SCHWARTZ Joseph (Jerry)

Jerry Schwartz Interview

Santa Monica, August 26, 1987

I would like to tell you about my family a little bit.  I was born in Hungary in 1912.   We were all together 9 boys and 2 girls.  My father was a farmer.  When we started to grow...we went to Budapest.  I was a clerk there....I worked for my brother Frank for 2 years.  And then I opened up my own place.

My name is Joseph Schwartz, but everybody calls me Jerry.  It happened when I came to America.  My sister-

We had a family of 11. I went to school over there.  It was getting difficult, because...we moved to Budapest.  That was my luck because half a block away Betty lived.  She was 16 years old then.  I was born in...but we moved to Kispest.  [I was born at] Bagyitanya.  It was a little ranch.  Near Tizsasalka.

Getting back to the part of my middle - 17 to 24.  I got married when I was 24.  We got married in 1936, August.  We worked together all the time, all our live, over 50 years, in a grocery store.  We were very happy.  We were satisfied with any little thing.  If we went to a theater, even if we had the cheapest tickets, we were happy because we were happy.

I was in a quota for 10 years to come to America.....He [my brother Louis] came out a long time ago.  He came to visit Hungry.  He came to America in 1914.  He came to visit in 1926.  He liked me and he put me (on a waiting list) for a quota.  In 1938, December, they notified that we had to use our number or we would lose it.  It took 10 years.

[My brother's name was] Louie.  He lived in Brooklyn.  He came in 1914.  He was working for Xlax company.  He was a general manager company.  Everyone knows about Xlax.  It's a laxative.  For a couple years, I was washing cars and doing things for $13/week, $15/week.  Then I started a fruit stand.

The Jewish people didn't believe what was really going on.  My mother said it's no good over hear, just go.  ....  We took some food for Betty's uncle because we couldn't even go the market.  We didn't know what was going on 100 miles from us.  We hear about it, but we didn't want to believe it.  Anyway, my mother was smart enough to say, no you go.  ....  If you married, your quote number of your husband is good for you too....we married in Hungary in 1936, 2 years before.  We were married 2 years when we left.  We didn't have any problem leaving.  Everything was so smooth.  It was like as if we left today, the next day you couldn't get out.  The ship name was Manhattan.  They had some people in Vienna watching for us.  Because they took people off the train.  Because we were in the quota and we came with American ships, they looked after us.  ...   Betty didn't want to sleep in one bed.  They didn't believe we were married.  Betty said, "I'm not sleeping with him".

I started my own business, I started with $300.  The guy at Xlax lent me $300 and I bought a truck with $60.

I had two stores in Hungary.  And 10 years before that my brother put me on a quota.  My mother said, never mind the business, give it to a brother, you go.   My mother was really ....  I guess thanks to her...she said don't stay here.  My mother, they put about 30 people in cattle car.  No food, no water.  They took them to Auschwitz.  The whole family died.  Except Frank and Kalman.

One of my brothers gave ...  They told us we could take only 2 pairs of underwear.  They give you a list of what to bring.  Then they recheck you again at the boarder.  They checked Betty for 1/2 an hour.  Gold and silver.  Diamonds.

You had to sign that you leave everything and you can't demand anything.  We couldn't bring out the money anyway.

From Budapest by the border we wasted the 45 minutes with Betty.  Because they had a feeling that Betty was hiding (something).  If they could find any little thing they could take you off the train.  They hated the Jews.  It was the Hungarians.

After that we went by train, by the way it was the Orient Express....they have a few boats.  They don't go any more.  They watched.  They got a room for us in Le Havre.  (The train went) through Paris and we to Le Havre.  We didn't even have to change trains.  The whole trip took about 30 hours....If I would try to go through without a passport they would just shoot you.  Nobody would take a chance.

I really didn't realize what was going on.  They took an old couple about 60.  They had something.   ...  They built for Hitler highways to go to Poland and nobody knew about it.  I drove on it by accident....

We were worrying about this relative.  But everything went good.  Betty's uncle came to see us.  He lived in Vienna and he didn't have anything to eat.  He had two boys.  We took a bunch of food and we left it there.

Only two of.  We had a private cabin.  The SS guard came in and he asked us if we would let him stay with us...In 1938 his pants were made out of wood.  Have you ever heard of that?  They used all kinds of other materials.  They didn't have any benezine, no.

The man in the cabin was a high SS man.  He was a German.  Betty was talking to him.  Betty was trying to explain to him...  In the beginning he didn't know we were Jewish.  We weren't scared any more.  We were very bitter.  The big change in Vienna.  They way they handled the Jews.  We weren't afraid anymore.  He was telling us how.... he told us we shouldn't leave our country....A lot of Germans didn't know.  They kept it such a secret..  He built it to go from there to Poland.  The man on the train was very nice.  He was a gentleman.  The German Officers were much nicer than the Hungarian peasant soldiers.  They were the worst.  They would hit you or kick you.  Some Germans did it (too), but not the high officers.

I had a little fruit stand.  This is important.  I worked very hard for 13, $25.  Then when I had my own business.  I mentioned my cousin lent me.  From then on we worked with Betty and we started to make money.  Every day we put away $20.  This was a pretty good store.  Betty felt and I felt I should go to the army.  Because our family was in Europe.  I could have gotten out of it because Betty had an ulcer.  But I didn't feel comfortable.  I went in.  I had 16 weeks of training and then I went back to Europe.

We had to go through France.  We had a big snow up there.  The first fight we had.  Everyone had brand new winter coats.

Betty & Jerry's wedding in Kispest on 30 Aug 1936
SCHWARTZ Herman (beared) is sitting to the right of the groom

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