Thomas F. Holocaust testimony

Videotape testimony of Thomas F., who was born in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia (presently Slovakia), in 1934, the oldest of three children. He recounts his family's assimilated lifestyle; many non-Jewish friends in their building; Passover celebrations with about two hundred relatives; beatings by Hlinka guards during a visit to his grandparents in 1939; harassment by Hlinka guards and others; forced relocation to another apartment in approximately 1940; exemption from deportation obtained by his father's non-Jewish friend; round-up in September 1944; his mother marking the required forms that they were Roman Catholics; a soldier releasing his mother, him, and his sister as non-Jews; hiding in a monastery; a non-Jewish family friend hiding him and his sister after the arrival of Germans; having to dress as a girl; visiting their mother who was hidden next door; liberation by Soviets in 1945; his father's return; and his brother's birth in 1947. Mr. F. discusses attributing his survival to his mother; the names of many non-Jews who helped them; their move to Vienna; his father's poor health and nightmares for years; his father painting his concentration camp experiences; organizing shows of his father's art work in several cities; and not selling the art but presenting paintings to prominent people and institutions, such as Yad Vashem. He shows some of the paintings and photographs.

1 videocassette