Spain
Ernest Hemingway visited Spain many times throughout his life. In 1923, Hemingway traveled with Bill Bird and Robert McAlmon to Pamplona to partake in the festival of San FermÃn. Contrary to popular belief, Hemingway never actually participated in the running of the bulls due to the leg injuries he sustained during World War I.
On his 1923 trip, Hemingway became deeply engrossed in the art of bullfighting. His "study" of bullfighting would later be told in his 1932 book, Death in the Afternoon.
Twice in 1937 and once in 1938, Hemingway reported on the Spanish Civil War for NANA (North American Newspaper Alliance). Hemingway wrote a total of 31 dispatches for NANA based on his three trips to Spain. Hemingway's experiences as a war correspondent during the Spanish Civil War inspired his 1938 play, The Fifth Column, his 1940 book, For Whom the Bell Tolls, and numerous short stories.
Supportive of the loyalist cause in the Spanish Civil War, Hemingway lent his voice to the 1937 documentary, The Spanish Earth, produced and directed by Joris Ivens. The documentary was originally supposed to be narrated by Orson Welles, but when Welles backed out, Hemingway was asked to read his own written commentary.
Ernest Hemingway's final trip to Spain would be to witness the 1959 bullfight season. His experiences would be recounted in The Dangerous Summer, first published by Life magazine in 1960 and later by Scribner's in 1985.
Hemingway's time in Spain ended happily. His wife Mary threw him a spectacular sixtieth birthday party at a friend's villa in Churriana, Spain.
