Known for bringing to life Bozo not Brazil, Luis Ricardo61, brought back memories of his days playing the clown who gave him the opportunity to transform his family’s life and guaranteed a space like the right-hand man of Silvio Santos (1930-2024) no SBT.
In a biography about to be released, the presenter also spoke about the responsibility of being the “official substitute” by the king of Brazilian TV and told how his journey began. “Luis Ricardo – Far Beyond the Most Famous Clown in the World”, written by William Sanches, will be released on January 27th with a free autograph session at Livraria Drummond, in São Paulo. THE CNN had exclusive access to excerpts.
“I will never wear that wig again in my life”, said Luis after almost being involved in a balloon accident in the early 1980s. At the time, Bozo would arrive by balloon at a Children’s Day event in the interior of São Paulo, but a change in the wind caused panic in everyone present.
The presenter was not yet Bozo’s official interpreter in Brazil, but rather his replacement. Wandeko Popcornfirst clown actor. “Wandeko turned yellow, so it was up to me”, he said in the first chapters of the biography, to which CNN had exclusive access.
Even though he grew up in a circus family, the adrenaline from the unsuccessful balloon ride made him reevaluate his work. “I thought my head was going to catch on fire, but it was just a scare. Even so, upon meeting the team, soon I warned them not to count on me anymore for that character”.
Despite this, he set the decision aside and continued on Silvio Santos’ radarwith whom he had frequent conversations. In 1983, Luis officially assumed the role of Bozo and was responsible for “Brazilianizing” the American clown.
“In every call Silvio Santos made to the dressing room phone, I never knew if it was an idea, a compliment or a scolding. My heart was in my mouth. And Silvio’s voice on the phone is unmistakable”, recalled the showman.
Born into a circus family, Luis was “discovered” by Pedro de Lara (1925-2007) and Valentino Guzzo (1936-1998), Silvio’s talent scouts who went to the arena to meet the handyman. With skills in juggling magic numbers, he got an opportunity at SBT, where he never left.
He went through programs such as “Domingo no Parque”, in which he stood out as Bozo, “Show de Calouros”, “Viva a Noite”, “Qual é a Música?”, “Tentação”, “Gol Show” and, more recently , the Tele Sena draws and “Roda a Roda Jequiti”.
“Bozo always treated his audience as equals, without mimimi. That’s why it worked and won over children of all ages, from two to ninety years old, which was unprecedented until then”, said Luis Ricardo about the success.
