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Eichmann Trial -- Session 52 -- Testimony of Pinhas Freudiger

Film | Digitized | Accession Number: 1999.A.0087 | RG Number: RG-60.2100.064 | Film ID: 2063

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    Eichmann Trial -- Session 52 -- Testimony of Pinhas Freudiger

    Overview

    Description
    The footage begins in the middle of the proceedings with witness testimony from Pinhas Freudiger. Freudiger gives an account of his escape to Romania and from there to Palestine. Defense attorney Dr. Robert Servatius poses questions to Freudiger about the ban on railway travel for Jews. He is asked who issued the orders to set up the Kistarcsa camp, as well as about arrests and the severity of anti-Jewish legislation in Hungary and Germany (00:04:14).

    Freudiger is further cross-examined by Servatius about a report he wrote with Alexander Diamant and Yohanan Link describing Hungarian anti-Jewish legislation (00:08:55) and the level of brutality of the Hungarian gendarmerie (00:15:02). Servatius attempts to shift blame from Eichmann by suggesting that the fate of Hungarian Jewry was the responsibility of Laszlo Endre, an official with the Hungarian Interior Ministry (00:18:57).

    Judge Raveh asks Freudiger how he came up with his statistics of the number of deported Hungarian Jews (00:21:32). Examination of the witness then turns to the report, created by two Slovaks who had escaped Auschwitz. Freudiger testifies about the subsequent attempts by Rabbi Weissmandel and himself to send warnings about the extermination of the Jews throughout Europe and abroad. He explains how they asked the British and American armies to bomb Auschwitz (00:26:15).

    Judge Halevi questions the witness about his meetings with Eichmann concerning ghettoization in Hungary (00:27:12). Freudiger is asked to read from testimony given by Wisliceny stating that Eichmann hated Freudiger and had planned for his deportation and how Wisliceny aided Freudiger in escaping.

    Testimony continues with Freudiger recounting how difficult it was to pass information about Auschwitz to the outer provinces of Hungary (00:39:42). Attorney General Gideon Hausner submits a report discussed earlier in the proceedings and Freudiger tries to identify the document (00:42:14). There is some confusion about the statistics presented in the report and Freudiger is only able to verify two pages of the document. Freudiger completes his testimony and leaves the stand. Judge Landau calls a recess and all stand as the judges exit (00:54:11). Eichmann is escorted out of the booth. There are various shots of the lawyers packing and talking to one another as well as views of the audience leaving the courtroom.

    The footage cuts out from 00:55:58 to 00:56:35 and resumes with defense attorney Dr. Robert Servatius and an unidentified man in glasses conferring by the defense table. The man leaves and Servatius takes notes. An unidentified man enters and sits at the prosecution table (00:57:40). There is a close up of Servatius taking notes and a pan to the empty booth. Various shots of the courtroom, the prosecution and defense tables. The unidentified man returns and confers with Servatius.
    Film Title
    Eichmann Trial
    Duration
    01:05:21
    Date
    Event:  1961 May 23
    Production:  1961 May 23
    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 German Hebrew
    Genre/Form
    Unedited.
    B&W / Color
    Black & White
    Image Quality
    Fair
    Time Code
    00:00:26:00 to 01:05:47:00
    Film Format
    • Master
    • Master 2063 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
      Master 2063 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
      Master 2063 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
      Master 2063 Video: Digital Betacam - NTSC - large
    • Preservation
    • Preservation 2063 Video: Betacam SP - NTSC - large
      Preservation 2063 Video: Betacam SP - NTSC - large
      Preservation 2063 Video: Betacam SP - NTSC - large
      Preservation 2063 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.

    *Large displacement and distortion in master; dropout.
    Copied From
    2" Quad
    Film Source
    Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive
    File Number
    Legacy Database File: 2166
    Source Archive Number: VTEI 114
    Record last modified:
    2024-02-21 07:46:15
    This page:
    https:​/​/collections.ushmm.org​/search​/catalog​/irn1001586

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