Señor Abravanel, better known as Silvio Santos, founder of Brazil’s broadcaster SBT (founded in 1981), died in São Paulo on August 17, 2024. Below is an abridged version of a feature VideoAge ran in April 2011, and again in December 2020.
Santos’ last 60 years were spent continuously in front of the TV camera, a routine only interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Since the time he hosted the game show Vamos Brincar de Forca in 1960, on the defunct TV Paulista Network, Santos had never spent a week away from a television studio, until 2020.
Santos was born in Rio de Janeiro, in the Lapa region. Despite his humble beginnings (he worked as a street vendor), he had a strong affinity for artistic endeavors and took up jobs in radio, television, and the circus. Silvio Santos’ nickname when he was young was “O peru que fala” (the talking turkey) because of his blushed skin.
He was considered a ‘born buyer,’ or someone born for buying companies. He married twice, with Maria Aparecida (who died of cancer in 1977) and Íris, his surviving wife. He had six daughters, two of them adopted, all of them currently working at his media group. His second born Patricia was kidnapped in 2001 and released soon after, reportedly after her father paid a ransom.
Pictured above is Santos at home during a pajama party celebrating is 90th birthday with four of his six daughters. From l. to r.: Renata, Daniela, Patricia and Rebeca.
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