August 24, 1954: Getúlio Vargas dies at the Catete Palace, then official residence of the President of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, then the country's capital. He was 72 years old. Thus ends the career of Brazil's most influential politician.
Getúlio Dornelles Vargas was born on April 19, 1882 on a farm outside São Borja, in the State of Rio Grande do Sul. That doesn't mean he was poor: His father was a General, a hero of the Paraguyan War of 1864-70, and a local political leader. Against the father's wishes, he joined the Army, and later became a lawyer, becoming the State Attorney for Rio Grande do Sul.
He was elected to the State's Legislative Assembly, and later a national deputy. In 1927, he was elected President of the State, and in 1930, running on an anti-corruption platform, ran for President of Brazil. The contest was fixed by outgoing President Washington Luís in favor of his hand-picked successor, Júlio Prestes. In response, the Revolution of 1930 broke out. With his military background, Vargas was well-positioned to emerge on top, and did.
He ended the First Republic, established the Second Republic, and managed some New Deal-like reforms for the poor, while maintaining ties to Brazil's corporations, including the country's leading industry, coffee.
His term was set to end in 1937. Had he left on time, he would have gone down in history as perhaps his country's greatest leader. Instead, in order to maintain power, he led a military coup, had a new Constitution approved, and established the Third Republic, also known as the Estado Novo (New State), with himself as a Fascist dictator. This led to his making Brazil a trading partner of Nazi Germany.
But Vargas wasn't stupid: He offered U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt the use of Brazilian ports for the U.S. Navy. Knowing that accepting would look like a belligerent act, FDR declined. Nevertheless, in 1942, Brazil entered World War II on the Allied side.
Being on the side that achieved victory could not keep him in power. The people and the Army had both had enough of him, and there was another Revolution in 1945, removing him from the Presidency. He accepted a Senate seat for Rio Grande do Sul. The Fourth Republic, led by President Eurico Dutra, lost control of the economy, and the country was willing to go back to the devil they knew. Vargas was elected again in 1951.
In 1953, he founded Petrobras, Brazil's national oil company, turning the country to an industry that would make it richer than ever before. This broke the hold of the landowners, and a confrontation between Vargas' supporters and his opponents became inevitable.
On August 5, 1954, an attempt was made to assassinate Carlos Lacerda, a former journalist then serving in the national Chamber of Deputies, and a strident critic of Vargas. Although he survived, an Air Force officer, Major Rubens Vaz, was killed.
Lieutenant Gregório Fortunato, the head of Vargas' personal guard, was implicated, and the Army turned against Vargas. The pressure to resign culminated on the morning of August 24, when Vargas shot himself in the chest.
Brazil has lurched from left to right ever since, including a right-wing military dictatorship from 1964 to 1985; the leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from 2003 to 2010; and the religious fascist Jair Bolsonaro, elected in 2019, and still in office as of this writing. (UPDATE: Lula da Silva, previously imprisoned for corruption, returned to power by defeating Bolsonaro in the 2022 national election.)
The Catete Palace was the presidential residence from 1897 to 1960, and is now the Museu da República (Republic Museum) and a theatre. Among the displays in that museum are the pajamas that Vargas was wearing when he killed himself, and the gun he used.
The capital was moved to the planned city of Brasilia in 1960, the Palácio da Alvorada is now the presidential residence, while the Palácio do Planalto is the President's workplace (equivalent to the White House's West Wing).
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August 24, 1954 was a Tuesday. These baseball games were played:
* The New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles, 9-2 at Yankee Stadium. Yogi Berra hit a home run, and Mickey Mantle went 1-for-2 with 2 walks and an RBI. Whitey Ford outpitched Don Larsen, who would finish 3-21 for the O's, in their 1st season in Baltimore after previously being the St. Louis Browns. Nevertheless, the Yankees would then acquire him, and he would make his mark on baseball history.
* The New York Giants beat the Chicago Cubs, 5-1 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Willie Mays went 3-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Rookie Ernie Banks went 2-for-4 with 1 RBI.
* The Brooklyn Dodgers beat the Cincinnati Redlegs, 12-4 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. The Reds were known as the "Redlegs" from 1953 to 1958, because they were cowards in the face of the Red Scare. "Dem Bums" got 2 home runs from Sandy Amoros, and 1 each from Duke Snider and Carl Furillo. Jackie Robinson got a hit, and then left the game due to an injury.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Boston Red Sox, 8-7 at Fenway Park in Boston. Rookie Al Kaline went 2-for-3 with a home runs and 2 RBIs. Ted Williams went 1-for-4.
* The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Cleveland Indians, 4-1 at Connie Mack Stadium (formerly Shibe Park) in Philadelphia. The A's would win only 10 more games before moving to Kansas City for the next season.
* The Chicago White Sox beat the Washington Senators, 4-0 at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Jack Harshman pitched a 7-hit shutout. He struck out 10, but walked 7. There's no record of how many pitches he threw in this complete game, but, on any arm, that's got to be harsh, man.
* The Milwaukee Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-1 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Warren Spahn outpitched Robin Roberts. Rookie Hank Aaron did not play.
* And the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 8-7 at the original Busch Stadium (formerly Sportsman's Park) in St. Louis. Stan Musial went 0-for-4 with a walk.
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