It has been absolutely ages since I've done anything with this blog at all. The main reason is that I started a new job. It's been a busy time, which has meant no time to write here. Right now, though, I'm Los Angeles, California ahead of a conference in San Francisco next week.
I stopped here on the way to meet one of the last remaining first-cousins of my grandfather, Alfred Leitner. I wrote
last July that I had the fortunate happenstance of being contacted out of the blue by a genealogist working to reconstruct the Leitner family tree. The person who was behind the whole thing was Herbert Leitner. That's who I'm here to see. He's a fantastically vibrant person and just full of knowledge about the old family. He knew my grandfather when they were kids!! He's 89 now, so slightly younger than my grandfather was, but remembers everything quite clearly. He went to the same school as my grandfather and has echoed everything everyone's ever said about him: he was quite the bookworm and student.
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| Herbert and me |
I also got to meet Herb's immediate family, who have all been exceptionally kind and welcoming. We've barely spent a day and a half together, but it's as if we've always known each other. Yesterday we spent the day at Herb's beautiful home overlooking the San Fernando valley and just recalling old stories. I recorded a few, but I'll have to get back to them later before I can post them here.
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| Herbert and his two daughters, Yvonne and Susanne |
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| The Leitner Clan |
Herb was kind enough to even give me these three photos of my grandfather and great-grandfather. The third one, you'd never guess, is also my grandfather Alfred! Herb insisted on it (and I can actually see the resemblance). He was dressed up for Purim.
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| Philipp Leitner, my great-grandfather |
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| Alfred Leitner, my grandfather |
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| Alfred, my grandfather dressed up for Purim |
I also snapped this photo of an old envelop which Herb said was addressed to the office where Leitners ran the paper business: 4 Aspernbruckengasse, in Vienna's second district. He was also able to tell me the address of the Leitner summer villas in Sauerbrunn, they were on Bahnhofstrasse (number 11, 15, or 17??). That's where
this photo was taken. I'm really excited to know that. Someday I'll go visit.
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| Address of the offices of the Leitner family business. |
That's about all I'm able to write at the moment. Unfortunately, this posting massively understates the pleasure of getting to meet this bunch.
