José Agustín Ramírez Gómez, or as he called himself a writer, José Agustín, without last name, died this Tuesday at the age of 79, confirmed the Ministry of Culture of the Mexican government.
Agustín was recognized for his work as a journalist, essayist, narrator, translator, playwright, film director and screenwriter. He was one of the most influential Mexican writers of the second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the current one.
Belonging to what the critic Margo Glantz called La Onda literature (youth literature that incorporates elements of pop culture with the reality of the time), José Agustín studied at the UNAM, both classical literature at the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, as film direction at the University Center for Cinematographic Studies. He also studied dramatic composition at the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature (INBAL) and the National Association of Actors (ANDA).
Other writers of La Onda literature were Gustavo Sainz and Parménides García Saldaña.
His first novel was “La Tumba”, written at the age of 19 while participating in Juan José Arreola’s literary workshop from 1962 to 1965. Two years later, in 1966, he published the novel “Deprofile”.
During the following year, he received a scholarship from the Mexican Center of Writers and the Guggenheim Foundation in 1978.
The author of “It’s Getting Late” (1973) was a professor in Mexico, the United States, and France, noted for his activity in journalism and cultural promotion thanks to his participation in the main publications in Mexico and in conducting programs cultural events on radio or television, where he directed “Letras vivas” from 1985 to 1988.
Among the recognitions received, the “Juan Ruiz de Alarcón” National Literature Prize stands out in 1993; the “Two Oceans” prize, awarded by the Biarritz International Festival, Cinema, and Culture of Latin America in 1995 for his work “Two Hours of Sunshine”; the “Juan R. Escudero” medal from the Port of Acapulco in 2005, in addition, the INBAL awarded him the Fine Arts Medal in 2011.
Some of his literary works have been made into films, such as “Ciudades Desiertas”, which was adapted into a film under the name “You are killing me, Susana” and which starred Mexican actor Gael García Bernal.