Skip to main content

Victor B. Holocaust testimony (HVT-1993) interviewed by Bonnie Dwork and Barbara Pelzer,

Oral History | Digitized | Fortunoff Collection ID: HVT-1993

Overview

Summary: Videotape testimony of Victor B., who was born in Vienna, Austria in 1934 and has vague memories of being smuggled to Antwerp. He recounts bombings when Germany invaded in spring 1940; an unsuccessful attempt to escape to France; brief hospitalization for measles; returning to Antwerp; his father being taken to a labor camp (he shows postcards from him); moving with his mother to Brussels; his father's return; his parents placing him in hiding with non-Jews in a village (his parents remained in Brussels); transfer to an orphanage; living with a widow; being protected by all the non-Jews in the town; his mother's visits; a Catholic education; liberation by United States troops; reunion with his parents; briefly wanting to convert to Catholicism; searching for lost relatives; and emigration to the United States in 1947 to join a cousin. Mr. B. shows photographs and documents.
Author/Creator: B., Victor, 1934-
Published: New York, N.Y. : A Living Memorial to the Holocaust-Museum of Jewish Heritage, 1991
Interview Date: November 11, 1991.
Locale: Austria
Vienna (Austria)
Antwerp (Belgium)
Brussels (Belgium)
Cite As: Victor B. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-1993). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.
Other Authors/Editors: Dwork, Bonnie, interviewer.
Pelzer, Barbara, interviewer.

Physical Details

Language: English
Copies: 2 copies: 3/4 in. dub; and 1/2 in. VHS with time coding.
Physical Description: 1 videorecording (1 hr., 14 min.) : col

Keywords & Subjects

Subjects (Local Yale): Child survivors.
Aid by non-Jews.
Hiding.
Postwar experiences.
Subjects: Holocaust survivors. Video tapes. Men. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Personal narratives. World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, Jewish. World War, 1939-1945--Children. Jews--Migrations. Jewish refugees. Orphanages. Mothers and sons. Identification (Religion) Austria. Vienna (Austria) Antwerp (Belgium) Brussels (Belgium) Oral histories (document genres) B., Victor,--1934-

Administrative Notes

Holder of Originals: Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies
Special Collection: Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies

Link to Yale University Library Catalog:: http://hdl.handle.net/10079/bibid/4285882
Record last modified:: 2018-05-30 11:44:00
This page:: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/hvt4285882

Additional Resources

Librarian View

Download & Licensing

Terms of Use
This record is digitized but cannot be downloaded online.

In-Person Research

Request Access from Yale University Libraries

Requires Yale University Libraries Permission
Accessing Fortunoff interviews
Log in to Request and View
About the Fortunoff Archive

Once requests are approved, you must be at a Fortunoff Access Site to view the testimony.

Contact Us

Give Feedback

Learn About the Holocaust

These additional online resources from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum will help you learn more about the Holocaust and research your family history.

Holocaust Encyclopedia

The Holocaust Encyclopedia provides an overview of the Holocaust using text, photographs, maps, artifacts, and personal histories.
Holocaust Survivors and Victims Resource Center

Research family history relating to the Holocaust and explore the Museum's collections about individual survivors and victims of the Holocaust and Nazi persecution.
Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos

Learn about over 1,000 camps and ghettos in Volumes I-III of this encyclopedia, which are available as a free PDF download. This reference provides text, photographs, charts, maps, and extensive indexes.

Further Your Research