Felix Rodriguez de la Fuente -El Hombre y la Tierra

Phil Plumley
3 min readSep 13, 2024

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I remember walking down a street in Geneva, rue Dancet, on my way to meet my dad, who had returned early from work. I was 7 and had only recently started school. When I met up with him, he showed me that day’s edition of the Spanish newspaper El País. It reported that Felix Rodriguez de la Fuente had died in a plane crash.

For those unfamiliar with the name, Felix had a television show that aired on one of the two national networks in Spain at the time: TVE1 and TVE2. As a family, there were two shows we always watched on Spanish television when I was a kid: Cousteau and Felix’s El Hombre y la Tierra.

Felix educated much of Spain on nature and the animal world. He had a distinctive voice, and his sense of drama and passion made his TV shows captivating. Thanks to him, Spain rediscovered much of its natural wildlife, including wolves, owls, and eagles. On the day he passed away, the Spanish press covered it extensively. One of the images most often associated with his death was a drawing of wolves howling at the moon. This image was especially emotionally triggering because, in one of his most popular episodes, Felix had talked about wolves, portraying them as friendly and playful — a far cry from the dangerous, threatening creatures they were traditionally seen as.

Waiting for his show to come on was an event in itself, and as a family, we were always eager to see what would be featured. The opening music set the tone, and soon we were off, exploring the world with Felix.

After each episode, as a kid, I would talk with my dad and ask more questions about the animals in the documentary. I treasure those memories, as they are tied to some of the fondest and most precious times of my childhood.

Today, I watched an old episode and was reminded of those days. I could relive the excitement and wonder they brought. Though the era of television has passed, and by today’s standards the editing of those shows might seem slow, the passion and effort behind the show are still present. Without a doubt, Felix’s work inspired many people who now work in wildlife and documentaries. Back then, those programs were also a form of virtual travel.

A few years later, when I was a teenager, our family was lucky to spend time with a Spanish biologist. As luck would have it, she had worked with Felix. It was incredible to hear behind-the-scenes stories and learn more about the hard work, energy, and grit it took to create those shows. There was a sense of adventure, especially when traveling to certain countries — not so much because of the fauna or flora, but because of domestic challenges.

With the advent of phones and social media, today there’s a plethora of documentaries, and each finds its audience. The days of traditional nature documentaries are largely a thing of the past. Budgets for such productions are now smaller, as television networks no longer have the same captive audience in terms of numbers, and few productions have the backing of universities as they once did.

Things are faster now, with better image quality and sound. I’m sure there are great people out there today, just like Felix. Let them be heard, let them be seen, and let them raise awareness within their communities — just as Felix did for Spain and Spanish-speaking audiences.

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