Manuel Puig

Manuel Puig (mänwĕl´ pwēg), 1932–90, Argentine novelist. He is considered one of Latin America's most creative writers, and his writing reflects the myths and realities of contemporary Argentine life. His fiction, including Betrayed by Rita Hayworth (1968; tr. 1971), Heartbreak Tango: A Serial (1969; tr. 1973), The Buenos Aires ...

Manuel Puig (mänwĕl´ pwēg), 1932–90, Argentine novelist. He is considered one of Latin America's most creative writers, and his writing reflects the myths and realities of contemporary Argentine life. His fiction, including Betrayed by Rita Hayworth (1968; tr. 1971), Heartbreak Tango: A Serial (1969; tr. 1973), The Buenos Aires Affair (1973; tr. 1976), Pubis Angelical (1979; tr. 1986), Eternal Curse on the Reader of These Pages (1981; tr. 1982), Blood of Requited Love (1982; tr. 1984), and Tropical Night Falling (1989; tr. 1991), was influenced by the detective novel, and, most of all, the plots, stars, and techniques of popular films. He is best known for the novel Kiss of the Spider Woman (1976; tr. 1979), which was adapted as a film (1985) and a Broadway musical (1993).

See critical biography by S. J. Levine (2000); studies by P. Bacarisse (1988), N. Lavers (1988), and L. Kerr (1987).