Tag Archives: Dillinger

Aug 5, 1934

My dear Goldkind:

Yesterday I received your letter dated 7/20 and today one from Ernale dated 7/24 with photos.

So far I have not received the little pins [I asked for in an earlier letter]. I guess they will come some day.

Since Thursday I am working again. We are very busy now and I do not have to worry about being laid off again soon.

Enclosed I am sending a little map of Chicago. Guess this is no better than my drawing. Right? Also I am enclosing a snapshot of myself which one of my travel companions sent me. You can do whatever you want with that little film. One photo should be of a woman drinking water from one of those many fountains on the street like I tried to explain to you in a previous letter.

For more explanations to the photos I sent you earlier. On the photo facing south all those little white dots are people either in shirtsleeves or light colored dresses. All just laying on the grass in that heat. On the photo facing north the big square dark thing on the Chevy sign is a big clock which I can see from my seat at work. Photo #3 shows Madison Street running East and West between skyscrapers and dividing the city into north and south.

All streets start with house #1 from there in every direction. The building where I work in is No 14 N. Michigan Ave, and is only 8 floors high. Last week I went to see somebody on the 19th floor [of another building].

I am having a lot of correspondence now. Today I received an opened letter from Alice and was glad to hear that she is getting better. By the time you get this letter she will hopefully be all o.k. again.

Also today I received a very nice letter from Dr. Salzberger from their vacation and I have to answer: Ellen, Kurt Dielnberg, Eugene Hollander (from the boat) Hans Roos, Ernst Straus, Hamburgers, extra Marion at camp, Ernst Goldschmidt and Herman Weiller. You see I won’t get bored.

Also this week I started hats for Rose Seckbach, Henny and myself and hope to finish them next week. Just right now I notice Doddo’s kiss on the last letter. A little weak but I could recognize it.

I am very glad you are saving my letters for me. It should be interesting to read them again in 20 yrs or more.

I have not heard from Herbert Pohl in a long time. He wrote me from a trip and I answered him. May be it is that his brother wrote him that he does not know me. I lost Mrs. Brown’s address and cannot find it anywhere. Maybe you can write it to me again.

You know, Bubele, I would love to take all of you to the Canadian Club Cafe once but just the admission to the fair alone is 50¢ each. For the month of August I do not have a pass anymore either. And then we would have to eat or drink something there and unfortunately my billfold is not holding that much yet. Hopefully some time in the future.

Of course I used my pass a lot last month. I could make a good guide by now. My English is getting much better. I can now make people understand what I have to say. I can make a few English phone calls already. I do not feel like taking lessons. My newest boyfriend, Harry Ehrlich, talks and understands very little German fortunately.

Kösterlitz comes from behind Berlin. One nephew is a lawyer. Do you remember a court case about a pupil, “Schöller-Krautz?” He was one of the lawyers in that case.

Now I am very happy to tell you that I have lost 5 lbs and feel very well. Did Ernale lose her rainbow marks again? Aunt Henny is o.k. so far but is working much too hard. I am afraid she will collapse one day if she keeps it up.

How you doing in finding an apartment. That cannot be a pleasure to be apartment hunting if it is as hot as you write.

With the warts I would suggest you go to Bob or wait until it rains 3 days and Papa can try his luck. The wart under my arm I cut off with a piece of thread. During the heat it had gotten very sore. Now it is gone.

Ernale, you were going to give me Justus’s address. I asked my Hungarian travel friend about him. He had heard about his father, a very well known doctor.

I sure hope I too will learn to drive before too long. Hope you do not need to take a driver’s test.

Dillinger’s killing was the talk of the town for at least 3 days. Henny’s boss happened to be in the vicinity where it all happened. He went there and dipped a piece of paper in Dillinger’s blood and carries it with him all the time as a good luck charm. That’s America for you!

In the meantime we all followed newspaper reports about Pres. Hindenburg health progress very diligently. He has reached a nice old age.

Right now I am listening to Strauss Waltzes on the radio. That is good music for writing.

The same day I last wrote to you I wrote an additional 8 picture postal cards, 2 reg. postal cards and 2 letters and in spent the evening at Rose’s. The next evening Hans took me again to the Chicago Theatre. Besides a very nice movie we saw the Boxer Max Baer in person on the stage, besides a nice dance group and orchestra. As always an excellent program.

After eating we went for a walk and he showed me the biggest hotel anywhere. We always go to the theatre before 6:00 p.m. because it is much cheaper than later about half the price. Saturday I went to the Fair in the afternoon and later went with one of my travel companions from Vienna who works at the Fair to see the movie Girls in Uniform. Not especially great. Maybe I did not understand the English well enough.**

Sunday I left already at 9:00 a.m. with Hans for the Dunes. Also I took a lot of oil with me this time. I got pretty much sunburned again. It was another gorgeous day only we left early to go home, change clothes and he picked me up again to go for dinner and then to the gigantic outdoor stadium called “Soldiers Field” to attend “Jewish Peoples Day”.*

Several very interesting Jewish speakers and singers and dancers. Excellent orchestra. An 11 year old Jewish boy played fantastic violin. I think his name was Isha.* [Possibly Grisha Goluboff? This video made in July, 1934 begins with a lot of noise but may be worth watching. Trudel’s Son.]

And the main thing a play called “The Epic of a Nation.” The program included:

1. Ancient Palestine with a cast of 500 people. The 12 tribes, each in different colors and their different banners, coming in from different sides to meet in the middle of this gigantic stage together. They sang old Jewish songs and joined the orchestra as a chorus.
2. The Diaspora–they start wandering.
3. [At] first very happy and everything fine. The Jews give gifts and knowledge, ethics, justice etc. then suddenly everything changes. They are persecuted and have to leave. Their books are burnt. A big pile is being burnt in the middle of the stage while the choir sings Kol Nidre and Kaddish.
4. Interlude: The orchestra plays a rhapsody depicting the wandering Jews in many different lands.
5. Again hope and happiness. Singing and dancing with candelabras with burning candles.
6. The workers of today. Just singing by the choir.
7. The new Palestine.
8. Dancing and singing to the tune of America. All come together from all the different lands with many flags from all over.

It was really very beautiful and impressive, only a little too long, the whole pageant was organized by some Jew.

Well, Monday I met Alfred Hamburger and his wife at the Fair. She was reading something and had sent me an invitation. Then I went to the Black Forest exhibit when my Vienna friend has his stand now to cut shadow pictures. Since his wife was sick a friend, Charlie, helped him and I kept them company until 11:30 p.m. Tuesday I did the same only until 11:00 p.m. This Charlie is a real friendly light hearted guy. He wants to take me along when the fun is over but I wouldn’t think of it.

[Comment: Now [when I am translating these letters] I can tell you the reason I went out every night. I just could not stand to be house with Uncle Julius alone. I did not care to cook for him or spend my evenings with this miserable selfish guy and play cards or just listen to his German talking all the time.]

On Wednesday I was again at a movie. This time with Julius’s brother Max, his father-in-law, Isi Kösterlitz and his granddaughter. We saw “Good Dame.” 50-50. You can go to the movies any time of the day or night. It is there comfortable, cool, the time passes quickly and it is rather inexpensive. Yes, the time sure goes fast. 1/4 of a year actually 13 weeks ago I left FFM [Frankfurt am Main]. It seems to me as if it was yesterday–On Thursday I was at Rose’s trying hats.

And yesterday, believe it or not I went to see a movie. “Viva Villa” very good but very exciting. Today it is again awfully hot. As usual I went to the synagogue this morning. I met the Lindheimers from the boat who introduced a Mr. Harlemann from FFM to me. Then I did a little shopping and tried to visit another travel companion who was not home but I spent quite a while with his very nice Aunt with whom he lives very close to us.

For lunch today I had a big order of chocolate ice cream and later a piece of bread and butter and a glass of milk. That is something new. I drink a glass of milk almost every day. Now I have been writing for over 2 hrs on this letter. A good thing you can read faster than I can write. Tonight I may stay home may be. Tomorrow I am going to Weil’s for dinner. It is now 5:45 and your Trudelkind’s stomach is growling very much. It’s been 5½ hrs since lunch. If it is not too hot I will try to bake some butter cookies next Saturday.

So just sending you uncountable greeting and kisses.

Yours,

Trudel

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*[I can find very little about Jewish People’s Day at the Fair in 1934 but see this article about the celebration of 3000 years of Jewish history in July, 1933. Trudel thought the 11 year old Jewish boy playing violin was named “Isha.” When she translated her letters she wrote that it was Yitzhak Perleman, but he wasn’t born for another ten years. It was most likely Grisha Golub who did play a Stradivarius loaned by Henry Ford at the Fair. I have found conflicting information regarding Goluboff, a prodigy of the period who was probably older than he claimed at the time. The video clip linked above is courtesy of Film Images-Paris Search “Goluboff” in their website for a larger version.]

**[Ironically with one exception, all I can find are references to the original German version of the film, including this Wikipida article and this YouTube with English subtitles. Trudel’s Son.]

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