Monthly Archives: July 2020

When my father died 8 years ago today, he left behind a legacy that could have been written by Horatio Alger. He had survived a brutal boyhood of poverty and prejudice in Vienna. Along with his family, he managed to … Continue reading →

I realize that this humor is born from nervousness. I have spent an inordinate amount of time in the past few years trying to understand The Crown, its journey, and my father’s role in its recovery. When I first decided … Continue reading →

It is March of 2015 and my wife and I are in Budapest. It is a cloudy, windy day and there is a distinct chill in the air. I am used to this weather as I have spent my whole … Continue reading →

  I was still in a fog of confusion when my mother emerged from the cell in which she was emptying my father’s lock box. When I saw her standing next to me I sputtered “Are you ready to go?” … Continue reading →

It was one of those days in June that remind you of the summer that is just around the corner: glaring sun, humidity and temperature in the 90’s. The type of day best remembered in Kodachrome and not in person. … Continue reading →

Vienna has two monuments to the Holocaust and unsurprisingly they are both controversial. The memorial that was built first was erected in 1991 on a plaza behind the opera house.  It is called “The Memorial Against War and Fascism” and … Continue reading →

The boy, finished with surveying his realm,  walks over to the rail and scoops up a handful of small rocks that lay nearby and begins to toss them one by one into the rushing stream below. I stare at the … Continue reading →

Late that night, I was awakened to the sounds of my father being ill in the bathroom. I walked to the door and asked him if there was anything that I could do to help. He told me no, and … Continue reading →

  The following afternoon found us in another cab. We had spent the morning doing errands among them going to the National Bank of Austria where my father banked a small pension given to those who had been forced to … Continue reading →

  The next morning was another beautiful mild spring day and after a hearty breakfast at the hotel we went for another stroll. This time we headed out towards the Opraring and the Ringstrasse as our initial destination was the … Continue reading →