Martin Koby - April 20, 1999
Munich
You mean, you--Munich, was it--what, what did you think of Munich when you were, you were at that age? I mean, you were now in a place that you hear German spoken all the time.
Yes. I went to a movie. I saw "Laura." I couldn't understand a thing what was happening.
English.
Sure, American movie named "Laura," with Dana Andrews.
And who...
Oh, that...
Who was Laura?
I don't know. I don't remember.
Um...
Uh, I met some uh, German fellow. We're standing, you know...
Gene Tierney.
Huh?
Gene Tierney was the woman who played Laura.
??? It was scary. And I don't know what's going on. I tried to figure it out, but it's so ???...
Did it scare to--or, or ???
No, I was not scared in Munich whatsoever.
Even hearing the language didn't bother you?
Even hearing the language. See, I didn't know the language. You couldn't say you know, kind of--maybe two, three words, you know.
Beautiful city, isn't it?
??? I don't remember, I don't know.
And did anybody tell you that Dachau was nearby?
No.
You didn't know that.
But you could see the mountains where people skied. I stood one day at--waiting for the streetcar. And I got to talking to this--must have been my age, maybe a year or two older, young man. And he was studying how to make uh, surgical implements sur...surgical instruments you know, like the knives and the...
Yeah.
...scissors and stuff like that. I couldn't understand what the heck he was talking about. So we made a date to the next day he's going to bring samples to show me what he does.
He's, he's German.
A German, yeah. He didn't ask me who I am you know, nothing. We didn't discuss it. And he brought, you know, "Oh, so that's what you do." You know. I said, "You're going to make them?" Yeah, that's what he's going to make. He was already learning a trade.
© Board of Regents University of Michigan-Dearborn