Who was Vinicius de Moraes?

Marcus Vinícius da Cruz e Mello Moraes (19 October 1913 – 9 July 1980), also known as Vinícius de Moraes, was a Brazilian poet, lyricist, essayist, and playwright. Along with frequent collaborator Antônio Carlos Jobim, his lyrics and compositions were part of the birth of bossa nova music. He recorded several albums and also served as a diplomat.

He was considered one of the most prominent of the "Generation of '45", a group of Brazilian writers in the 1930s and 1940s who rejected early modernism in favor of traditional forms and vocabulary.

Renditions of many Jobim-Moraes numbers on Gilberto's first, second, and third albums established the sound and repertory of the bossa nova and influenced a generation of singers and songwriters, especially in Rio de Janeiro. Among these songs are "Garota de Ipanema", "Insensatez", and "Chega de Saudade".

Moraes was a chain smoker and an alcoholic who, after a long period of poor health, which included several visits to rehabilitation clinics, died at his home in Rio de Janeiro on 9 July 1980, at the age of 66, in the company of his ninth wife, Gilda de Queirós Mattoso, and the faithful Toquinho. He is buried in Rio de Janeiro's Cemitério São João Batista.

In 2006, Moraes was posthumously reinstated to the Brazilian diplomatic corps. In February 2010, the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies approved his posthumous promotion to the rank of ambassador (first-class minister).