blue Ray version. ---
**Author:** ![redtail23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@redtail23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redtail23)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-from-ipanema-celebrates-its-50th-birthday-and-the-lady-who-inspired-the-hit/629075/18 "2012-07-25T13:02:36Z")
I’ve loved this song since I was a kid. Mentioned this to the SO, who promptly started looking for different versions. Didn’t ever find a bluegrass version, but did find this, which is awesome. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Mr-SIhvIZ0](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Mr-SIhvIZ0)