Mailbox
Today in Mailbox: Response to Radio Prague's programmes, including a documentary dedicated to the Baťa villages around the world and a story about the Czech resistance during World War II. Answers to last month's quiz question and a brand new question for the coming weeks. Listeners/readers quoted: Paul Bernstein, Jeff Tomecek, Stephen Hrebenach, Gregory Lagat, Hamad Kiani, Hans Verner Lollike, Jayanta Chakrabarty, P. Sivashanmugham, Mofizur Rahman, Deblina Biswas.
“Thank you for your Radio Prague website report about Karolína Garguláková’s film documentary of the Baťa villages around the globe. I would like to thank you and your Radio Prague colleagues for keeping the English-speaking world informed of cultural and other developments in today’s Czech Republic. Czech contributions to humanity are too often unknown by other countries and cultures.”
Jeff Tomecek sent us his response to the same programme:
“I found your article on the documentary being produced on the Bata shoe factories around the world interesting. I would hope the producers would not neglect to talk about the huge factory they established in Belcamp, Maryland north of Baltimore in Harford County. There were many Czechs that lived in Harford County and still do. Czechs in that northeast part of Maryland have a history. A Czech, Augustine Herrman, completed a survey of the entire Chesapeake Bay region in 1673. He was granted a huge amount of land for his services which encompassed a large portion of the northeast corner of Maryland. Hermann was one of the largest land owners in colonial times. His maps were used by General Washington and were instrumental in fighting The Revolution.
A recent book written by Larry Carmichael entitled ‘Bata Belcamp’ documents the history of the community and the factory. Matter of fact, after my father immigrated to the USA, he resided in the Bata Belcamp Hotel for a while. I have some very fond memories of participating in Sokol Exhibitions in Belcamp.”
Our regular listener Stephen Hrebenach from Ohio wrote:
“I just wanted to mention how much I enjoyed some of your recent programs. As always, your Specials are truly ‘special’ with excellent work each time one of these shows is broadcast. In this particular case, Dominik Jůn did a really good and interesting story about the Czech resistance during World War II as commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the ending of that war. I also found the two-part One on One with Vladimir Hanzel to be fascinating. That gave a different insight into Václav Havel and his evolution from dissident to president.”
And Gregory Lagat from Kenya sent us this:
“Pause for thought however, at how Europe's chess-pieces are lining up exactly the same way they did in the 1940's; Economic implosion (Greece), upswing support for right-wing parties (Freedom Party, NPD, Le Pen's NFD, etc.), ‘Lebensraum’ nationalism (Putin) and the spark on the powder keg – the Uitlanders (immigrants). A bunker, anyone?”
Thank you very much for those e-mails and please keep your feedback coming. Let’s now move onto our monthly quiz.
Hamad Kiani from Pakistan writes:
“The personality to be identified is Dina Babbitt who was born on January 23 in Brno in then Czechoslovakia. She was an artist and a holocaust survivor. Her birth name was Dina Gottliebova. She along with her mother was sent to the Auschwitz Concentration Camp during World War II. There she was asked by another prisoner to paint pictures on walls. She was forced by the infamous Nazi Dr Mengele to draw portraits of Romani inmates as he wanted to show them as an inferior race. After the war, she fought the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum of Poland for the return of her paintings. She was also featured in the 1999 documentary film Eyewitness which was made on holocaust survivors. She died in Felton, California in 2009 at the age of 86.”
Hans Verner Lollike from Denmark sent us this answer:
“Twice I have visited Auswitz-Birkenau, the Nazi Concentration Camp west of Krakow in Poland. It gives you nightmares and you wonder: How can man be so evil to other human beings? How can any sane person deny the Holocaust? And how can you live after having been imprisoned in Auschwitz? Dina Babbitt was one of those who survived Auschwitz. She survived the Holocaust because she agreed to draw portraits of Romani inmates for the evil Dr. Mengele, so that she and her mother could survive. After the liberation of Auschwitz she immigrated to the US, and lived as an animator and married Art Babbitt, known as the creator of ‘Goofy’. Some of her drawings ended up in the Museum in Auswitz-Birkenau and she used lot of energy to gain the rights for her.”
“This young, witty and upbeat art student from Brno was deported to the Auschwitz Concentration Camp during the Second World War along with her family. Unmindful of the horrific fate in the hands of the Nazis, Dina Gottliebova drew story scenes of ‘Snow White’ on the walls of the barrack to cheer up her young fellow prisoners. Coming to know of her artistic talents, the infamous Nazi doctor Josef Mengele compelled her to draw portraits of Romani inmates to capture their skin coloration as racist mementos of his work at Auschwitz. The daring lady agreed on condition that her mother's life be spared.
“After surviving the Holocaust, she accompanied her mother to Paris to work as assistant to American cartoonist Art Babbitt, one of the leading animators of Walt Disney's creation the ‘Snow White’ and her future husband. Subsequently, she rose to become a highly successful Hollywood animator and was featured alongside fellow inmate artists Jan Komski and Felix Nussabaum in the documentary ‘Eyewitness’.
“Well after the War it was learnt that seven of her watercolour portraits had survived and had been preserved in Poland's Auschwitz- Birkenau State Museum. As a true testimony to her inner strength of character and optimistic view of life she fought unsuccessfully for the return of her works which in effect had saved her life. With number ‘61016’ tattooed on her forearm and heart on her beloved paintings, this daring Czech-Jewish soul breathed her last at the age of 86.years – a life that symbolized the face of human existence against an immoral, tyrannical state and a true representative of Holocaust survivors' struggle for rehabilitation in society.”
P. Sivashanmugham from India writes:
“The name of the mystery person for this quiz is Dina Gottlibova Babbitt. This type of quiz gives me an opportunity to acquire more knowledge about forgotten unsung heroes. In 1944 while in Auschwitz concentration camp Dina Babitt drew portraits of Romani inmates for the infamous dr. Mengele. As of 2009 seven water colours survived. She requested the return of her paintings. Auschwitz Birkenau rejected her claim. She was not able to recover her paintings during her life time.
“Dina Babitt had a very optimistic view of life. She had a high sense of honour. In concentration camps a practice was established to tattoo identification numbers on the inmates’ left forearm. Her concentration camp number 61016 had a symmetry. She remarked once she used to play California lottery. It did not work.”
This answer came from Mofizur Rahman from Bangladesh:
And Deblina Biswas from India wrote:
“Her name was Annemarie Dinah Gottliebova who was born in Brno, Czechoslovakia on 21st January 1923. She lived with mother Johanna Gottliebova in Prague up to 1939. After the invasion of Czechoslovakia by the Nazis both were sent to Theresienstadt, a camp in northern Czechoslovakia, and were thereafter shifted to the Auschwitz Concentration camp in 1943. Her prisoner number at the concentration camp was 61016. She was compelled to draw portraits of many young and child prisoners to soothe the fears of death from their mind at the insistence of infamous Nazi physician Dr. Joseph Mengele who was also known as the ‘Angel of Death’.”
Thank you very much for your answers which were all correct this time and the lucky winner who will shortly receive a parcel from Radio Prague is Jaouad Markoni from Morocco. Congratulations! And for the rest of you here’s a new question for the coming weeks.
The man we are looking for was born in 1721 in the eastern town of Suchdol nad Odrou and died in 1808 in Goshen Township, Ohio. He was a clergyman and worked as missionary among the Native Americans. He established a community in Ohio and one in the Canadian province of Ontario.
Please send us your answers by July 8 to the usual address, [email protected]. That is also the address for your views, questions, comments and reception reports. We have a beautiful set of QSL cards to verify them with. Mailbox will be back in four weeks’ time so until then, happy listening.
