Julia Urquidi Illanes

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Urquidi and the second or maternal family name is Illanes.

Julia Urquidi Illanes (30 May 1926 – 10 March 2010) was a Bolivian writer and the basis for the fictional character Aunt Julia in the novel Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter written by her ex-husband Mario Vargas Llosa.

Life

Urquidi was born in Cochabamba. She was famous as the first wife of Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa (1955-1964) and as the basis for the Aunt Julia character in one of his most famous novels, Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter.^[1][2] Her career included work as the Chief of Protocol in the office of the mayor of La Paz and as a personal secretary for first ladies of Bolivia.^[2]

In 1983, she published her memoir titled Lo que Varguitas no dijo (English: What Varguitas Didn't Say),^[3][4] in response to the production of a soap opera based on Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter.^[2][5]

She died in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, aged 84.^[2]

References

1. Castro-Klarén, Sara (1990), Understanding Mario Vargas Llosa, Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, p. 9, ISBN 978-0-87249-668-2
2. Soldán, Edmundo Paz (12 March 2010). "Julia Urquidi, la inolvidable tía Julia de Vargas Llosa". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 February 2024.
3. La Tía Julia sin el Escribidor, El País, 03.06.1990
4. Jeffries, Stuart (15 June 2012). "Mario Vargas Llosa: a life in writing". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
5. Christian, Shirley (May 6, 1988). "La Paz Journal; A Latin Romance: His, Hers and TV's Versions". New York Times. Retrieved 1 February 2024.