Buñuel, Luis. (1900–1983). Signed Firearms Permit. An original Mexican firearms permit issued to and signed by the iconic Spanish filmmaker. Plasticized firearms license issued by the National Defense Secretariat of Mexico, bearing the Mexican Government logo and the number A487191. Signature and fingerprint of Luis Buñuel on the front. On the reverse side, technical specificities of the weapon concerned: Colt revolver of 22 caliber special, with its serial number. 11.9 x 7.9 cm.
“I like weapons and shooting. I owned up to sixty-five revolvers and rifles, but I sold most of my collection in 1964, believing I was going to die that year. I practiced shooting everywhere, and even in my office, thanks to a special metal box that I place in front of me on the shelves of the library. You should never shoot in a closed room. I lost an ear in Zaragoza. My specialty has always been reflex shooting. We walk, we turn around, we shoot a silhouette – a bit like in westerns.” (Luis Buñuel, My last sigh, 1982).
Although in his autobiography Luis Buñuel devotes only a brief paragraph to his passion for firearms, this one nevertheless occupied an important place in his life. This passion came from his father, Leonardo García Buñuel, who was the agent of Remington and Smith brands in Havana in the late nineteenth century. A weapons dealer in addition to his hardware business, he quickly amassed a large fortune, thanks to this thriving market: “His father […] owned a weapons business. When the young Buñuel is ill, he gives him a revolver to entertain him. He also brings him to the shooting range, which Don Luis will do later in Mexico with his sons Juan-Luis and Rafael. He has a real passion for these objects and at the age of fourteen, he takes the habit of walking with a Browning hidden in his clothes, gun that will be confiscated to him at school. The sequences where firearms are portrayed in his films are endless, especially during his Mexican contemporary.” (Manuel Rodríguez Blanco, Luis Buñuel, 2000).
Buñuel, Luis. (1900–1983). Signed Firearms Permit. An original Mexican firearms permit issued to and signed by the iconic Spanish filmmaker. Plasticized firearms license issued by the National Defense Secretariat of Mexico, bearing the Mexican Government logo and the number A487191. Signature and fingerprint of Luis Buñuel on the front. On the reverse side, technical specificities of the weapon concerned: Colt revolver of 22 caliber special, with its serial number. 11.9 x 7.9 cm.
“I like weapons and shooting. I owned up to sixty-five revolvers and rifles, but I sold most of my collection in 1964, believing I was going to die that year. I practiced shooting everywhere, and even in my office, thanks to a special metal box that I place in front of me on the shelves of the library. You should never shoot in a closed room. I lost an ear in Zaragoza. My specialty has always been reflex shooting. We walk, we turn around, we shoot a silhouette – a bit like in westerns.” (Luis Buñuel, My last sigh, 1982).
Although in his autobiography Luis Buñuel devotes only a brief paragraph to his passion for firearms, this one nevertheless occupied an important place in his life. This passion came from his father, Leonardo García Buñuel, who was the agent of Remington and Smith brands in Havana in the late nineteenth century. A weapons dealer in addition to his hardware business, he quickly amassed a large fortune, thanks to this thriving market: “His father […] owned a weapons business. When the young Buñuel is ill, he gives him a revolver to entertain him. He also brings him to the shooting range, which Don Luis will do later in Mexico with his sons Juan-Luis and Rafael. He has a real passion for these objects and at the age of fourteen, he takes the habit of walking with a Browning hidden in his clothes, gun that will be confiscated to him at school. The sequences where firearms are portrayed in his films are endless, especially during his Mexican contemporary.” (Manuel Rodríguez Blanco, Luis Buñuel, 2000).