The Story of Korda's Image - ala Yesterday

[gabriel_roca]

You know, yesterday's thread regarding compensation, etc. for Korda's

image of "El Che" got me thinking. I thought some of you who are

history freaks would enjoy this. Perhaps not, but, I always find

these sorts of stories somewhat interesting.

 

The image below is a page out of my grandfather's 1960 date book.

You'll notice the date is March 4. On that day he was meeting with

Che at the INRA (Agrarian Reform Offices) in Havana (the subject of

the meeting is too long to get into here). During the meeting, a huge

explosion rocked Havana harbor - apparently a French ship "La Coubre"

which had been carrying munitions for the fledgling revolutionary

government had exploded (sabotage?) and many were killed - see the

blow up where he writes: "3:15PM - A vessel exploded in the

harbor, ?? dead, over 100 wounded - French flag, "la coubre." Very

important this accident, this moment." At that point he switched to

short-hand and described Che's reaction as he grabbed a side arm and

fled the meeting, bound for the Harbor. The next day - March 5,

Korda's image was taken at a memorial for the victims of the Coubre.

Grandfather was able to escape Cuba with his family a few months

later, in August (thank God). I just thought it was interesting.

Cheers all.<div></div>

[gabriel_roca]

Here's the closeup - he always wrote in shorthand when he didn't want anyone to know the subject of his note-taking (Che).<div></div>

[roger_michel]

somebody must know somebody who reads shorthand.

[gabriel_roca]

I was wondering if anyone would ask that - I've had it roughly translated by one of his old secretaries who still resides in Miami (my grandfather passed 3 years ago). She gave me the jist of it. I had bought a book on Spanish shorthand but soon realized that people tailor shorthand for themselves, with symbols all their own, etc.

[roger_michel]

the picture, of course<div></div>

[awahlster]

Roger do you have the rest of the photo? It was my understanding this was a tight crop from a large photo acutally taken with another person as the main subject. This section being from the right rear of the main focus.

[mikep1]

Aha!! I always wondered where the Klingon uniforms originated.

[andrew_somerset1]

I posted a link to the original on the other thread.

 

Here it is again: <a href="http://www.zonezero.com/kordasche/introen.html" target="_blank">Korda's Che</a>

[andy m.]

VERY interesting post. Thanks for sharing.

[octavio bustard]

Edward-

 

Now THAT is interesting!!!! Thanks for sharing it with us.

[working camera]

Edward,

 

Thankyou, an interesting and important post.

 

cheers Craig

[david j.lee]

very interesting. thanks edward. by the way, there is a collector here in mexico

city who happens to own the original contact sheet from this roll of tri-x pan

used by korda to make this beautiful photograph. thanks again,edward.

 

david

[cd thacker]

I agree. Very interesting. Thanks, Edward.

[cd thacker]

Could you tell us a little more about your grandfather?

[markci]

Very interesting. My brother-in-law has a contract to write a book about the Cuban exiles. It started out as a college composition project, but it turns out a lot of his family friends were high-ranking officials (attorney general and whatnot) before Castro came to power. I wonder if he knows of your grandfather (if he's still living)?

[skeeter]

fascinating. thanks so much for sharing.

[bob soltis]

Quite interesting, Edward.

 

Thanks for taking the time to share this and for posting the images.

[gabriel_roca]

CD,

 

I had posted a response to your question this weekend but, I guess with all the work being done on the site, it was "lost in the sauce."

 

As far as my grandfather was concerned, when he married my grandmother, he began to work as a general manager in the Havana Shipyards of Casablanca which were founded and owned by her father. The yards were later seized by the revolutionary government and are still being run by Castro to this day - my brother and I were lucky enough to tour them the last time we were in Cuba - actually, the staff was really very nice and open with us, they sent us around with a fellow to walk in the footsteps of our great-grandfather - it was great.

 

Anyway, the meetings with Che, Castro, etc. came about when an American shipping company, SeaLand (now Maersk/SeaLand) approached my grandfather about setting up a division of the company in Havana. At that point, 1960, he was already under the belief that Castro was a Marxist/Leninist and that the family's days were numbered but, he wasn't sure. To get approval for the American company to operate out of Havana, clearance would have to come from the top echelons of the government. My grandfather figured, this was his "in" to figure out up to what level in the new government, communist infiltration had risen. So, on march 4th, he was in Che's office, going over details of the plan, etc, when the Coubre exploded.

 

His diary is really wild, he's got hall passes to go up to the upper offices of INRA, and, more interestingly, a business card from a fellow by the name of Juan Orta (Cheif of the Prime Minister's office at the time). What no one at the time knew was that Orta was on the CIA payroll to assasinate Castro.

 

In the end however, they had to leave Cuba in August of '60. The family was too well known and since they controlled the Shipyards, had to be, essentially, "liquidated." Once the executions and seizures started to hit the family, they decided it was time to leave Cuba. A year later, my mother (now in New Jersey) asked to stay home to watch the Bay of Pigs invasion on television. When the battle ended in defeat, her only reply to him was: "Now we'll never be able to go home." Indeed, they didn't.

 

Anyway, that' it, I've babbled on enough.

 

Cheers.

[galone_es]

<p>where I could see a picture of the Leica M2 used by Korda for his famous portrait of Che Guevara ? (guerrillero heróico). I mean the actual camera owned by Korda (not just a camera of the same model)</p>