Overview
- Description
- 01:00:02 Roll 1. Renate plays with a framed photograph. Mother Johanna (Hanna), partially in frame, shows her various objects to play with. Renate holds a piece of paper with the date written on it: 20.III.32. [March 20, 1932] Otto and Hanna hold Renate.
01:02:15 Roll 2. HAS, train station, 1932. Elizabeth, Otto's sister, holds her baby. Sign for train from Dresden to Hamburg. Waving on the train platform. Renate walks in a park with Mother Hanna, Aunt Elizabeth Plaut Hamburger, and baby cousin Eleanor Hamburger. Brief shot of Renate sitting up in bed.
01:04:43 Roll 2A. In a public park, Hanna and sister-in-law Elizabeth with Renate and her cousin, baby Eleanor, in carriages. A piece of paper behind an art drawing indicates the date: Sunday, January 31, 1932. Otto and sister Elizabeth pose together for the camera indoors. Views of Leipzig. The Plaut family gathers inside for Maximilian's birthday. Anna talks to her two grandchildren.
01:06:46 Roll 2B. Street scene in Volendam, Holland. Elizabeth, Hanna, and mother Anna visit an outdoor fruit market. Cheese-making, weighing and moving wheels of cheese. Men barter. Clock tower. Family in a restaurant, filmed from outside the window. Market square and ships. Hanna and Elizabeth drive into a town and board a boat. Local men and women.
01:10:54 Roll 3. Renate and other children enjoy a meal. The children play outside. Renate takes a walk around Leipzig with her mother, looks into shop windows.
01:15:52 Roll 4. Brief shot of a baby. Renate plays with a doll.
01:16:34 Roll 5. December 1933 to February 1934. Renate eats with other children. Renate plays with a baby carriage and speaks to father Otto as he films. She looks through a photo album.
01:18:50 Roll 6. Hanna, Anna and, Maximillian dine in a hotel, pose for the camera, and take a walk in town (February to March 1934). Hanna eats a hotdog from a street vendor. Street scenes, sign showing Goethe's home in 1818. The group gathers around their car. Renate plays next to a watering can.
01:21:03 Roll 7. EXT, gardens. CUs, baby birds in a nest. Renate and other children eat sweets at a party. The children play "duck, duck, goose" in the backyard.
01:23:52 Roll 8. Adults socialize and dine outside, including Otto and his sister Elizabeth. 01:24:40 INT shots, dark, of family gathering inside. Back outdoors, Hanna's father gives flowers to the women. View of region. CU, cigarette in a dish. The calendar indicates it is Saturday, September 5, 1931.
01:26:21 Roll 9. Hanna and Otto hold and play with toddler Renate. The date is Friday, September 11, 1931. Renate plays with objects on a desk.
01:28:40 Roll 10. Outdoor tables and a pond. Brief shot of city shops at night in Hamburg in May 1931. Elizabeth sews.
01:29:42 Roll 11. A nurse feeds Renate. The family in formal wear drinks tea (wedding?). In Zandvoort and Dresden in August 1932.
01:31:58 Roll 12. Renate sits on a tricycle while her grandparents, Anna and Maximillian, show her how to ring the bell. Good CUs of the three. Procession of adults celebrating Christmas in 1932. Baby in a carriage in a garden.
01:34:20 Roll 13. The Plauts are gathered around several tables, INTs (poor lighting), September 1932. Renate and another child ride the tricycle on the street under grandmother's supervision.
01:37:14 Roll 14. Adults stretch and exercise in their swimsuits. A page from a calendar indicates it is Tuesday, June 23. Hanna plays with Renate in a park.
01:41:29 Roll 15. Holiday at the ocean, "Zeebad", near Zandvoort or Ghent in 1932. Hanna pushes Renate in a pram. Diaper change. Musical group plays on the boardwalk. They enjoy the beach and play.
01:45:52 Roll 16. Group stands by their car and have breakfast on a terrace overlooking a river. Hanna and a couple take a walk on a path in the woods. A Leipzig newspaper indicates the date as Saturday, November 21, 1931. Renate plays with various objects in the house and toddles.
01:53:00 Roll 17. INT views, grainy, the Plauts gather for a celebration in honor of the family chauffeur. It is #1, a Friday, and the year and month are unclear, probably the first of January 1932, (note the Christmas tree on the table, and the film box is labeled Christmas 1931). A nanny plays with Renate. - Film Title
-
Plaut Family home movies
- Duration
- 00:56:58
- Date
-
Event:
1931-1934
- Locale
-
Leipzig,
Germany
Germany
Hamburg, Germany
Ghent, Belgium
Volendam, Netherlands
- Credit
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, gift of Andrew Plaut
- Contributor
-
Camera Operator:
Otto L. Plaut
- Biography
-
Otto L. Plaut, like his father Maximillian Plaut, was a doctor. He practiced in Leipzig, Germany before the outbreak of the war. Otto and his wife Johanna Plaut (née Löwenstein) raised three children: Renate (b. 1930) and twins Andrew and Martin (b. 1937). Dr. Otto Plaut filmed his family in their home city of Leipzig and on various holidays from 1931 to 1937, and after the war in Massillon, Ohio. Maximillian and Anna Plaut ((née Katz) were the first to immigrate to the United States. They arrived in New York on April 10, 1937 on the S.S. Ilsenstein from Antwerp, Belgium. Otto Plaut entered the United States on March 9, 1938. From Le Havre, France he took the S.S. Ile de France to New York. He was issued an immigration visa on February 10, 1938 in Leipzig, Germany. Last to arrive in the United States were Hanna, Renate, Andrew, and Martin on March 25, 1939. They took the S.S. Veendam from Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Hanna received her immigration visa on March 3, 1939 in Leipzig.
Physical Details
- Language
- Silent
- Genre/Form
- Amateur.
- B&W / Color
- Black & White
- Image Quality
- Good
- Time Code
- 01:00:02:00 to 01:57:00:00
- Film Format
- Master
Master 4108 Film: 16 mm - reversal original
Master 4108 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
Master 4108 Film: 16 mm - reversal original
Master 4108 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
Master 4108 Film: 16 mm - reversal original
Master 4108 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
Master 4108 Film: 16 mm - reversal original
Master 4108 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- You do not require further permission from the Museum to access this archival media.
- Copyright
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Conditions on Use
- The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum places no restrictions on use of this material. You do not require further permission from the Museum to reproduce or use this film footage.
- Copyright Holder
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Keywords & Subjects
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Film Provenance
- Dr. Andrew Plaut donated thirty six reels of 16mm film from his father, Dr. Otto L. Plaut, to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in November 2014.
- Note
- Eleanor Hamburger Must contacted USHMM in October 2016 and identified her mother Elizabeth Plaut Hamburger and herself in Rolls 2, 2A, and 2B.
Eleanor donated her self-published autobiography to the Museum in Fall 2016. - Film Source
- Dr. Andrew Plaut
- File Number
- Legacy Database File: 6015
Source Archive Number: Camera Rolls 1 to 17 - Special Collection
-
Steven Spielberg Film and Video Archive
- Record last modified:
- 2024-02-21 08:02:50
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn1005032
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Also in Otto L. Plaut, MD Collection
The Plaut family films show Jewish family life before and immediately following the Holocaust. The collection also contains original cardboard film cartons with handwritten labels and postage stamps.
German Jewish family life prewar and postwar
Film
01:00:00 Roll 18. People wait to board COBRA ship in Cuxhaven, Germany in Summer 1931. Otto films as their boat passes by the German archipelago, Heligoland, and the distinctive Lange Anna. Otto smiles as he looks at the newborn twins. Otto and proud mother Hanna. 01:05:05 Roll 19. Farming. Women and children in traditional dress in Volendam, Holland. Plaut family by their car. Continuation of beach visit to Zandvoort in June 1932 from roll 15 in Film ID 4108. Hanna writes at a table. Renate cries and plays with other children on the beach. 01:09:30 Roll 20. Renate, Otto, Hanna, and others play in their backyard garden in Leipzig in May 1934. CU, baby. 01:11:55 Roll 21. Hanna and Renate feed birds in a park in November 1935. She looks out the window. Cactus plants. 01:14:29 Roll 22. Renate eats soup. Cake and games at Renate's birthday party in 1934. 01:16:34 Roll 23. Hanna and Renate on a boat, picnicking in the mountains. Tourist views of a town, riding in an automobile. CUs, butterflies in the grass. Renate laying in the grass. 01:20:49 Roll 24. Renate and other children eat sweets and play outside during her birthday in 1935. 01:23:00 Roll 25. Hanna sits on a ship docked in the town of Palermo, Italy during Easter 1935. Activity on the docks, captain. View of mountains at sea. 01:25:10 Roll 26. Side view of ship and the port. The family relaxes, knits, eats, play with cameras. Two sailors look on. Renate stands and jumps on a leather armchair. A page from a calendar indicates it is Wednesday, May 1, 1935. Renate plays with a scooter. Possibly in Pontresina, Switzerland. 01:29:14 Roll 27. Hanna and Renate take a walk in Leipzig. Renate tries to climb a fence. Renate and other children receive gifts at school for her first Schultag on March 15, 1936. 01:31:38 Roll 28. COLOR. Lakeside resort. Wedding guests. The family visits Niagara Falls in 1948. Front yard of the Plaut house is Canton, Ohio. Martin moves around on crutches and gets into the car in April 1950. An Ohio license plate on the car indicates the year as 1950. 01:35:59 Roll 29. COLOR. Twins Andrew and Martin at a pool. Cars drive down a main street. Andrew, Martin and another boy throw a football in front of the house. Renate talks to her father, Otto, as he films. MS, a Canton, Ohio newspaper. 01:40:35 Roll 30. ANSCO COLOR. Street scenes in Binghampton, NY in July 1948. The sign outside of Otto's office reads, "Otto L. Plaut, M.D." 01:42:00 Roll 31. B/W A snow plow moves piles of snow off of the road in 1950. 01:44:10 Roll 32. COLOR. Film is damaged. A baby, Elizabeth Ann, sits in a playpen outdoors, then plays in the grass in August 1957. 01:48:43 Roll 33. Hanna plays with baby Renate. A page from a calendar indicates it is Sunday, May 10, 1931. Hanna walks Renate in a park. Otto plays with Renate. Grandmother Anna talks to Renate. Playing in playpen. Calendar indicates the date as Tuesday, June 16, 1931.
Family takes trips; Jewish doctor's office sign
Film
01:01:00 Roll 34. Hanna and her mother walk around the town of Meersburg, Baden-Württemberg, in Southern Germany. Church. 01:02:01 Hotel sign with a Star of David hanging from it. The family drives in the countryside and stops by a gas station. They visit an outdoor market and Schloss Meersburg. Town square. Sheep. Hanna's parents consult a map for directions. MS, Otto's reflection as he films the back of one of the car lights. 01:09:07 Roll 35. View from a streetcar in a city. City workers shovel snow, construction. A sign outside of Otto's office reads, "Dr. Otto Plaut," located on Gottschedstraße in Leipzig. A page from a calendar indicates the date as Monday, February 23, 1931. A second date shows Sunday, March 15, 1931. Hanna plays with Renate. Calendar page indicates Saturday, March 21, 1931. Renate plays with a doll in her crib. Otto films himself in front of a mirror. Cake with dates "1892 -- 27. 3 -1931" written in icing. Maximillian and Anna celebrate their 40th anniversary. Scenes from the street taken from inside. A sign outside Otto's practice reads, "Dc. Med. Plaut." Calendar indicates the date as Friday, March 27, 1931. Otto holds a piece of paper reading Easter 1931. Maximillian and Anna board a train. A nanny pushes Renate in a pram. A page from a calendar indicates Sunday, April 26, 1931. Elizabeth (maybe Elizabeth Plaut Hamburger) holds a journal displaying the date Saturday, May 2, 1931. Hanna and Elizabeth on a boat together. Active port. Pinning flower on man's lapel. 01:23:27 Roll 36. Harbor and U.S.S. Ukuma ship. Aboard the ship, Otto films as cargo is loaded. Musical band. The ship pulls away from the dock. The ship docks in a city and cargo is unloaded. 01:27:56 Another voyage. Men working on the boat. Scenery from ship. Sailors. 01:32:34 The family walks through a city with local merchants. Nighttime scenes. Sailors help passengers move from a boat onto a ship amidst strong waves.
