a large ethnic enclave in Long Beach, California.
The Vietnamese, who established large communi-
ties in California and the Texas Gulf Coast, founded
lucrative businesses in auto repair, nail care, com-
mercial fishing, and food services. Cuban boat peo-
ple who were granted immigrant status were rapidly
absorbed into the already large south Florida Cuban
community and became a revitalizing force for cities
such as Miami.
Further Reading
García, María Christina.Havana, USA: Cuban Exiles
and Cuban Americans in South Florida, 1959-1994.
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996.
Analysis of Cuban immigration. Chapter 2 is de-
voted to the Mariel boatlift of 1980. Endnotes, in-
dex, and select bibliography.
Reimers, David M.Still the Golden Door: The Third
World Comes to America. New York: Columbia Uni-
versity Press, 1992. A standard text for the study of
contemporary U.S. immigration, both legal and
illegal. Footnotes, index, and bibliography.
Vo, Nghia M.Vietnamese Boat People, 1954 and 1975-
1992. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2005. Analysis
of the flight from Vietnam and subsequent re-
settlement; filled with many human-interest ac-
counts. Footnotes, index, and bibliography.
Irwin Halfond
See also Asian Americans; Immigration to Canada;
Immigration to the United States; Latin America.
Boitano, Brian
Identification American figure skater
Born: October 22, 1963; Mountain View,
California
Boitano was a world champion in 1986 and 1988 and an
Olympic gold medalist in 1988. His resulting influence on
the field of professional figure skating led him to become a
voice for the sport and for professional skaters.
Brian Boitano earned his initial reputation in the
skating world with his unique presence on the ice.
Speed and power defined his style, an incomparable
ability to defy gravity and fly characterized his jump-
ing, and his natural, flowing movement more than
made up for the lack of dance instruction in his
training. Fans and rivals alike admired his powerful
stroking, quickness, and a finesse and precision in
timing jumps that belied his height, as well as his in-
ventiveness, sportsmanship, and musicality.
During the 1980’s, Boitano was greatly influenced
by two people: Linda Leaver, the coach with whom he
trained for the larger part of the decade, and Sandra
Bezic, his choreographer. His work with Bezic began
in 1987, and it changed the course of his career.
Boitano engaged Bezic after coming in second at the
1987 World Championships, losing his title to Cana-
dian Brian Orser. Boitano had relied heavily on his
overwhelming technical skill, but he realized that to
remain recognized as the world’s best figure skater he
would have to improve the quality of his artistic pre-
sentation. The programs Bezic choreographed for
him focused on masculine and heroic characters, em-
phasizing strong lines and grand moves that won him
audiences’ acceptance and judges’ approval.
Boitano’s first major competition showcasing
Bezic’s choreography was the 1987 Skate Canada
event in Calgary, Alberta. The event took place in
the same venue as the upcoming 1988 Winter Olym-
pics, and Leaver insisted that Boitano become famil-
iar with every inch of the rink, hoping to give him a
headstart for the Olympic competition. His skating
impressed the judges, but Boitano still finished sec-
ond behind Orser, setting up a confrontation at the
Olympics that was publicized as the “Battle of the
Brians.” Boitano bested Orser in the Olympics, nar-
rowly winning the portion of the event for which art-
istry is most important, the free skating competition,
and he went on to reclaim his world champion title
later that year.
After the Olympics, Boitano became artistic di-
rector of a series of skating tours, two of which were
produced during the last two years of the decade.
His collaboration with other world champions re-
sulted in skating shows that broke the tradition of ice
shows featuring a series of skaters performing unre-
lated programs. Instead, it began a tradition of shows
centered around a theme that gave them coherence
and elegance, raising their artistic caliber. Boitano’s
portrayal at skating competitions of heroic charac-
ters such as pioneers and soldiers culminated with
his performance as Don Jose opposite Katarina Witt
inCarmen on Ice(1989), for which he won an Emmy
Award.Impact Boitano was an important role model for a
generation of young skaters. He also helped expandThe Eighties in America Boitano, Brian 123