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Every time someone asks me, "Where were you born?" I reply with enthusiasm, "Hollywood!" They typically respond with another query: "Did you meet any celebrities?" And I confidently state, "Absolutely! In reality, I was in A film starring myself — perhaps alongside Marlene Dietrich. In truth, I possess photographs to assist in narrating this story!!!!"
In a classic, shiny promotional image for the movie The Lady is Willing In the photograph, Marlene Dietrich is dressed elegantly in black clothing, complete with a striking hat adorned with an impressive bunch of extremely tall feathers. She holds a young blond baby girl in her arms. For me, what matters most is that I am the infant featured in this picture. Alternatively, it might be my twin sister Joanne because our appearances have always been so similar that up until now, neither of us can determine who among us is being held by Dietrich.
The filmmakers enjoy employing twins as they can alternate between shooting each of them individually, which accelerates the filming process," Mom Marjorie penned in a letter dated August 1941 to her aunt in New York. "We were discovered via the birth registry, and out of numerous pairs we had been considered for, they ultimately chose Elly and Joanne. This movie features Marlene Dietrich alongside Fred MacMurray. The Lady is Willing. Marlene Dietrich portrays 'Miss Madden,' an actress who discovers a baby and wishes to adopt it but encounters numerous difficulties in the process.
The picture of Dietrich with one of us was stored alongside our baby album, accompanied by newspaper cuttings, our movie deal documents, duplicates of our Social Security cards, and my mother’s description of our initial experiences in Hollywood.
And that’s not the only well-known news photograph of us associated with this movie. Another one can be found reproduced here: biography In her daughter’s book about Dietrich, the actress is depicted with her leg in a cast. According to the caption, "She stumbled while holding a child." To protect the infant from harm, she contorted herself and fractured her ankle. This incident delighted the Columbia Studios Publicity Department. They took pictures of the baby alongside the 'heroic leading lady' at the hospital and pushed World War II news out of prominence on the front page.
Later, in another photograph, Marlene appears in a hospital bed with her leg encased in a cast from toe to knee, either holding me or possibly Joanne. According to our mother’s account, despite Marlene having "rescued" us, both of us were so profoundly affected by what happened that we couldn’t go through with things anymore.
“Back-and-forth-with-no-more-movies for our family,” she penned. "Given the effort put into locating us, dispatching a seven-seater limo daily for the little ones, setting up two dressing rooms as nurseries, and hiring an additional nurse... despite all this, they failed to provide enough recovery time for the kids after their tumble and didn’t allow them to acclimate to the most sweltering temperatures we've experienced since their birth."
There’s also a delightful scene capturing the essence of having a relaxed relationship with Dietrich, and as an added bonus, there’s an account of running into Fred Astaire who unexpectedly entered their dressing room while Dietrich was preparing them a meal.
“I find it difficult to comprehend, but I suspect he felt more awkward than we did, and that says a great deal,” our mother penned. “Naturally, we suggested leaving, yet he almost begged pardon for interrupting and vanished. Doesn’t this seem like an unusual encounter with your screen hero?”
The backstory of the infant in the image
The Lady is Willing It's a romantic comedy; quite lighthearted and easily forgettable were it not for Dietrich's brave act of safeguarding "the baby" during her fall. However, the photographs capturing moments from that production aren’t central to our tale about Hollywood. Hidden behind the joyful images depicting Dietrich rescuing either me or my sister as we tumbled, lies a much grimmer reality with deeper significance.
My mother, Marjorie Rosenfeld Leonard, was a Jewish woman from New York who traveled to Berlin in 1928 with the aim of studying to be a child psychoanalyst. In 1931, she encountered my father, Alfred Leonard (originally named Levi), a German Jew hailing from Mannheim, who was finishing up his legal education in Berlin at the time.
In unison, they went through the turmoil of the late Weimar Republic and the emergence of Hitler and the Nazi Party. My mother saw how escalating anti-Semitism affected her fellow psychoanalysts, particularly those who were Jewish. Meanwhile, my father was employed with a Jewish legal aid group, recording instances of assaults targeting Jews across Germany well ahead of Hitler assuming control. His involvement in this activism along with his socialist beliefs marked him as an early adversary of the Nazis when many still failed to grasp the threat at hand. Assisted by my mother, he narrowly fled Germany just following Hitler’s ascension to power in 1933.
Upon arriving in America as a refugee but still holding a temporary tourist visa, Alfred reunited with Marjorie in Los Angeles, where they got married later in 1933. At this time, Los Angeles, particularly Hollywood, had become a haven for exceptionally talented individuals from various fields—artists, musicians, academics, scientists—who were escaping Nazi Germany and Eastern Europe. Within her professional circle in Los Angeles, Marjorie counted among her acquaintances several European-educated psychoanalysts who also found refuge there, including notable personalities like Otto Fenichel and Ralph Greenson.
In 1934, a pivotal phase occurred during my father’s intricate immigration ordeal. It was necessary for him to depart the country and then re-enter via Mexico. Under Billy Wilder's guidance, he navigated through these crucial steps toward achieving lawful residency and ultimately gaining U.S. citizenship. Having undertaken this same path to Mexico personally to improve his immigration standing, Wilder assisted my father by making direct appeals to the American Consulate in Mexicali.
Wilder, who escaped Nazi Germany personally, played an active role in assisting numerous Jewish immigrants in finding chances within Hollywood. He also teamed up with Marlene Dietrich to aid Jews in their escape from Germany. She earned her keep through her salary for the 1937 film. Knight Without Armor She moved toward aiding refugees. Additionally, she contributed to selling war bonds once the U.S. joined the conflict in 1941, and entertained troops throughout America and within European combat areas between 1941 and 1943. She was bestowed with an honorary title of Colonel in the military.
In Los Angeles, Alfred quickly mastered English but could not return to practicing law. Instead, he devoted himself to his passion for music and helped launch the careers of fellow refugee musicians such as violinist Joseph Szigeti and composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco. Reconnecting with screenwriter Salka Viertel, someone he knew from Berlin days, he also kept up correspondence with author Thomas Mann, another escapee from Nazi persecution who resided in Los Angeles throughout World War II. Additionally, Alfred hosted a local classical music show each week and established a prestigious chamber music concert series. The Music Guild Concerts .
His significant accomplishments as an organizer of internationally acclaimed artists in Los Angeles encompassed the performances he arranged and funded, highlighting pianist Arthur Schnabel. Through these events, he forged a close bond and ongoing communication with Schnabel. Under Leonard’s leadership, Los Angeles emerged as a key hub for classical music. Music Guild highlighted Otto Klemperer, Maggie Teyte, and Elisabeth Schumann.
Repression in Hollywood
Fast-forward to Hollywood in the late 1940s, when my parents and their circle of friends found themselves facing investigation by the House Un-American Activities Committee.
As McCarthyism spread across California, our mother’s name was featured in a publication titled Fourth Report: Un-American Activities in California 1948 - Report on Communist-Front Groups from the Senate Investigative Panel Reading this book, I found my mother’s name listed among other members of the Los Angeles chapter of the Progressive Citizens of America on page 355. This organization backed the Hollywood Ten and those targeted during the McCarthy period inquiries. My mother mentioned that she faced a blacklist due to her involvement with a "socialist student club" at UCLA back in the 1920s. In contrast, my father had restarted his anti-fascism efforts as the communication director for the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League—a prominent entity within the film industry which attracted scrutiny from the FBI over alleged communist ties.
When my sister and I were around 12 years old, we came to understand the significance of friendship and realized the danger faced by our parents and their associates. Our elders informed us that Albert Maltz, a writer known for both novels and screenplays, belonged to the group referred to as the Hollywood Ten. This collective had been labeled Communists by the House Un-American Activities Committee. Similar to his fellow nine members, Maltz chose not to "inform" during hearings with the committee. Consequently, he received a conviction for disrespecting Congress and served jail time. Upon completing ten months behind bars, he found himself blacklisted from working within the industry anymore.
Our parents understood that Maltz was residing alone in Mexico, exiled from his home. They approached Joanne and me about writing letters to Albert Maltz, which we agreed to do. While I cannot recall exactly what I wrote or whether he responded, one thing remains clear: as a child, I felt compassion for a family forced into exile, torn away from their known environment and dear friends. Additionally, I distinctly remember being aware that our own parents faced potential danger amid the oppressive atmosphere in 1950s Hollywood.
The experience left an indelible mark: I turned into a lifelong correspondent, frequently writing to individuals whose contributions to social justice were significant. Among others, I have penned letters to Peter Schumann from the Bread and Puppet Theater, to artist and activist Corita Kent, to author and columnist James Carroll, and to historian Thomas Doherty, known for his writings on the McCarthy period which also referenced my father, Alfred Leonard. Hollywood and Hitler 1933-1939 .
As someone living during the 1970s as an adult, I didn’t explicitly formulate my decisions this way, but I emulated the courage shown by both my parents and Albert Maltz, who stood firm for their beliefs despite potential consequences like being arrested. Our household backed Daniel Berrigan, a Jesuit priest, at times when he was evading authorities. We were integrated into a community of families that provided refuge to Berrigan for several months, willingly facing possible arrests ourselves. This support came about because Berrigan had been pursued by the FBI due to his involvement with the Catonsville Nine, where he participated in the destruction of draft files.
I similarly utilized my art to highlight American atrocities through recognizable pieces like my collagraph print. My Lai Madonna which was released by David Delinger in Liberation Magazine Posters utilizing my images Celebrate Community) were released by Syracuse Cultural Workers during the 1980s and 1990s. Additionally, in 2011, Eleanor Rubin: Aspirations for Mending , A collection of my art pieces was released by Charta, featuring an introduction written by Howard Zinn.
I've been away from Hollywood since leaving for college at Brandeis University back in 1958, yet those formative years spent basking in the warmth of Southern California deeply shaped me. The moment when Marlene Dietrich cradled me as a child, along with witnessing her stance against tyranny later on, became an unforgettable chapter in my life story.
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