Bunuel_Luis_My_Last_Breath

evenge. In the end, as we were shooting a very n~elodramatic confrontationbetween father and daughter, I remember shouting toAna-Maria Custodio, the star: "You have to get more sentimentalbullshit into all this!""For heaven's sake," she shouted back. "How can anyone everwork seriously with you."The second production, which was also a big commercial success,was a horrendous musical melodrama entitled La hija de Juan Simon.Angelillo, who was the most popular flamenco singer in Spain, playedthe male lead; the female star was a novice named Carmen Amaya,a young gypsy who went on to become a famous flamenco dancer.(My third production, QaiLn me quim a mi?, was my only commercialfailure, and a pretty dismal one at that.)These were strange times, however. I remember one eveningwhen Gimknez Caballero, the editor of La Gaceta Literaria, gave abanquet in honor of Valle Inclan. There were about thirty guests,including Alberti and Hinojosa. At the end of the dinner, we wereasked to say a few words."Last night, while I was sleeping," I began, "I suddenly feltsomething scratching me. When I turned on the light, I found Iwas crawling with tiny Valle Inclans!"Alberti and Hinojosa spoke every bit as graciously, but, curiously,there were no protests. Our speeches were received in totalsilence. When I ran into Valle Inclan on the Calle dlAlcalh thefollowing day, he raised his hat and greeted me very amiably, as ifnothing whatsoever had happened.In Madrid, I worked in an office on the Gran Via and lived in aseven-room apartment with my wife, Jeanne, and our infant son,Juan-Luis. Ironically, since the Republic had adopted an exceedinglyliberal constitution, the right wing had been able to gain powerlegally. In 1935, however, new elections restored power to the lefttothe Popular Front and men like Prieto, Largo Caballero, andAzafia. As prime minister, Azaiia had to deal with an increasinglyconfrontational labor movement. After the infamous repression in