Tag: Drancy

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If I Sleep, Thirty People Die

One of the things I try and do is introduce you to people who have had very interesting lives. Hopefully, the majority of them have led good lives but unfortunately, there are some who have not. Not too long ago, you were introduced to the “Auschwitz Tattooist”  (read The Auschwitz Tattooist here) as well as a Belgium woman who sacrificed her life to save Jewish children (read Something Must Be Done here). Today, you’ll meet a very courageous young man who at the age of eighteen became the French Resistance’s most skilled forger and in the process, saved the lives of 14,000 Jews including countless children. He estimated that thirty forged documents could be produced in one hour. So, Adolfo Kaminsky didn’t sleep much because, “If I sleep, thirty people die.”

July Historical Events

This is a new feature for our bi-weekly blogs. I’ll pick out some interesting events that took place in the historical month of our blog. Don’t worry, we’ll continue with the “Did You Know?” call-outs as many of you have commented so positively about it. So, here goes ⏤ let me know if I should continue this! 

6 July 1189 Richard the Lionheart comes to the English throne after his father, King Henry II, dies. As the English king, Richard spent less than six months in Britain (so much for the Robin Hood story).
7 July 1456 Joan of Arc is posthumously acquitted of her crimes. This really didn’t help Joan as she was burned at the stake on 30 May 1431, but at least her reputation was saved (which likely paved the way for sainthood).
28 July 1540 King Henry VIII married his fifth wife, Catherine Howard. There were immediate marital problems and several days after appearing as a couple on the Jerry Springer show, Catherine was dispatched to meet the executioner.
14 July 1789 Mobs storm the Bastille. How could I have left this one out?
16 July 1945 The first atomic bomb is detonated in the New Mexico desert. I wish I could have left his one out.
17 July 1955 Disneyland opens in Anaheim, California. Okay, why would I include this here? Simply, nostalgia. Sandy worked here in the mid-1970s (Bear Country) and we took our kids to the park many times during the thirty-four years we lived in Southern California. Spoiler Alert for a lot of you: all the original rides are gone (trust me, “Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride” really wasn’t).

Let’s Meet Adolfo Kaminsky

Adolfo Kaminsky (born 1925) was a member of a Russian Jewish family who fled Russia, moved to Paris, but were kicked out of France and settled in Argentina where Adolfo was born. His father was a tailor and in 1932, moved the family back to Paris after the French government allowed them to return albeit under their Argentina passports. After a year, they moved to the Normandy area where young Adolfo began working for a dry-cleaning business and developed an interest in chemistry and specifically, dyes. Adolfo would soon build a lab where he could experiment and teach himself the basics of chemistry.

Self-portrait of Adolfo Kaminsky at the age of 19. Photo by Adolfo Kaminsky (c. 1944). ©️ Adolfo Kaminsky.
Self-portrait of Adolfo Kaminsky at the age of 19. Photo by Adolfo Kaminsky (c. 1944). ©️ Adolfo Kaminsky.

Read More If I Sleep, Thirty People Die

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Something Must Be Done

I briefly introduced you to Suzanne Spaak in March (The French Anne Frank; click here to read). She and Hélène Berr worked together to save the lives of hundreds of Jewish children. Like most of the résistants during the Occupation, Suzanne and Hélène did what they thought was the right thing to do. As Suzanne told people, “Something must be done.”

Do you ever wonder how rather obscure stories are resurrected from history’s dust bins? In the case of today’s blog, we have Anne Nelson to thank for uncovering the story of Suzanne Spaak’s resistance activities. Anne is the author of Suzanne’s Children (refer to the recommended reading section at the end of this blog for a link to her book). Anne came across Suzanne while researching her excellent book, Red Orchestra (again, refer to the recommended reading section). A haunting photo of Suzanne found in Leopold Trepper’s memoirs piqued Anne’s interest and initiated her nine-year journey. She was able to locate Suzanne’s daughter, Pilette, in Maryland and a series of three dozen interviews spread out over seven years formed the backbone of Anne’s research. There isn’t much out there regarding Suzanne’s story, so we owe many thanks to Anne for finding and “bird-dogging” the facts surrounding Suzanne’s activities. I’m quite sure she went down many rabbit holes while researching and writing the book. I have read both books and I look forward to Anne’s next book.

Suzanne Spaak. Photo by anonymous (date unknown). Read her story at "Something Must Be Done" - Stew Ross Discovers
Suzanne Spaak. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).

Did You Know?

Did you know that the international art world was undergoing new movements during the interwar period (1918 – 1939)? Picasso, Dalí, and Magritte would each create styles of painting that today we call cubist and surrealism, among others. After the Nazis came to power in 1933, Hitler (a frustrated artist in his youth), declared the work of these artists along with dozens more (including many German artists) as degenerate. René Magritte (1898-1967) was a starving Belgium artist whom Claude Spaak befriended while artistic director of the Brussels Palais des Beaux-Arts. Magritte supported himself by designing wallpaper and sheet music. Spaak began suggesting topics and themes for Magritte to paint. Soon, the Spaak family’s walls were covered with surrealistic images, the likes no one had ever seen. By 1936, Claude convinced his friend to paint family portraits. Probably the most disturbing was L’Esprit de Géométrie or, “Spirit of Geometry.” It is a creepy painting of a mother holding an infant. The problem: the head of the mother was Claude’s four-year-old son, Bazou and the infant’s head was Claude’s wife, Suzanne ⏤ Dalí would be proud. In 1937, Claude moved his family to Paris, but Magritte remained in Belgium where he continued to struggle. At one point, Magritte requested stipends from his patrons. Only Suzanne Spaak stepped up to the plate with a monthly stipend in exchange for paintings. The Spaaks would go on to collect forty-four paintings by Magritte. Five days after the Nazis invaded Belgium, Magritte fled to France where he immediately went to the Spaak’s country home. He requested to “borrow back” several paintings hanging on their wall. When Magritte left for Paris, he was carrying with him a dozen paintings. Magritte had been introduced to an American art collector to whom he would sell his “borrowed” paintings. The collector’s name was Peggy Guggenheim and the Spaak family’s paintings would ultimately end up hanging in her museum.

L’Esprit de Géométrie. Gouche on paper by René Magritte (1937). Tate Collection.
L’Esprit de Géométrie. Gouche on paper by René Magritte (1937). Tate Collection.
René Magritte. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).
René Magritte. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).

Let’s Meet Suzanne Spaak

Suzanne Lorge Spaak (1905-1944) or “Suzette” as her family and friends called her, was born into an affluent Belgian family. Her father was a prominent banker and she married Claude Spaak (1904-1990) in 1925. Claude’s family included his brothers Paul-Henri who would become a well-known Belgian politician (Prime Minister and Foreign Minister among other positions) and Charles, a famous movie script writer. Suzanne and Claude had two children: Lucie (“Pilette”) and Paul-Louis (“Bazou”) but life together as husband and wife was not happy. Read More Something Must Be Done