ABSTRACT
Rico; d. 1974, San Anton de Ponce Brothel-keeper and philanthropist Isabel la Negra (real name Isabel Luberza Oppenheimer), was born in the same neighbour hood where she died of bullet wounds, in mysterious circumstances, seventy-three years later. Daughter of a construction worker and a maid, she became the proprietor of ‘Elizabeth’s Dancing Place’, a renowned bar and brothel. A philanthro pist, she donated generously to a number of charitable causes. Her name evokes admiration in some, contempt in others; but 13,000 people accompanied her funeral procession. Her life was fictionalized by Manuel R am os Otero and Rosario Ferre.
