Fernán Gómez's legacy "in memoriam": the CNT card and the pen he was given as a gift when he joined the RAE (Spanish Royal Academy of Spanish Language)

The Caja de las Letras of the Cervantes Institute received as a legacy in memoriam of Fernando Fernán Gómez two representative personal objects of the writer, actor, film and theatre director: his CNT card from the show business union, dated 1938, and the fountain pen that he was given as a gift on joining the Royal Spanish Academy in 2000. Both are witnesses to the career of a man who was "an example of critical awareness in our contemporary society", said the director of the Cervantes Institute. 

Luis García Montero defined Fernando Fernán Gómez (Lima, Peru, 1921 - Madrid, 2007) as "someone who is indispensable in the world of cinema" as well as "a very great writer". Of his varied published work, he highlighted the novel 'La Puerta del Sol' (1995), his well-remembered play 'Las bicicletas son para el verano' (1984); his memoirs, of which "he gives a good account in 'El tiempo amarillo'" (1990, expanded in 1998) and the book of poetry 'El canto es vuelo' (2002). 

From this title, García Montero read the poem entitled 'Vergüenza' (Shame), which is, he said, "a fundamental feeling when it comes to committing ourselves to reality". For García Montero, who is also a poet and professor of literature, "to lose shame is to enter into a drift that brings out the worst in society". 

The family of the multifaceted creator was represented by his son, Fernando Fernán-Gómez, and his granddaughter Helena de Llanos. The latter explained the contents of the legacy that was placed in box number 1003, whose plaque bears the name of the honoree, described as an actor, writer and director, and today's date: 3 March 2022. 

According to Helena de Llanos, Fernán Gómez got his CNT (Confederación Nacional del Trabajo) card from the performing arts union in 1938, the year in which he started working, in the middle of the Civil War. The acting school of the anarcho-syndicalist organisation was one of the places where her grandfather "enjoyed being an actor" in a way that he never felt again. 

The said primer also represents his way of looking at life: "He was a supporter of a libertarian morality" in which the fundamental thing was "to be true to yourself in order to be honest with others". According to his granddaughter, the director and writer "was not apolitical, but anti-political", because he did not believe that real problems are solved by politics, but through morals, ethics and philosophy. 

As for the fountain pen, it is a unique piece that symbolises all his creative work. The thick pen was a gift he received in 2000 when he took possession of the capital B chair at the Royal Spanish Academy, an institution of which he would remain a member until his death. 

Also present at the presentation of the bequest at the Caja de las Letras were the vice-president of the Film Academy, Rafael Portela, and the secretary of the Academy, Azucena Rodríguez, who was Fernán Gómez's personal assistant on the filming of Viaje a ninguna parte (Journey to Nowhere). 

Fernando Fernán Gómez won a number of important awards. In addition to several Goya Awards, he was awarded the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival (2005), the Gold Medal of the Film Academy (2001), the Prince of Asturias Award for the Arts (1995), the National Film Award (1989) and the National Theatre Award (1985). 

Submitted by José Antonio Sierra, Hispanicism Advisor