
Geneneral Pinochet:
soldier, dictator, actor/politician
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The first time I photographed general Pinochet was during the Tanquetazo, 29 June 1973. He was dressed for a role in a U.S. war movie, compared to the other generals who wore the customary uniforms of the Chilean army: great coats, a hint of Prussian influence. Pinochet appeared as the ‘modern American war hero’: He wore American army field jacket and helmet - with the straps loose - sunglasses, dress shoes, and dress pants; a WW II, M1 carbine rifle slung over his shoulder, a pair of binoculars hanging from a strap around his neck. Pinochet, a Chilean ‘George Patton’, ‘a soldier’s general’.
Each time I photographed the general he played a different role: a gentleman officer, a grandfather, a husband, a gracious host, a politician kissing babies or a dictator.
Later, when his dictatorship became absolute, came the ‘Hollywood Premiere’ dresses: ‘the emperor’s cape’. Pinochet became lost in a world of his own, like all those who surround themselves with sycophants and are isolated from reality, because of their fame and power.