Raymond and I visited Cuba for the first time in 1957 and returned in February 1959, a month after the conclusion of the Cuban Revolution and the deposing of Fulgencio Batista. We stayed at the Residencial Rosita de Horned, a large, modern building on Havana's shoreline with 172 rooms. The hotel had just two other guests during our stay.
Traveling in Matanzas, we happened upon a courthouse where a number of Batista's men were standing trial, including the police chief. Raymond showed his press credentials to one of the soldiers and asked if he could photograph the courtroom. Without hesitation, the soldier consented. Photos of Batista's men on trial were not permitted.
Raymond and I declined an invitation to return the next day when the men would be executed, and he wouldn't be allowed to photograph. The images below were shot in color, which Raymond printed himself, and he also printed them in black-and-white. - Eleanor Jacobs
