The "Immortal" Carlos Gardel and his friend, co-composer of many famous tango songs such as "By Only a Head (Por Una Cabeza") danced by Al Pacino in "Scent of a Woman" and Arnold Schwartzenegger in "True Lies", died tragically in an airplane crash in Medellin, Colombia in 1935. They left behind over 1,000 tango recordings and 100 original compositions which continued to be released after their death. Paramount Pictures had also filmed seven motion pictures for the Spanish and Latin-American market planning to replace the recently deceased Rudolf Valentino with Carlos Gardel. His fans refused to believe Gardel had died, creating rumors that he had become a recluse in Colombia, which led to the popular saying: "Gardel sings better every day!" When he died, there was a procession through the streets of Buenos Aires unlike any ever seen (until Evita Peron) to the cemetery where Gardel's statue still stands. Jose Razzano, Gardel's singing/writing partner and subsequent manager was the only one to survive the plane crash because Gardel had fired him over some gambling debts. He reinvented another "Gardel" after his death and profited throughout his life from Gardel and Lepera's compositions, controlling the royalty rights and creating and presiding over Argentina's music union.
Alicia Savio, who created the tango choreography for "The Tango Singer", played Go-to-Hell Kitty in Bob Fosse's "Chicago-the Musical" in the Buenos Aires production and performed throughout Latin America with Tango Argentino's touring company.