José Gobello (26 September 1919 – 28 October 2013) was an Argentine writer, poet, and essayist, especially known for his work on lunfardo. He was the founder, member, and president of the Academia Porteña del Lunfardo (Buenos Aires Lunfardo Academy).
Life Born into a poor family of Italian immigrants, he completed his secondary education as an adult. He supported Peronism and was elected national deputy in 1951, representing the labor branch.
When the 1955 military coup that overthrew the government of Juan Domingo Perón took place, he was imprisoned and held for two years. While in prison, he wrote his second book, Historias con ladrones, and the poem "El presidente duerme."
From then on, he dedicated himself to journalism (working for the magazine Aquí está) and to the study of tango and lunfardo, promoting and successfully founding the Academia Porteña del Lunfardo together with León Benarós and Luis Soler Cañas in 1962.
Works
Lunfardía, 1953 Historias con ladrones, 1956 Breve diccionario lunfardo, 1960, in collaboration with Luciano Payet Primera antología lunfarda, 1961, in collaboration with Luis Soler Cañas Las letras del tango, de Villoldo a Borges, 1966, in collaboration with Eduardo Stilman Nueva antología lunfarda, 1972 Palabras perdidas, 1973 El lenguaje de mi pueblo, 1974 Diccionario lunfardo, 1975 Conversando tangos, 1976 Etimologías, 1978 Tangos, letras y letristas, 1979, in collaboration with Jorge Bossio Nuevo diccionario lunfardo, 1990 Tangos, letras y letristas, II, 1992 Tangos, letras y letristas, III, 1993 Tangos, letras y letristas, IV, 1994 Tangos, letras y letristas, V, 1995 Tangos, letras y letristas, VI (diccionario de tangos), 1996 Aproximación al lunfardo, 1996 Vocabulario ideológico del lunfardo, 1998, in collaboration with Irene Amuchástegui Breve historia crítica del tango, 1999 Tangueces y Lunfardismos del rock argentino, 2001, in collaboration with Marcelo Oliveri Mujeres y hombres que hicieron el tango, 2002 Los ángeles afeitados y otros poemas, 2002 Ascasubi lexicógrafo, 2003 Diccionario gauchesco, 2003 Paratangos, 2004 Novísimo diccionario lunfardo, 2004, in collaboration with Marcelo Oliveri Curso básico de lunfardo, 2004, in collaboration with Marcelo Héctor Oliveri Costumbrismo lunfardo, 2004 Blanqueo etimológico del lunfardo, 2005 Letras de tango. Selección (1897–1981), 2007 Diccionario del habla de Buenos Aires, 2006, in collaboration with Marcelo Héctor Oliveri ¿Cómo era Gardel?, 2009, in collaboration with Marcelo Héctor Oliveri Poesía lunfarda, del burdel al Parnaso. Antología, 2010 Historia de la Academia Porteña del Lunfardo, 2011, in collaboration with Otilia Da Veiga
References