Original. Hand signed in my presence by:
GREGORIO FUENTES
LIFE MAGAZINE SEPTEMBER 1, 1952 ENGLISH NEWS STAND EDITION. In attendance was his Grandson Rafael and several friends from Havana Cuba.
THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA
Author: Ernest Hemingway.
Signed in my presence by Gregorio Fuentes
Please feel free to ask any questions you might have:
From the Mid 1990's until his passing. I visited Cuban many times. Traveling under an OFAC permit
I was a frequent visitor to the island
During my many trips I was able to meet with Gregorio Fuentes:
We called our meetings consultations, during these visits. Gregorio was kind enough to sign various editions of the Hemingway Book "The Old Man and The Sea"
I was able to procure original copies of Life & Bohemia magazines in both Spanish and English, the LP record both soft and hard covers. as well as 1st editions.
Pictured are a few images of Gregorio holding a signed magazine or book.
Each signature is unique, and written by the hand of captain Fuentes.
THIS IS MY LAST OFFERING. THE CENTER PAGES SHOW SIGNS OF DETACHMENT
THERE IS SOME FOXING ON THE COVER AS WELL AS PAGES MINOR
EDGE WARE BUT IN VERY NICE ORIGINAL CONDITION
I ALSO HAVE THE SAME EDITION AVAILABLE. WITH THE HOME SUBSCRIPTION LABEL ATTACHED.
. It was signed in Cuba by Gregorio Fuentes.
Gregorio Fuentes it has been said was the central figure in the book, It is well known that Gregorio was the Capitian for Ernest hemingway dating from the 1930's to Hemingways departure from Cuban in 1959.
It was the practice of Gregorio to sign books and other Hemingway memorabilia while having a good cigar in his living room.
(i visited Gregorio and his grandson Rafael many times in Cuba prior to his death in January 2002, I traveled under an OFAC permit and this allowed me to interact with many people during my frequent trips to the island.
On these visits I often had Gregorio sign editions of the Hemingway book as well as other related material pertaining to the book written by Ernest Hemingway.
The photo of Gregorio holding signed books and magazines is only to assure the buyer of the providence of a signing. I had many books signed by Gregorio as well as LP Photograph albums, Newspapers, other related Hemingway memorabilia. I did not photographed each item, as that would have been in poor taste,
I guarantee that the signature is 100% original, it is done in black sharpie.
the magazine is over 70 years old, the pages are with some discoloration , the binding staples show some signs of rust, the 4 corner.s are Nic but not mint
please view the images. as this is the exact item you are purchasing.
I have 1 additional Life magazine. that is signed. it is not the home delivery edition.
Fuentes (July 11, 1897 - January 13, 2002) was a fisherman and the first mate of the pilar - the boat belonging to the American writer Ernest Hemingway.
Fuentes was born on Lanzarote in the, Canary Islands and migrated to Cuba when he was ten years old. In 1938, Fuentes replaced the Pilar's original first mate, Carlos Gutierrez, after Hemingway's mistress, Jane Mason, hired him away to be the first mate of her boat after becoming jealous of Hemingway's relationship with Martha Gellhorn.
Fuentes, a life-long cigar smoker, died from cancer in Cojimar in 2002, never having read The Old Man and the Sea. He was 104 years old.
Fuentes is credited by some as a model for Hemingway's protagonist, Santiago, in The Old Man and he Sea, though this is most likely the result of Fuentes' longevity and how he purposefully grew into the incarnation of the role of Santiago for tourists visiting Cojimar.
Hemingway himself stated that Santiago was "based on no one in particular".
That Fuentes worked closely and knew Hemingway very well is undeniable. However, if anyone can claim credit for being the inspiration for Santiago, it was Hemingway's original first mate, Carlos Gutierrez.
Gutierrez had been fishing the Gulf Stream for 40 years and was already an old man when Hemingway first met him. Hemingway would credit the old fisherman with teaching him everything he knew about catching marlin, and credited Gutierrez with telling him the Cuban tales he used as grist to write "On The Blue Water: A Gulf Stream Letter".
Additionally, Hemingway laid out the plot outline for "The Old Man And The Sea" and how Gutierrez's assistance proved vital to the story's creation and evolution in a letter written in February 1939 to his editor, Max Perkins: