You've heard of foreshadowing. A character in a novel feels a cold chill or, in a film, ominous music plays while a man drives along in a car, a much-too-happy grin on his face (yes , I'm thinking of you Downton Abbey, Season 3, and damn you not only for killing off Matthew but for doing it in such a goofy way, with such a clumsy use of foreshadowing, that I was almost tempted
Genealogy
Richard Tauber: “How Can I Be a Jew?”
A few days ago, I wrote about a June 24, 1932 antisemitic incident at the University of Vienna that Viktor Kornmehl tried to quell. Only a few months later, on October 26,1932, another incident brought Viktor back into the international Jewish press. According to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA): JEWISH PHYSICIAN SERIOUSLY INJURED; JEWISH STUDENT DELEGATION COMPLAINS TO
The Whole Megillah: A Purim Mystery & Hamentasch Digression
I've saved the story of this genealogical mystery, which holds clues to the interactions of the entire Vienna Kornmehl family, until today because it involves a megillah, a scroll of the biblical Book of Esther, and today is Purim, which celebrates the events told in that story. It takes place in Persia and involves a clueless (sometimes drunken) king, two queens, two
Happy 100th Birthday, Henriette (Rita) Rosenbaum Jarolim
I've taken to writing posts in the late afternoon and then finishing them in the morning when I'm clear-headed. Good thing. I had a post prepared that was only tangentially related to Viktor Kornmehl, the subject of this part of the family history writing challenge. It was interesting in a look-what-I-found-I'm-so-clever kind of way, but it was bloodless. I'd veered pretty far
In Memoriam, Neil Leibman (for Jill)
Family history blogging is a little odd, when you think about it. You spend a lot of time contemplating departed relatives and burial places, taking mortality in stride. But it doesn't provide a cushion for reality. When a loved one dies, even someone elderly, it still comes as a shock. I felt a jolt even though it wasn't my loved one who died this past weekend, but the
Viktor Kornmehl & Sigmund Freud’s High School
I've been circling around Viktor Kornmehl, the intended subject of this second part of this family history writing challenge, for a while now. I first looked at his mother, Kamilla, who was buried in a group crypt, married in a synagogue that was later destroyed, and misidentified in a picture; and then at his brother, Bertschi, who helped organize Zionist transports to
A Tree Grows in Israel, Evoking Brooklyn Memories
Yesterday, I wrote about the memorial tree planted for Kamilla, the mother of Viktor and Bertschi Kornmehl, tracing it to a project designed to pay tribute to the memory of Rabbi Zvi Perez Chajes. I wondered what happened to the Chajes Forest and Kamilla's tree and set out to find them. I didn't succeed, but the search shook loose some memories. The Tradition of Tree
Trees, Virtual and Real
I can barely focus today. There's a very good chance that both the son and grandson of Ezriel Kornmehl, the first subject of this family history writing challenge, have been located. If the information turns out to be correct, Ezriel's son just celebrated his 90th birthday in Chicago, while his grandson is living and working in New York. Both are doctors, like their
Escape From Austria: Celebrating Self-Deportation
There's a point in every Kornmehl family story that I usually dread, the one where I approach the end of their lives. Some family members died of natural causes, of course, and some escaped the Nazis. But even the escapes are generally disturbing, last minute and harrowing. Things are different with Viktor Kormehl and his brother, Bertschi. I'm not sure of all the details of
When Images & Dates of Family Photographs Don’t Synch
I was excited today to be able to provide a visual introduction to some of the major players in the family of Viktor Kornmehl, the soon-to-be subject of my family history writing challenge. The picture below, I thought, was of Viktor's mother, Kamilla Bergmann Kornmehl; Viktor's father, Ferdinand/Fischel Kornmehl; and their grandchildren, Hesi, Viktor's nephew, and baby
Many Funerals and a Wedding: Kamilla Kornmehl
Although genealogists are fond of cemeteries, boneyards are not the liveliest places to meet a family member for the first time. Yesterday I introduced Kamilla Bergmann Kornmehl, mother-to-be of Viktor Kornmehl, as the young (age 35) occupant of a plot where her in-laws were already resting. I'd like to go back in time today and give her an entrance on a happier occasion -- her
Family History Writing Challenge, Day 11: The Plot Thickens
Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show. -- David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens. This quote came to mind as I try to approach the putative next subject of my family history challenge, Viktor Kornmehl. I thought I knew everything there was to know about him because I have many
Family History Writing Challenge, Day 10: A Brief Breather (with Chocolate)
It's been quite the whirlwind week. I hadn't expected to find enough information about the the first subject of this challenge, Ezriel Kornmehl, to fill more than a few days worth of postings. Instead, I ended up with a goldmine of material -- with more to come if I get answers to even a few of the many questions I posed. What I learned about the process (so far): In
Family History Writing Challenge, Day 9: Back in the USSR
It's hard to believe that, after spending eight days with him, I'm ending my journey with Ezriel. At least for now. There are many questions still to be answered, including the one I posed yesterday -- i.e., how Ezriel met his wife, Ernestyna. Another thing I'd like to know: Why did Ezriel decide to transfer from the Jagiellonian University in Krakow to the University of
Family History Writing Challenge, Day 8: When Ezriel Met Ernestyna
It turns out Ezriel Kornmehl married well. Mazel tov. His wife, the former Ernestyna Karp, didn't do too badly either. The History of the Jews of Jaslo says of the couple: [Ezriel] was the son in law of Mordechai Karp and a doctor. He was the only Jewish doctor to work for the general governmental health insurance office in the city. He was well regarded and respected by