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Paul S. Holocaust testimony (HVT-1743) interviewed by Devorah Mann,

Oral History | Fortunoff Collection ID: HVT-1743

Videotape testimony of Paul S., who was born in Vilna, Poland (presently Vilnius, Lithuania) in 1932, an only child. He recalls a close relationship with his maternal grandparents who lived with them; antisemitic harassment; Soviet occupation; German invasion; confiscation of the family businesses and apartment; a German soldier allowing him and his mother to sleep there to avoid round-ups; ghettoization; attending school and cultural events; visiting his grandparents in the small ghetto; its liquidation shortly thereafter (he never saw them again); hiding during round-ups; rumors of mass killings in Ponary; transfer with his parents and relatives to H.K.P.; hiding during round-ups of children (his younger cousin was taken); posing as an adult and working; hiding with his parents, relatives, and others when H.K.P. was liquidated in 1944; the shooting of a couple whose screaming would have exposed them; escaping with his parents and relatives; being hidden by his father's business acquaintance; liberation by partisans, then Soviet troops; living in Vilnius for a year; moving to Białystok, Łódź, then Budapest, part of organized illegal emigration to Palestine; his bar mitzvah in July 1945; living in Oradea for six months; moving to displaced persons camps in Graz, Bindermichl, then Badgastein; attending school; joining Betar; contacting relatives in the United States; moving to Vienna; emigration via Bremerhaven to the United States in December 1948; and establishing a career and family. Mr. S. discusses the importance of his parents to his survival (his father died recently); realizing how lucky he was; and pleasant memories of prewar and ghetto life. He shows photographs and documents.

Author/Creator
S., Paul, 1932-
Published
New York, N.Y. : A Living Memorial to the Holocaust-Museum of Jewish Heritage, 1990
Interview Date
December 10, 1990.
Locale
Lithuania
Vilnius
Poland
Vilnius (Lithuania)
Białystok (Poland)
Łódź (Poland)
Budapest (Hungary)
Oradea (Romania)
Vienna (Austria)
Bremerhaven (Germany)
Language
English
Copies
3 copies: 3/4 in. dub; Betacam SP restoration master; and 1/2 in. VHS with time coding.
Cite As
Paul S. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-1743). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.