Biography
Donato Pires dos Reis trained under Jacyntho Ferro in Belem and claimed certification from Maeda. In 1928, he was awarded a contract to teach hand-to-hand combat to the Minas Gerais state police, inviting Carlos Gracie as his assistant. In September 1930, he moved to Rio de Janeiro and opened the 'Carioca Academy for the Cultivation of Scientific Sport' at Rua Marques de Abrantes 106, with Carlos and George Gracie as assistant instructors. In December 1930, just three months later, Pires departed and the Gracies took over. By October 1932, it was advertised as 'Academia Gracie.' In 1939, he opened another academy in São Paulo with George Gracie. His departure from that Rio academy enabled the creation of the Gracie brand.