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| Headline | Item in open biography? |
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Carol
Jun-19-2012, 17:46 GMT
USA - United Staates America
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| There is an item in the open biography that I´m wondering if it´s a case of mistaken identity. I remember reading years ago that the elder Mr. Simon was from New Jersy and played the upright bass in the big band era,not the violin. Also, I don´t think the mother would have been a teacher if she came to the U.S.A. before WWII because the 1930´s were hard times in the U.S. and, sadly, most people who came to this country in that era didn´t attend college. Might this story have been about the grandparents instead?
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Bodo
Jun-19-2012, 21:47 GMT
Austria
 
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| Thanks for your posting Carol.
Well, I think all your facts are right, but I can not check it about the grandparents. I once read that his grandfather was a tailor from Vienna(?).
His parents did not immigrate, surely his grandparents. |
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Brenda
Jun-20-2012, 03:24 GMT
Australia
 
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| You are correct Carol. In a radio interview last year Paul definitely said both his parents were born in the US. {Third generation off the boat?} I have recorded all these interviews and hopefully will locate the interview when I get a spare minute. got a lot to listen to though! |
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Bodo
Jun-20-2012, 08:00 GMT
Austria
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| I think the facts are right Carol.
Just checked them with the dreamer of music. I am not sure where the got them, but there must be some detailed biography around. Louis Simon was a violine player in hungary, and both emmigrated to the USA somewhen in the 1930's (separately)
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Bodo
Jun-20-2012, 08:07 GMT
Austria
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| Brenda, it would be interesting to hear that interview.
From the dreamer of music.
Louis Simon was born in 1916, probably in Vienna (Austria) where his father, the old Paul Simon, had a tailor shop and atelier opened from early XX century, next to the Wien old Jewish quarter.
I just knew that fact about his grandfather, but never knew Louis was born here.
Although they moved back to hungary a few years later it is interesting that Paul has (as far as I know) no nostalgic connection to Vienna, where his father was born and lived in his early childhood. (what I mean, he never official came to the town and said: my father was born here) :-)
So, I just wonder - who has a good Paul Simon biography (book) with all those facts? |
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Brenda
Jun-20-2012, 09:06 GMT
Australia
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| Hi Bodo ,Will look up the interview . The information on the Dreamer of Music website is the same as a biography but I cannot remember which one. Authors do not always get their facts correct though. Remember the one written last year. Paul did definitely say though both his parents were boen in the US. Hope I can find it! |
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Bodo
Jun-20-2012, 09:44 GMT
Austria
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| Hi Brenda - well there is another hint:
THE TEACHER:
I was only a child of the city
My parents were children of immigrant stock
But it is not really clear, it could be that Pauls parents immigrated together with their grandparents...so he calls them children of immigrant stock now? The parents where at the age of 17 when they immigrated, so this might be true.
Interesting, I always thought the family immigarted much earlier, somewhen BEFORE or during world war I.
From the dreamer of music page:
Louis Simon was born in 1916, probably in Vienna (Austria) where his father, the old Paul Simon, had a tailor shop and atelier opened from early XX century, next to the Wien old Jewish quarter.
Though established in Wien from last XIX century the Simons came from Hungary, where their Jewish family had been settled down for centuries. ....
the Simon family returned to their homeland Hungary in some year of 1920s decade and settled down in the capital Budapest.
....Louis Simon showed early a great gift for the music, so he was educated in music in Vienna (the city with the most and deepest musical tradition all over Europe).
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Early in the 1930s Louis Simon became one of the pioneer musicians of Radio Budapest. ... And Louis Simon was the Jewish violinist of Radio Budapest.....
...........He noticed with anticipation the deadly danger that it was to come over all European Jews and with the economical help of his family he could emigrate to USA around 1934-38. |
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Mimi
Jun-20-2012, 11:34 GMT
Austria
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| There is an interesting discussion on the english wikipedia site (in the "talk" section") where someone wants to correct this misinformation as an "official source". He also says the Pauls parents where born in the US.
As far as I know there never was an official biographie and they somehow take their information from one another. |
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Brenda
Jun-20-2012, 13:55 GMT
Australia
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| Also Louis was born in 1916 . Hard to see him as being the Jewish violinist of Radio Budapest in the early 30's at around the age of 14 or 15 In all the interviews with Paul where he talks about his father he has never to my knowledge ever mentioned his father being a violinist in the orchestra in Vienna. Still trying to find the interview but he definitely said both his parents were born in the USA I remember it distinctly as I always doubted the biography. |
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Carol
Jun-20-2012, 16:26 GMT
USA - United Staates America
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| I think that people in public life today don't discuss family members to protect their privacy. Doesn't really make any difference, I guess! |
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Scaaty
Jun-21-2012, 02:31 GMT
Ireland
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| If his parents left Europe in the thirties Paul would have narrowly misssed being born in nazi Vienna - which I am sure would have a profound impact on him. Also his parents would still be speaking their native tongue at home at least and this would have affected Paul's accent. Certainly his mother could not have been able to teach within 15 yrs of arriving in the us . Both Paul & Artie were the typical all american middle class kids. All pointing to the parents being born in the us too. |
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Scaaty
Jun-21-2012, 02:34 GMT
Ireland
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| Btw June 16th is blooms day when James Joyce's Ulysses is celebrated in Dublin. Leopold bloom the main character in the book is the son of an immigrant Hungarian Jew!!
Just thought I'd share that with u all:)) |
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Bodo
Jun-21-2012, 08:15 GMT
Austria
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| I will ask our spanish friends where they got the info from. |
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Brenda
Jun-21-2012, 10:46 GMT
Australia
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| Yes Scatty. In another interview I listened to Paul said his mother gave up her teaching career to devote herself to her family . And Paul was born in 1941. She later went back to teaching in Paul's school PS 164. Paul speaks often of his father's career in interviews and has a great respect for his father's musical ability as a band reader and bass player. |
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Brenda
Jun-22-2012, 00:38 GMT
Australia
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| Photo of Paul's mother at PS 164 1972. She retired in 1975.
http://www.patriciaweppler.com/ps164_1973_34.htm |
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