The Hemisphere: Death of a Salesman

It was Juan Duarte’s luck to be the brother of a frail, high-voltage blonde named Evita, who married Juan Peron and became the most powerful woman of her time. In 1946, at Evita’s suggestion, Soap Salesman Juan became Peron’s No. 1 secretary. Though he liked to hit the nightclubs of Buenos Aires with an endless chain of slick señoritas, Bachelor Duarte never became much of a public figure. But over the years, he prospered wondrously. Rigged deals on the stock exchange, a cut on imported cars and machinery, black-market operations in meat enabled him to buy country estates complete with private airfields. A lavish party he gave recently at an exclusive Buenos Aires hotel rumor said, was to celebrate the acquisition of his first billion pesos ($75 million).

Juan Duarte still rode high after his sister’s death last year. But last week, with the heat turned on high for officials suspected of corruption and with no Evita around to speak for him, Juan Duarte was dumped overboard. The night the blow fell, Duarte aimlessly took in a girlie-girlie show, idly went on to a nightspot. Two days later, in a more determined frame of mind, he appeared at Buenos Aires airport with a toothsome movie actress and reservations for two on a plane to Madrid.

But there was to be no escape. Police curtly took up his passport, sent the girl home, and escorted Duarte back to his luxurious apartment. He called in some pals, and until after midnight, sounds of laughing and drinking came from the rooms. Apparently, after the guests left, Juan Duarte concluded that it was time to check out. His valet found him in the morning with a bullet in his chest.

His last note was to Peron. “I have been H-O-N-E-S-T,” he had scrawled, “ana no one can prove otherwise.”