Luma de Oliveira

Luma de Oliveira (Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈlumɐ dʒi oliˈvejɾɐ]; born December 10, 1964) is a former model, actress, and Brazilian carnival queen. She was Madrinha da Bateria (Godmother of the Percussion, or "Queen of the Drums") for several samba schools until 2005, later returning to the role for the renowned Portela school in 2009.

Early life

Luma was born in Nova Friburgo. Oliveira's mother, Maria Luiza de Castro, was of Amerindian descent and her father, Luiz Naegele de Oliveira, was of German and Portuguese descent and worked for Leopoldina Railroad company. One of Oliveira's ancestors was Georg Heinrich von Langsdorff, Baron de Langsdorff. She is the youngest of six children; her oldest sister is popular actress Ísis de Oliveira, and her brother, Mem de Oliveira, wrote poetry.

Her name was created using the first two letters of her parents' names: LUiz and MAria. She attended the Institute Gay-Lussac and played handball and volleyball, but her passion was cycling and running on the beach.

Career

Modeling

Oliveira began modeling at age 16, after the death of her father in 1980. She moved to Niterói and her brother Mem became her guardian, agent and manager. She worked in Japan, France and Germany, but her biggest success was in Brazil.

Luma de Oliveira promoted the Clarity line of cosmetics, marketed through FLX Consultancy and Franchising. She also appeared in commercials for Havaianas flip-flops and Danone yogurt, and on the cover of numerous Brazilian magazines: Fitness, Guys, Headline, Look, and Who's That Guy.