First Stolperstein. Installed on 16 Dec 1992 in front of the City Hall in Cologne , Germany.
Over the past 30 years the team of German artist Gunter Demnig installed over 100,000 Stumbling Stones – ‘Stolpersteine’ – across 26 countries in Europe – the world’s largest memorial.
Demnig’s Stolpersteine are small, cobblestone-sized brass memorials for the victims of National Socialism. Set into the pavement of sidewalks in front of the buildings where Nazi victims once lived or worked, they call attention both to the individual victim and the scope of the Nazi war crimes.
The very first Stolperstein, was installed on 16 December 1992 in front of Cologne City Hall , with Heinrich Himmler’s order for the initiation of deportations of all Roma (Gypsies) :
„Auf Befehl des Reichsführers SS vom 16.12.42 – Tgb. Nr. I 2652/42 Ad./RF/V. – sind Zigeunermischlinge, Rom-Zigeuner und nicht deutschblütige Angehörige zigeunerischer Sippen balkanischer Herkunft nach bestimmten Richtlinien auszuwählen und in einer Aktion von wenigen Wochen in ein Konzentrationslager einzuweisen. Dieser Personenkreis wird im nachstehenden kurz als ‚zigeunerische Personen‘ bezeichnet. Die Einweisung erfolgt ohne Rücksicht auf den Mischlingsgrad familienweise in das Konzentrationslager (Zigeunerlager) Auschwitz.“
Notes
Photo : First Stolperstein at the Cologne City Hall, Germany. Photo Jan. 1, 2008, by Willy Horsch, CC-BY .
Citation info : First Stolperstein | 20240520 | michelvanderburg•com
TRANSPORT XX — installation Brussels February 28th, 2009, Brussels. Day two, of my encounter with the TRANSPORT XX installation outside in the Royal park in Brussels, that presented 1200 photographic portraits of Jews deported from Malines (Belgium) to Auschwitz in 1943. One of the stills and establising video shots made that Saturday morning after finishing long take video recordings of the installation, during a walk from our hotel in the Leopold (European) Quarter via the Royal park direction the historic centre of Brussels. That weekend break in Brussels, today 15 years ago, turned out to be a turning point in my life. Two months later – April 19, 2009 – the film TRANSPORT XX — installation Brussels was published.
8. First Encounter TRANSPORT XX … | 20240227 | Michel van der Burg | Miracles•Media | URL https://michelvanderburg.com/2024/02/27 | TakeNode cf0dd64d-4512-4846-8bce-6b2d8cca24ef
9. Camera used for both photo and video (720p HD video) of the TRANSPORT XX installation in Brussels is the Sony DSC-T500 which has a CCD sensor – with global shutter – thus not affected by rolling shutter distortion while panning the installation.
Citation info : Encounter TRANSPORT XX … | 20240228 | Michel van der Burg | Miracles•Media | URL https://michelvanderburg.com/2024/02/28 | TakeNode a8317838-7470-4538-b788-40e6cc07b55a
Moonlight Serenade in 1944, by Glenn Miller’s Band of the Allied Expeditionary Forces (the A.E.F. Band ), announced by German speaking “Ilse Weinberger” (pseudonym for Gloria Wagner) in a Musik für die Wehrmacht (Music for the Wehrmacht) European radio propaganda broadcast. Remastered edition.
Citation info : Moonlight Serenade War Radio 1944 by Major Glenn Miller’s A.E.F. Band & Ilse Weinberger | 20240203 | Miracles•Media | @michelvanderburg | TakeNode 0205faad-7d9b-4807-860b-aff2627b943c
In the Mood | Major Glenn Miller’s Band | European Radio Propaganda 1944, Ilse Weinberger | 20240202 | Miracles•Media | @michelvanderburg | TakeNode 6d704373-eb94-4ce6-9436-941409dbd555
After the monster film congress in Berlin, a swinging Saturday night 23 March 1935 in the Amsterdam Carlton Hotel at The First Dutch Film Ball (Het Eerste Nederlandsche Filmbal) organized by the dutch film world (with Loet Barnstein, …Ehrlich…Hamburger…Willy Mullens…Max Tak…Abraham Tuschinski…Kor Postma) both to celebrate the film world and especially to collect money for their foundation ‘Bio Vakantieoord’ ( Cine Holiday Resort ) — founded in 1927 by the cinema owner Abraham Tuschinski and the Dutch Cinema Association (Nederlandse Bioscoopbond; NBB; association of cinemas , distributors and producers) to facilitate holidays in their seaside ‘castle’ on the dutch coast, each month for 90 poor lower class children living in the big cities like Amsterdam. At that time, also , twice a year (the Christmas and Easter weeks), money was collected for that Bio Holiday Resort foundation in the dutch cinemas, but because of the Great Depression donations are shifting from ‘silver’ to nickel …copper . The fundraising went hand in hand with promotional films made by the Dutch Profilti and Polygoon cinema newsreel companies . Next week people would watch this Polygoon news in the cinemas. The newspapers wrote, those present will be filmed, and if allowed by the police , the film will be shown the same night, and many movie and theater stars, filmschlagers, to be present … Harry Baur, Henriette Davids, Jopie Koopmans, Kid Johnson, Reri, Johan Kaart, Frits van Dongen, Henk Alsem.
Dutch news bulletin De groene Amsterdammer had a picture (collage?) with prominent guests (or impersonations?) : Gloria Swanson, Max Tak, Jean Harlow, Loet C. Barnstijn, Norma Shearer, Dr. M. de Hartog, Lupe Velez, Louis Davids, Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo, Sylvain Poons, Myrna Loy, Mariene Dietrich, Wethouder Boissevain, Kor Postma, Theo Ketelaar. And a dutch cinematography news bulletin reported ‘the expected foreign stars were conspicuous by their absence’.
Film edited from dutch Polygoontoon (Polygoon Hollands Nieuws) cinema news reel week 13, 1935 | Sound & Vision (Open Images).
‘Everything’ song with movie stars Dolly Haas, Pierre Blanchard and dancing star imitators Saturday night 21 March 1936 in the Amsterdam Carlton Hotel at the second annual ‘film ball’ organized since 1935 by the dutch film world both to celebrate and especially to collect money for their foundation ‘Bio Vakantieoord’ ( Cine Holiday Resort ) — founded in 1927 by the cinema owner Abraham Tuschinski and the Dutch Cinema Association (Nederlandse Bioscoopbond; NBB; association of cinemas , distributors and producers) to facilitate holidays in their seaside ‘castle’ on the dutch coast, each month for 90 poor lower class children living in the big cities like Amsterdam. At that time, also , twice a year, money was collected for that Bio Holiday Resort foundation in the dutch cinemas . The fundraising went hand in hand with promotional films made by the Dutch Profilti and Polygoon cinema newsreel companies . Next week people would watch this Polygoon news in the cinemas.
Film edited from dutch Polygoontoon (Polygoon Hollands Nieuws) cinema news reel week 13, 1936 | Sound & Vision (Open Images).
Citation info : Jazzy Film Ball 1936 | 20240121 | Miracles•Media | @michelvanderburg | TakeNode 869e9686-14c9-4f9e-802a-9aa49d670213
In 1940, the dutch teen idols Johnny and Jones, even though they were Jews, were able to continue performing under the Nazi occupation without too many problems. The Amsterdam duo sang jazzy Dutch songs with a mock American accent and a parody of current events.
Blackout means black!
July 1940 Johnny and Jones sang a parody on the Blackout , the dutch song ‘Maak het donker in het donker’ (make it dark in the dark).
Later during World War 2, in 1943, they were deported to the Nazi death camps. They died of exhaustion in the last days of the war in 1945 (see Notes).
Still image in film : Poster for the single ‘Maak het donker in het donker’.
Lyrics ‘Maak het donker in het donker’ | Johnny and Jones (1940)
De overheid heeft het publiek bevolen Als het donker is dan moet het donker zijn ! Er mag geen enkel licht naar buiten schijnen Doe verduisteringspapier voor je gordijn Anders staan ze ’s avonds aan je bel te bellen En dan komt de luchtbescherming je vertellen :
Refrein: Maak het donker, maak het donker in het donker Ook al gaan de sterren door met hun geflonker Ik loop langs de huizenkant Met mijn luchtbeschermingsband Een lantaren in mijn hand Om te kijken waar iets brandt Houdt dus rekening met de verduisteringswensen Maak het donker, reuze donker beste mensen ! Refrein
Het blokhoofd van blok zeven uit wijk negen Zag de dochter van het wijkhoofd uit blok tien Met een rood hoofd kwam hij blokhoofd negen tegen, Hij zei hoofd, heb jij het wijkhoofd ook gezien ? Ik heb in het hoofd gezet het wijkhoofd te gaan vragen , Of die wijkhoofd-(griet/strike?) mijn blokhoofdnaam wil dragen : Refrein
Van Zanten zag een meisje in het duister, Zij was slank gevormd en toch niet dik van lijn. Hij dacht, dit is de jonkvrouw mijner dromen, Binnenkort zal zij mevrouw Van Zanten zijn. In de duisternis vroeg hij haar om een kusje, Flip van Zanten zei zij toen, ik ben toch je zusje ! Refrein
Music : Maak het donker in het donker | Text & Music by Johnny and Jones (1940). Recorded in Vara-studio, Hilversum, 19 july 1940. DH2051. (Varagram 7175). | Wikimedia Commons
Film (image) : edited from Polygoon-Profilti cinema news reel week 36, September 1940 (under nazi rule) | Sound & Vision (Open Images).
Citation info : Blackout…Johnny and Jones 1940 | 20240118 | Miracles•Media | @michelvanderburg | TakeNode 17a685fd-9944-471b-992f-47be88ead857
