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Eichmann Trial -- Sessions 44 and 45 -- Red Cross report

Film | Digitized | Accession Number: 1999.A.0087 | RG Number: RG-60.2100.056 | Film ID: 2055

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    Eichmann Trial -- Sessions 44 and 45 -- Red Cross report

    Overview

    Description
    Witness Ernst Recht is sworn in and questioned by Bar-Or. Recht describes the concentration of the Jews into central locations in Prague and the confiscation of their house keys by authorities prior to their deportation. He describes the documentation and confiscation of the property from their homes to be sent to Germany. Recht refers to this as the "Kramer Operation."

    Recht describes his appointment to the Council of Elders and the Trusteeship Office in Prague and his contact with Guenther (00:07:26). He says that representatives from Berlin came to inspect confiscated carpets in 1943. Bar-Or asks him about a warehouse of confiscated books and a special depot filled with rare books. One day Guenther received a letter sent by a person named Andre concerning the special collection. Guenther was very angry that Andre knew about the collection, which he wanted to keep secret for his own purposes.

    Bar-Or asks Recht to look at a report about 10,000 Jewish homes in and around Prague. Recht describes how these homes were sealed following the deportations and says that many man-hours were needed to clear the apartments (00:17:43). Shots of the documents, including the report on the homes, a photo of a furniture warehouse, paintings/portraits (00:24:56), and a bookstore. Recht notes that many of these items went through a restoration process.

    Session 45. The video starts in the middle of the session and begins with the decision to admit into evidence an excerpt from the official report by the International Red Cross concerning their visit to Theresienstadt and a reception in Prague where Eichmann was present (00:30:32). The representatives had asked to tour Bergen-Belsen but the visit never took place. Part of the proceedings is missing and the footage resumes with the testimony of witness Viteslav Diamant, who was sent to Theresienstadt in 1941 and worked there as a camp electrician (00:36:12). There are various shots of Eichmann and Dr. Servatius.

    There is a section of the proceedings missing and footage resumes with testimony from witness Adolf Engelstein, who was sent to Theresienstadt in January 1943. He says that he received orders directly from Eichmann to build barracks in a forested area (00:42:53). He was also ordered to build a special scaffold that would accomodate three people. Bar-Or asks about new orders he received to hermetically seal openings in the "Small Fortress" not far from the main camp (00:51:17). Engelstein describes rumors that circulated that they were making gas chambers in Theresienstadt (00:58:40). Bar-or asks him whether he remembers the International Red Cross visit to the camp (01:00:44). Eichmann takes notes.
    Film Title
    Eichmann Trial
    Duration
    01:00:49
    Date
    Event:  1961 May 18
    Production:  1961 May 18
    Locale
    Jerusalem, Israel
    Credit
    Accessed at United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of The Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archives of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
    Contributor
    Director: Leo Hurwitz
    Producer: Milton Fruchtman
    Camera Operator: Rolf M. Kneller
    Camera Operator: F. Csaznik
    Camera Operator: J. Jonilowicz
    Camera Operator: J. Kalach
    Camera Operator: Emil Knebel
    Producer: Capital Cities Broadcasting Corporation
    Biography
    Emil Knebel was a cinematographer known for Andante (2010), Adam (1973), and Wild Is My Love (1963). He was one of the cameramen who recorded daily coverage of the Eichmann trial in Jerusalem (produced by Capital Cities Broadcasting Corp and later held academic positions in Israel and New York teaching filmmaking at universities. Refer to CV in file.

    Physical Details

    Language
    English Hebrew
    Genre/Form
    Unedited.
    B&W / Color
    Black & White
    Image Quality
    Mixed
    Time Code
    00:00:52:00 to 01:01:41:00
    Film Format
    • Master
    • Master 2055 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
      Master 2055 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
      Master 2055 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
      Master 2055 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
    • Preservation
    • Preservation 2055 Video: Betacam SP - NTSC - large
      Preservation 2055 Video: Betacam SP - NTSC - large
      Preservation 2055 Video: Betacam SP - NTSC - large
      Preservation 2055 Video: Betacam SP - NTSC - large

    Rights & Restrictions

    Conditions on Access
    You do not require further permission from the Museum to access this archival media.
    Copyright
    Public Domain
    Conditions on Use
    To the best of the Museum's knowledge, this material is in the public domain. You do not require further permission from the Museum to reproduce or use this material.

    Keywords & Subjects

    Administrative Notes

    Film Provenance
    Capital Cities Broadcasting Corporation recorded the proceedings of the Adolf Eichmann trial in 1961. The original recording was made on two-inch format videotape. One set of videotapes contained selected portions of the trial for distribution to television stations. The "selected portions" version remained in Israel and was later turned over to the Israel State Archives. Capital Cities Broadcasting retained the set of videotapes containing the complete trial proceedings at offices in New York City until 1965, when they gave the videotapes to the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith. The Anti-Defamation League, in turn, gave the complete set to the Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1972. With a grant from the Revson Foundation, Hebrew University transferred the two-inch videotapes to U-Matic format. During the transfer process, Hebrew University created three duplicate sets. One set was given to the Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive, one to the Israel State Archives, and one set to the Jewish Museum in New York City. In 1995, the Israel State Archives transferred the trial footage to digital videoformat with a grant from the Israeli Prime Minister's Office. Three subsequent digital videotape copies resulted from this transfer of footage. The Israel State Archives retained one digital copy and a second set was deposited at the Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The Steven Spielberg Film and Video Archive at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum received the third set of digital videotapes in May 1999.
    Note
    See official transcripts, published in "The Trial of Adolf Eichmann", Vol. I-V, State of Israel, Ministry of Justice, Jerusalem, 1994. Also available online at the Nizkor Project.
    Copied From
    2" Quad
    Film Source
    Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive
    File Number
    Legacy Database File: 2158
    Source Archive Number: VTEI 299
    Record last modified:
    2024-02-21 07:46:20
    This page:
    https:​/​/collections.ushmm.org​/search​/catalog​/irn1001578

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