trujillo's cigarettes

[Tordok]

Tordok, I have read several books on Trujillo over the last three years. My favorite being Robert Crassweller's ,Trujillo:The life and times of a Caribbean dictator. I remember reading Dictator next door, Death of the Goat,and at least two Trujillo financed propaganda biographies. The Galindez book and a few others whose titles escape me.

I have never found a picture of Johnnie Abbes Garcia. I have always figured that being an intelligence operative he would be unlikely to allow many(if any) photos of him to be made public.

Please scan and post a photo of him if you get a chance.

I was reading through the news and came across a story on Mario Vargas Lhosa, the author of Feast of the Goat. He gave a press conference in Santo Domingo(2001) and mentioned that the families of the Trujillo assassins were upset with the portayals of their relatives in the book. He said that he considered Trujillo's killers to be heroes and that he did not intend to harm their familes.

I read the book myself and I'm not really sure what they would find so hurtful.

Does anyone know what Mario Vargas Lhosa wrote that upset the families of the assassins?

Does anyone know what the relatives of Antonio De la Maza are doing today? Is his wife still living?

Joel,
I have 5 pictures of the guy that I can email to you at your convenience (posting them here is possibly a copyright infringement, plus it is probably a good idea to keep this sadistic monster out of the public view, anways). If you don't PM me with your email address, then unfortunately I cannot send them to you.

BTW, It's Vargas Llosa, not Lhosa. A lot of people got upset with some literary liberties taken by this author. For example Tte. Amadito Garc?a Guerrero and his fiancee were from La Romana. In the book Vargas Llosa implies that this lady was a less than decent person, when in reality those who actually know this entirely respectable woman and her family, know that such comments are the opposite of the truth. The book does a great job in capturing the monstrosity of the dictatorship and fictionalization of dialogues and other embellishments may be appropriate, but it has major flaws in how it portrays some of these very real victims.

- Tordok
sources of pictures:

1. TRUJILLO: Historia Oculta de un Dictador by V?ctor A. Pe?a Rivera pages 193 and 194. Publsihed in 1977 by PLUS ULTRA Educational Publishers, Inc. 150 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10011.ISBN 0-915534-43-6
2. Memorias de un Cortesano de la Era de Trujillo by Joaqu?n Balaguer
book cover and pages 225 and 226. Published in 1988. ISBN: 84-312-0236-X.

 

[Ogre of the Caribbean]

Tordok, Thank you so much for the photos. Johnnie Abbes is not so fat as I thought he would be from the descriptions of him in the books i've read. He's more chubby than really fat. He is not nearly so sinister as I had pictured either. He actually looks rather ordinary. I guess that's a good thing when you are a covert operative and assassin.(which is how his career really took off)

Iwill try to buy a copy of those Dominican History books over the internet or when i visit the DR. I have only read english language books on the Trujiilo Era.

On the subject of the "Feast of the Goat" book by Llosa, could you please write down some other examples of literary license that upset people. I read that President Balaguer told reporters that he had no problem with how he was potrayed in the book. How was the book received in the DR? Was it a best seller? How was the public reaction towards the book?

I saw the play based on the book in NYC last March 2004. It was one of the best plays I have ever seen.

 

[Ogre of the Caribbean]

Does anyone have any more information on examples of llosa's literary license which upset the assassins family members?

I thought the portayal of President Balaguer in the book showed him in an extremely bad light. Balaguer, in my opinion, comes across as a two faced, back stabbing, weasel. Yet Balaguer said he had no problem with the book. Just wondering.

Did the book sell very well in the D.R.?

 

[luperongringo]

aurora brand

i'll just use this thread for my questions for now on. i'll only post on my other trujillo thread if someone writes a response on it first.

does the cigar named after trujillo's daughter still exist?

I believe the Aurora Brand cigars was started 1903 and has nothing to do with Trujillo