Onetime Forward culture fellow Anna Goldenberg holds degrees from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and the University of Cambridge. Anna currently lives in her native Vienna, where she is an editor for the Austrian alt-weekly Falter and a biweekly columnist for the Austrian daily newspaper Die Presse. Her book ‘I Belong to Vienna. A Jewish Family’s Story of Exile and Return’ was published in 2020 by New Vessel Press.
The popular song contest has host city Vienna's Jewish community on high alert
Growing up in Vienna means that your primary school education included memorizing the first stanza of the Blue Danube Waltz (“Die Donau so blau, so blau, so blau…”), knowing when the Ottomans unsuccessfully laid siege to Vienna (1529 and 1683), and learning about the city’s best-known boulevard, the Ringstrasse. While I might not recall all…
The Doctor Is In: Dr. Ruth on Love, Life, and Joie de Vivre By Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer Amazon Publishing $14.95 206 Pages In the past, I’ve gotten some good life lessons from my 86-year-old grandmother. They have ranged from “survival doesn’t ask if you’re a swine” (that’s how she explains getting out of Theresienstadt…
“Natürlich.” When asked if he collected things as a child, Stefan Edlis replied in impeccable German. Of course he did. “I was a stamp collector,” said Edlis, 89, industrialist and art collector, who recently donated over 40 works of art to the Art Institute of Chicago together with his wife, Gael Neeson, making it the…
Remember when the Forward brought you everything you wanted to know about the yarmulke but were afraid to ask? A short documentary by Aeon’s Collin Kornfeind explores what we described as character yarmulke. “Reverence” takes a close look at yarmulkes that display brands, sports teams and other references to popular culture. It’s a way to…
Every family history has dark periods. But how do you come to terms with the knowledge that your father is a notorious mass murderer? “A Nazi Legacy: What Our Fathers Did,” a 90-minute documentary that had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in April, tackles this issue with great depth and sensitivity. It…
New York City is losing its Museum of Biblical Art. The Board of Trustees of MOBIA announced that it will close for good on June 30 this year. Its current exhibition, Sculpture in the Age of Donatello, will remain open to the public through June 14. This comes about a year after the American Bible…
When we first met we had many conversations like this one. “Help me place your accent,” you say. “I’m from Austria,” I answer. “Oh,” you reply, “My grandmother is from there. She left on a Kindertransport.” And then you add, “Vienna is supposed to be beautiful.” I notice some discomfort. I wonder if you’re wondering…
