EN

Leisure activities, Otto Frank

Otto Frank was a keen amateur photographer.

Subject

Music

As a child, Otto Frank played the cello. There is a photograph showing Otto Frank with a cello.[1] In a letter Otto Frank wrote to his mother Alice Frank-Stern (13 February 1905): Vorhin habe ich Chellostunde gehabt und die Gavotte geht schon ganz gut.[2] On 28 December 1904, Otto Frank played cello as a member of the Frankfurter Jugendorchest at a concert in the hall of the Dr Koch'schen Conservatorium.[3] Nothing is known about whether Otto Frank played cello in his later life. His niece Milly Stanfield later became a well-known cellist.[4]

Collections

Otto Frank collected stamps and postcards. The Otto Frank Archive holds hundreds of loose, stamped stamps, postcards and envelopes.[5]

Photography

Otto Frank took photographs of his children both in Germany and in the Netherlands. The photo albums have been preserved.[6] The photo albums are in the museum collection of the Anne Frank House, including the so-called Blanco Electro Monster household book 1937, which Anne Frank compiled while in hiding.[7] Other albums include the first photo album with photos taken between 1929 and 1942,[8] Margot Frank's first photo book and the photo album of children's photos of Margot and Anne Frank (from 1928 to 1933).[9] Because photos were sent to relatives in Switzerland, individual photos have also been preserved.[6] Otto Frank is also known to have taken advertising photos, such as the ones Otto took of Margot advertising the Nivea brand and hair water.[10] In the museum collection of the Anne Frank House is a camera owned by Otto Frank, of the Icarette brand. [11] His Leica is owned by his stepdaughter Eva Schloss.[12]

Ice skating

It is said that Otto Frank could ice skate well. He himself did not comment on this, as far as is known.[13] In her letter of condolence to Fritzi, Beppie Sturm-Van den Bergh recalled memories of a holiday with the Franks in Switzerland and wrote: 'I still have such good photos as a memory. Otto could ice skate so wonderfully'.[14]

Skiing

Otto Frank skied with Edith, his daughters, other family members and later with Fritzi. A photo is known of Otto Frank together with his brother Robert, daughter Margot, cousin Buddy and Mrs Schneider on skis.[15] There are also many winter sports photos in his photo albums.[16]

Otto Frank's reading

'Auch ich fand nun Zeit zum lesen. All dies wäre nicht möglich gewesen in einem normalen leben, wo man tagsüber im Geschäft war.' [17] On the occasion of his birthday in 1944, Otto received a biography of Linnaeus from Kleiman, a nature book from Kugler and the book Amsterdam te water from Pfeffer.[18]

Anne writes in her diary that Otto liked to read Dickens in English. She also says that he: 'never read novels, but liked serious and dry descriptions of people and countries.' [19] He read to her from Goethe and Schiller, including Don Carlos.[20]

Footnotes

  1. ^ Fotocollectie Familiearchief Anne Frank-Fonds (AFF), Leni Frank. AFF_LeF_phot_0030_008.
  2. ^ AFF, Alice Frank, AFF_AlF_corr_05: Brief Otto Frank aan zijn moeder, zonder datum. Zie ook: AFF, Alice Frank, AFF_AlF_corr_05: Robert Frank aan zijn ouders, 16 februari 1905 (‘Otto, Herr Böttcher, Fräulein und Edgar spielten gestern Abend bei uns zu Hause zwei sehr schöne Klavier Quintette von Bethoven und Mozart. Es war wirklich sehr nett’.).
  3. ^ AFF, Alice Frank, AFF_AlF_pdoc_20: programma Frankfurter Jugendorchest, 28 december 1904.
  4. ^ Anne Frank Stichting (AFS): Getuigenarchief, Stanfield, Milly.
  5. ^ AFS, Anne Frank Collectie (AFC), Otto Frank Archief (OFA), reg. code OFA_060: Ansichtenverzameling; AFS, AFC, reg code OFA_061: Postzegelverzameling met enveloppen; AFS, AFC, reg code OFA_060: A.L.Grant aan Otto Frank, 16 of 14 februari 1902 (‘Dear Otto, this is the Post Card I promised to send you for your collection getting on. I will send you some new stamps soon’.).
  6. a, b AFS, AFC, reg. code OFA_072: Otto Frank aan Alice Frank-Stern, 22 augustus 1945; AFS, AFC, reg. code OFA_071: Otto Frank aan zijn familie, ongedateerd.
  7. ^ AFS, AFC, reg. code A_AFrank_II_055.
  8. ^ AFS, AFC, reg. code A_Afrank_III_027.
  9. ^ AFS, AFC, reg. code A_MFrank_III_046.
  10. ^ Zie AFS, AFC, reg. code A/AFrank/III/055 – 045 en A/MFrank/III/046 – 059.
  11. ^ AFS, AFC, reg. code A_OFrank_II_055.
  12. ^ AFS, Getuigenarchief, Eva Schloss, verslag, 4 april 2006.
  13. ^ E-mail Eva Schloss, 20 juni 2009.
  14. ^ AFS, AFC, reg. code OFA_065: Beppie Sturm-Van den Bergh aan Fritzi Frank, 22 augustus 1980.
  15. ^ AFF, Leni Frank, AFF_LeF_phot_0046.
  16. ^  AFS, AFC, reg. code A_OFrank_III_039, 043, 045, 048 en 056.
  17. ^ AFS, AFC, reg. code OFA_070: Bitte schreiben Sie mir etwas über Anne Frank.
  18. ^ Anne Frank, Diary Version A, 13 May 1944, in: The Collected Works, transl, from the Dutch by Susan Massotty, London [etc.]: Bloomsbury Continuum, 2019. The gift from Pfeffer may have been : G. Werkman, Amsterdam. Stad te water (Bussum 1943).
  19. ^ Anne Frank, Diary Version A, 16 May 1944, in: The Collected Works.
  20. ^ Anne Frank, Diary Version B, 29 October 1942, in: The Collected Works.