Overview
- Interview Summary
- Lewis Fagen describes his pre-war life in Krakow; his father’s bicycle business; the effects of the German invasion on the Jews including forced labor, taking Jewish wealth, and inflicting violence; being in the Płaszów camp in 1942 and the desecration of a Jewish cemetery; his first encounter with Amon Goeth's brutality; other incidents and being fearful; his knowledge of Oskar Schindler and the good conditions at Emalia; his father's friendship with Raimund Titsch; help given to Jews by Julius Madritsch; getting onto the Brinnlitz list; the cynical view of Schindler's motives in helping Jews; his views of Schindler's uniqueness; the appalling treatment at Gross-Rosen; 'deliverance' by Schindler; his feelings on the arrival of women at Brinnlitz from Auschwitz; the lack of productivity at Brinnlitz; the fear instilled by Goeth's visit to Brinnlitz; Schindler's techniques for dealing with Brinnlitz camp commandant Josef Liepold; Emilie Schindler's role nursing his sister, Janka; replacing his glasses; the sacrilege of using Jewish tombstones; Emilie Schindler's behavior to Janka Feigenbaum; the value of Schindler's gift of cloth to Brinnlitz inmates; listening to Churchill's victory speech in Brinnlitz; the involvement of the Polish underground in Brinnlitz; Schindler providing weapons; the uniqueness of Schindler saving whole families; and Schindler's changing motivations, but his desire to protect despite the danger to himself.
- Interviewee
- Lewis Fagen
- Interviewer
- Jon Blair
- Date
-
interview:
1983 May 12
Physical Details
- Language
- English
- Genre/Form
- Documentary films.
- Extent
-
1 sound cassette (90 min.).
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- There are no known restrictions on access to this material.
- Conditions on Use
- Restrictions on use. Permission to copy and/or use recordings in any production must be granted by the Imperial War Museum and by the copyright holder, Thames Television.
Keywords & Subjects
- Topical Term
- Cemeteries--Desecration--Poland. Forced labor--Czech Republic. Holocaust survivors. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Poland--Personal narratives. Jewish families--Poland--Kraków. Jewish ghettos--Poland--Kraków. Jews--Poland--Kraków. Jews--Social life and customs. Prisoners--Abuse of--Poland. World War, 1939-1945--Concentration camps. World War, 1939-1945--Deportations from Poland. World War, 1939-1945--Jews--Poland. World War, 1939-1945--Underground movements--Poland. Men--Personal narratives.
- Geographic Name
- Brnenec (Czech Republic) Jerusalem. Kraków (Poland) Płaszów (Poland) Poland--History--Occupation, 1939-1945.
Administrative Notes
- Holder of Originals
-
Imperial War Museum
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The interview with Lewis Fagen was conducted for a documentary concerning the German industrialist Oskar Schindler by Thames Television for the television program entitled "Schindler." The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum acquired a copy of the interview from the Imperial War Museum in February 1995.
- Special Collection
-
The Jeff and Toby Herr Oral History Archive
- Record last modified:
- 2023-11-16 08:17:04
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn510759
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Oral history interview with Edith Liebgold
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Oral history interview with Ludmilla Pfefferberg
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Oral history interview with Richard Rechen
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Oral history interview with Mary (Manci) Rosner
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Mary (Manci) Rosner describes her pre-war life in Krakow, Poland; being married to a musician (Henry Rosner); life in the Krakow Ghetto: the work, the fear of aktions, and the liquidation in March 1943; becoming a barrack supervisor at Płaszów; her responsibilities as block eldest: taking the blame and punishment and being forced to witness executions; Amon Goeth's character, including his love of Henry Rosner's music and frightening presence; Oskar Schindler's gift to Henry Rosner; Schindler's Brinnlitz list; the bribes given to get on list; Schindler's love of music ensuring place on list for the Rosner family; the story of Henry Rosner arriving at Auschwitz as the women were leaving; her experiences at Auschwitz: the procedures upon arrival, the cold and hunger, and the punishments from the block elder; her doubts about Schindler’s list; the significance of tattoos; seeing her husband and son arrive at Auschwitz as she departed and the SS guard passing a message; conditions at Brinnlitz; Schindler returning Henry's violin to her; and her opinion of Schindler and his motives.
Oral history interview with Leo Rosner
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Leo Rosner describes his experiences as an inmate of Płaszów, Brinnlitz, and Gross-Rosen camps from 1943 to 1945; playing accordion at Amon Goeth's parties at Płaszów; Goeth's violent threats; the atmosphere of the parties; his first impressions of Oskar Schindler; Schindler's list; the differences between Płaszów and Brinnlitz; the story of Schindler retrieving Rosner's accordion from Gross-Rosen; his fears for his wife's safety in Auschwitz; Schindler's character; Goeth protecting the Rosner family and his unpredictable nature; the SS need for music; Schindler's drinking; the unlikelihood of surviving the war and being saved by Schindler; Schindler's character; the non-productivity of Brinnlitz; and their debt to Schindler.
Oral history interview with Marthe Scheuer
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Marthe Scheuer describes meeting Oskar Schindler in 1939; meeting Amon Goeth; Schindler's help; her first impressions of Schindler and her later knowledge of his character and life: compassion, charm, disbelief in Nazism, hatred of the treatment of Jews, work for Abwehr in Poland, and relationship with Jews; aspects of his double life in Krakow, Poland: his talking and drinking abilities, the war events crystallizing his views, gaining trust of the officials, his motives, his relationship with Goeth, and his insularity; Schindler's delight in buying a car in Berlin, Germany; Schindler's love of admiration; the journey from Brinnlitz with Schindler and his wife, Emilie, at end of war; Schindler's means and motives for saving Jews; the motivation behind his wartime success; Schindler's manipulation of people; the story of buying the car in Berlin illustrating his love of show; Schindler's motives for saving Jews; her first impressions of Schindler and his involvement with Abwehr at Krakow; the introduction of antisemitic measures; Schindler's feelings towards Jews and his desire to help people; Schindler endangering his own life by remaining at Brinnlitz; Schindler's personality, methods and motives, reasons for lack of success after war, and Sudetenlander characteristics; the escape from Brinnlitz at end of war; and Brinnlitz Jews providing Schindler with a testimonial letter.
Oral history interview with Emilie Schindler
Oral History
Emilie Schindler describes her first impressions of Oskar Schindler in 1927; their early married life in Sudetenland; Schindler's work for Abwehr; his arrest and release upon German invasion of Sudetenland in 1938; Schindler's motives for joining the Nazi party; details of Schindler's intelligence work; reasons for his move to Krakow and taking over enamel works; his continued links with Abwehr; the approach to Schindler made by Doctor Sedlacek of the Jewish Joint Distribution Committee in 1942; life in Krakow, Poland; Oskar Schindler saving Jews by employing them; the necessity of bribing Amon Goeth and SS officials; socializing with the SS; Schindler's arrest and aiding his release; the decision to move to Brinnlitz and having the move arranged with authorities; Schindler's arrest on suspicion of complicity with Goeth; the SS inspection of Brinnlitz while Schindler was under arrest; the story of how Schindler secured the release of women from Auschwitz; details about Brinnlitz: conditions and work situation, Schindler's financial position, overcoming critical food shortages by trading vodka, supplying the SS garrison, and Jews stealing food; the story of a frozen train of Hungarian prisoners and nursing the survivors; refusing to cremate the Jewish dead; the SS search for black market cigarettes; leaving Brinnlitz in May 1945 accompanied by Marthe Scheuer; Oskar Schindler's love of life; reasons for the Schindlers helping Jews; Oskar Schindler's character; losing possessions while fleeing from Soviet troops; the effect of the escape on Oskar Schindler, the reasons for his post-war failure in Argentina, and his desertion of Emilie; and her attitude towards him.
Oral history interview with Sol Urbach
Oral History
Sol Urbach, born in October 25, 1926, describes his pre-war life near Krakow, Poland; his family living in Romania from 1928-1933 then returning to a town outside Krakow; avoiding the Krakow Ghetto; being selected for Oskar Schindler's Emalia 1942; details about Emalia; Schindler warning Jews of the ghetto liquidation and keeping workers at Emalia; losing family in the liquidation; Schindler's enjoyment of life and business and his contacts with the German military and SS; the reduction of the Emalia workforce in August 1944; being selected by Schindler; the politics of the Brinnlitz list; the crash of an Australian pilot over Emalia in the summer of 1944; his chance selection for Emalia; his work there and relationship with Schindler; and the reduction of the Emalia workforce in August 1944.
