E97 B. Traven and the Treasure of the Sierra Madre

Gladio Free Europe

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Liam and Russian Sam tunnel beneath the hills of Mexico to uncover the remarkable history behind the 1948 film "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" and its creators.

Based on a 1927 novel about three American gold-hunters torn apart by greed, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is one of the only modern novels whose author is effectively unknown. Attributed only to the mysterious "B. Traven," a German residing in Mexico, speculation over the writer's identity takes us through the German Revolution of 1919 and rumors of secret illegitimate sons of industrialists and Kaiser.

Celebrated in its time for its stark depiction of human brutality, the novel ascended to immortality when director John Huston adapted Traven's story in an usual western in 1948. Starring Humphrey Bogart and Huston's father Walter as prospectors, the film is regarded among the greatest riches of classic Hollywood cinema.

Listen to this episode of Gladio Free Europe to dig through the dirt of deception and intrigue surrounding both the novel and the film, and decide for yourself just who was B. Traven.

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Further Listening:

E07 Hernán and Aztec Empire ft. Paul Guinan

E41 Spiritualism in the 1800s

E66 Hail, Caesar!