The International Film Festival of the Third Millennium will honor Maria Esther Fernandez, this country’s first and foremost cinematic diva, as well as the Jalisco town of Mascota where she was born.
While the reels are rolling in various movie theaters at Lakeside and Guadalajara from November 11 to 22 (see story page 23), the Alas a las Artes organization will set up an exhibition honoring the movie star. On display will be objects loaned by Mascota natives Gustavo Carbajal and Raul Rodriguez, who own extensive collections of Fernandez memorabilia.
Personal articles, photographs and paintings by the star will be set up in the Gonzalez Gallo Cultural Center (old train station) in Chapala, with an opening celebration set for Friday, November 11, 7:30 p.m.
Fernandez was born in 1920 (or 1917, according to some sources). When the Cristero rebellion broke out, her mother decided to sell their house and everything in it. The family left town and Esther went north to Saltillo to attend school for a year. She then joined her mother in Mexico City where her aunt worked as an extra in the film studios. She convinced Esther to participate as an extra in “La Mujer del Puerto” in 1933. Her stunning countenance soon garnered her offers for bit roles but her shyness kept her from accepting them.
Director Fernando de Fuentes was looking for a fresh actress for the leading female role in “Alla en el Rancho Grande.” He spotted Fernandez and found her an acting coach, who hired her for his own film. “Alla en el Rancho Grande,” said to be the first film with English subtitles, became a big hit on both sides of the border and so did Esther.
Fernandez’s career spanned the 1930s, 40s and 50s. She appeared in about 60 films between 1933 and 1957 and came back briefly in the 1980s.
The display of her personal items will remain on exhibit through November 22 and can be viewed at the Gonzalez Gallo Cultural Center, Avenida Gonzalez Gallo 1500 in Chapala, during the center’s regular business hours, Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Jeanne Chaussee
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
