Marquita Rivera

Marquita Rivera (born María Heroína Rivera de Santiago; May 18, 1922 – October 21, 2002 ), a.k.a. "Queen of Latin Rhythm", was a Puerto Rican actress, singer, and dancer. She was given several nicknames including Flor de Borinquén, Reina de la Conga and Huracán del Caribe. She was the youngest in a family of twelve, one of five daughters and seven sons.

Acting and singing career

A childhood friend of bandleader Tito Puente, Rivera, accompanied by her costume designer mother, earned her first role as a featured dancer in the Broadway production George White's Scandals of 1936. She next performed at the 1939 New York World's Fair with King George VI and Queen Elizabeth attending during their respective royal visits, something she considered the highlight of her nascent career. Loew's State Theatre, Strand and Radio City Music Hall, Rivera shared the stages of such performers as Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Mickey Rooney, Ann Miller, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, Kathryn Grayson, Victor Borge, Ed Sullivan, Merv Griffin and Betty Hutton. After her contract ended at Azteca, Rivera went on to sign a Hollywood contract with Paramount Pictures, and made her American movie debut as lead singer and specialty performer in the Bob Hope-Bing Crosby comedy The Road to Rio (1947). Although Rivera was selected in a popularity poll by Mexican filmgoers to star in an independent film biography of the late "Mexican spitfire" Lupe Vélez, the film was shelved when legal issues arose involving Vélez's estate. In May 2012, Rivera was honored in Chicago, Ill with the Antonio Martorell Award for Artistic Excellence on her 90th birthday, her son attended.

Personal life Rivera was married to business tycoon Albert Vernon Ashbrook from 1946 to 1949 and they had one child, Marquita, her namesake. In 1951, she married physician Eugene N. Biscardi II in New York City, they had six children and remained married until his death in 1988. Of their children, eldest son Eugene Biscardi III, a model-turned-fashion photographer has appeared occasionally as an actor on film and TV, and daughter Jessica Biscardi, a model/actress was the 1973 Miss New York City winner. Marquita was the inspiration for the protagonist and is featured on the cover of Mexico City The Golden Years

Awards 1948: Honored with the Key to the City of San Juan, Puerto Rico by Mayor Felisa de Rincon, for her achievements on Broadway, Mexico, and in Hollywood. 2011: Puerto Rico Senate Legacy Award. 2011: Federation of Mayors Award, San Juan, Puerto Rico. 2012: City of Chicago Mayors Award of Recognition. 2012: Antonio Martorell Award for Artistic Excellence by the Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture (IPRAC).

Filmography