Who had the most positive influence on you as a child?
First of all, my parents, of course. I was born with the help of a midwife in the house where my sister still lives, Calle 25 Number 1107 between 6 and 8, Vedado, La Habana. When I was a child, I remember my grandfather Manuel Porto living with us, although he never paid much attention to me; also, for some time while single, my uncles Manuel (my godfather) and Pepe (José Luis) also lived with us, shared a bedroom with me. Pepe never had much to do with me either, but Manolo certainly did, he was a role model.
My grandfather Manuel Porto bought a nice house, with garage and big yard in a small town called El Cotorro, on the Central Highway, heading East, toward Matanzas, at 15 or 20 miles from La Habana. My grandfather, TÃa LucÃa y TÃo Pepe moved there and all the Porto family used to visit on Sundays, where the men played dominos in a hut far from the house and we children played around the yard and neighborhood. I learned to drive as a child, first sitting on my father or Manolo's lap guiding the steering wheel, later sitting by myself, in the dirt road that went from the highway to the house.
Besides Manolo my godfather, my cousins Pepe and Elena Villamil (my godmother) who lived around the corner both were a great influence, Elena spoiling me, Pepe teaching me, on a daily basis. Their father Emilio Villamil was retired since I remember and spend most of his time in the "Saleta" or parlor, reading constantly. He acted as my surrogate grandfather taught me many things.
Pepe moved to a nearby apartment in Calle H between 21 and 23 streets, when he married Ada Ela Veloso. He was an attorney, first worked for Bernardo Caramés Camacho, a Notary Public.
Here I must explain that in Spanish culture the role of a Notary Public is totally different than here in the US. While here a Notary public is a person appointed by the Governor and bonded, whose purpose is to certify the veracity of a signature or statement, requiring identification and declaration from the person signing it, then affixing a dry seal and expiration stamp, with no specific knowledge required, only being an upright citizen, in Spanish culture it is a great distinction, must be an attorney-at-law, usually only the elite of such profession chosen by competitive exams, charged as a keeper of public civic records instead of the County Clerk.
Their number is very limited, they appoint usually one per neighborhood, for instance in the whole Madrid area there are only about 245 Public Notary’s.
Continuing my narrative, Bernardo Caramés Camacho was also, for a while, Director of the Driver's License Bureau of the nation, in the early 1950s, and Pepe was able to get me a driver's license --then a little booklet-- with my picture and name, when I was about ten years old. He taught me many things, took me many places to broaden my horizons, during summers, he often worked only half-days ant took me and his children Ada and Pepucho, to nearby Alamar Club, a seaside private club to enjoy the beach.
As I related previously, Don Pablo Mimó, owner and headmaster of Colegio Mimó, a XIX Century gentleman, both in his dress and attitude, was a unique role model. Later on, in Colegio Trelles, Ramón Clavijo, who taught us history, Spanish and Cuban Literature, inspired me in those subjects, hitherto abhorred by me.
While in military service, First Sergeant Gratz, Lieutenant Vento and Major Harris all befriended and inspired me.
Upon returning, the already-mentioned Tom Taylor, Gene Gust, Jim Hemphill and Gary Quintilio were all good loyal friends, also Pancho Villaronga, Phil Webb and Mike Groff while at The Travelers.
After going in business independently, competitors such as Pepe Alvarez and Fernando Gimenez stood out as good friends who influenced me with their success.
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