Carmen Eva Nelken Mansberger (6 February 1898 – 3 November 1966), known by the pseudonym Magda Donato, was a Spanish writer, journalist, playwright, and actress who went into

exile Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...

in Mexico after the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

. She was the sister of writer and politician

Margarita Nelken Margarita Nelken (5 July 1894– 5 March 1968) was a Spanish feminist and writer. She was a well known intellectual and a central figure in the earliest Spanish women's movement in the 1930s. Early life and education Nelken was born María Ter ...

Biography

Carmen Eva Nelken Mansberger was born on 6 February 1898 in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, to a merchant family of

German Jew The history of the Jews in Germany goes back at least to the year 321, and continued through the Early Middle Ages (5th to 10th centuries CE) and High Middle Ages (''circa'' 1000–1299 CE) when Jewish immigrants founded the Ashkenazi Jewish ...

ish ancestry. Her father was a Spanish jeweler. Her mother, born in France, was the daughter of a watchmaker who, in 1889, had gone to Madrid to work as a palace watchmaker, and also owned a watch and jewelry store on the

Puerta del Sol The Puerta del Sol (English: "Gate of the Sun") is a public square in Madrid, one of the best known and busiest places in the city. This is the centre ('' Km 0'') of the radial network of Spanish roads. The square also contains the famous clo ...

, No. 15. Her wealthy family gave her access to higher education, which was uncommon for women at that time. In 1917 she began writing for ''

El Imparcial ''El Imparcial'', founded in 1918, was a newspaper in Puerto Rico. It circulated daily, except Sundays./ ''About El Imparcial. (San Juan, P.R.) 1918-197?.''] United States Library of Congress. Retrieved 26 July 2012. Its complete name was ''El I ...

'', a newspaper of the Gasset family, and later for other Madrid papers such as ''Estampa'', ''

El Liberal ''El Liberal'' was a Spanish liberal newspaper published in Madrid between 1879 and 1936. It was one of the leading papers of Spain under the Restoration. Between 1890 and 1906, ''El Liberal'' was edited by Miguel Moya (1856–1920), a leading Sp ...

'', and ''La Tribuna''. She signed these articles Magda Donato, as a self-affirmation against the strong personality of her older sister,

. In 1939 she was forced into exile by the

, first going to France, and reaching

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

in November 1941. She began her acting career in the group Les comediéns de France. With partner Salvador Bartolozzi she co-wrote plays for children such as ''Pinocho en el país de los cuentos o Las aventuras de Cucuruchito y Pinocho'', released in Mexico in the 1940s. Some of her best-known films were ''

La liga de las muchachas ''La liga de las muchachas'' ("The League of Girls") is a 1950 Mexican film. It was written by Luis Alcoriza, who also stars in the film. Cast * Elsa Aguirre - Dorita * Miroslava - Marta * Rubén Rojo - Pablo * Consuelo Guerrero de Luna - Doña R ...

'' (1950), ''Curvas peligrosas'' (1950), ''El amor no es negocio'' (1949), and '' Caperucita y Pulgarcito contra los monstruos'' (1962). Her work as an actress was recognized in 1960 with a Best Actress award from the Association of Theater Critics. After her death on 3 November 1966 in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

, the Magda Donato Award was created to recognize and reward the best written play of the year. It was given by the National Association of Actors ( es, link=no, Asociación Nacional de Directores y Actores – ANDA) until 1973, when it was discontinued.

Bibliography

* ''La carabina'' (1924) * ''¡Maldita sea mi cara!'' (1929) * ''Las otras dos'' (1931) * ''La protegida de las flores''

References

External links

*
War Reporting of Magda Donato
at Memoria Albuquerque {{DEFAULTSORT:Donato, Magda 1898 births 1966 deaths 20th-century Spanish actresses 20th-century Spanish dramatists and playwrights Actresses from Madrid Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in Mexico Mexican film actresses Pseudonymous women writers Spanish women journalists Writers from Madrid 20th-century Spanish women writers 20th-century pseudonymous writers Spanish women dramatists and playwrights