Holocaust Museum's 'Light & Noir' Exhibit Shows How Hollywood Émigrés Persisted, Prospered and Took Action -- Museum Exhibit Review

Exhibition Review

Light & Noir

Exiles and Émigrés in Hollywood, 1933-1950

Illinois Holocaust Museum, Skokie

Thru Jan. 10, 2016

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Understandably, viewing the permanent collection at the Illinois Holocaust Museum in Skokie--the third largest in the world--is a rather grim, wrenching experience.

First-hand accounts by Holocaust survivors who relocated to Skokie, raised families, stood up to Neo-Nazis and made it their mission to create the museum provide a modicum of uplift among the horror, as do displays about heroes who risked their lives to save others, but detailing an event that claimed 6 million Jewish lives--and just as many others--can't help but be harrowing.

So while a special exhibit highlighted by movie memorabilia may not at first blush sound in keeping with the museum's abiding themes and tone, Light & Noir Exiles and Émigrés in Hollywood, 1933-1950 manages not only to be complementary, it provides a nice bit of counterbalance to the gravity of the permanent exhibit.

Photo credit on all: Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune

Not that learning about the Holocaust shouldn't leave one somberly affected, but while directly alluding to the devastation Hitler wrought on Europe and particularly Jews, the new exhibit ties in more to messages of perseverance and--in this case, creative--rebellion.

Even in exploring Light & Noir with a hardcore Film Noir fan, we got through it in under an hour, and thus were able to well-fit in a 90-minute docent-led tour of the permanent exhibit on the same visit. 

I have seen the main portion of the museum several times, but never had taken a tour, which I found rewarding. Tours begin at 2pm, and I would recommend that anyone coming to see Light & Noir plan their visit to accommodate this duality (if not also a deeper intake of the permanent exhibit than a tour provides).

Billy Wilder's application for American citizenship

Organized, curated and initially presented by Los Angeles' Skirball Cultural Center, which focuses on Jewish heritage, Light & Noir alludes to but doesn't provide much background on Hitler's rise and the Jewish persecution that prompted actors (Hedy Lamarr, Peter Lorre, Conrad Veidt, etc.), directors (Billy Wilder, William Wyler, Otto Preminger, Fritz Lang, Ernst Lubitsch, Michael Curtiz), producers, composers and more to flee Germany, Austria and other countries under duress.

In another venue, such context might be more desired, but given the main exhibit in Skokie, the temporary exhibition can rightly focus primarily on what the exiles and émigrés accomplished after reaching Hollywood (including, as referenced in the title, contributing substantially to the development of the Film Noir genre).

As it was explained that Jewish film moguls such as Carl Laemmle, George Zukor and Louis B. Mayer left Europe for Hollywood well before the rise of Nazism, and that even before life was made unbearable for Jews, studios were recruiting German talent due to the achievements of F.W. Murnau and others, I'm a bit fuzzy about who may have been "pulled in" rather than or ahead of being "pushed out."

But the seminal talents cited above not only helped create numerous wondrous movies, many made a point of castigating the Nazis in their films--and beyond.

Outfits worn in Casablanca by Paul Henreid, Ingrid Bergman
and Humphrey Bogart

Likely the exhibit's marquee gallery is one devoted to Casablanca, a stridently anti-Nazi film directed by Michael Curtiz in 1942, while World War II was still ongoing and death camp atrocities largely unknown. 

Original film props are on display, as well as clothing worn by Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and Paul Heinreid.

In an adjoining gallery recreating the talent agency office of influential émigré Paul Kohner, I enjoyed noting a copy of Casanlanca's script (not an original), which was written by Philip G. Epstein, Julius J. Epstein and Howard Koch. As my friend Dave informed me, the Epstein brothers are the Grandfather and Great Uncle, respectively, of Chicago Cubs President Theo Epstein. (Hopefully someone has made a point of inviting him to the exhibit.)

Dress and shoes worn by Marlene Dietrich in A Foreign Affair

Photography wasn't allowed in the special exhibit, but some of the main "Oh, wow!" items are shown here via pictures from the Chicago Tribune (by Erin Hooley).

These include a dress and shoes worn by Marlene Dietrich in A Foreign Affair, directed by Billy Wilder, and a dress donned by Joan Crawford in Mildred Pierce, directed by Curtiz.

The exhibit also includes the Oscar statuette Wilder won for writing the Sunset Boulevard screenplay. 

Displays about anti-Nazi films, including Confessions of a Nazi Spy (starring Edward G. Robinson) and To Be or Not To Be (directed by Ernst Lubitsch) added thematic heft, enhanced by exposition about anti-Semetic backlash. (Though Charlie Chaplin doesn't himself fit into the scope of the exhibition, his The Great Dictator could have been well-represented in the anti-Nazi films section as well.)

Dress worn by Joan Crawford
in Mildred Pierce

I also found it interesting, and perplexing, to note that with the rise of McCarthyism and the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)--which was started to uncover citizens with Nazi ties but transitioned to hunt those suspected of ties to Communism--some of the exiles who were persecuted out of Europe were persecuted to return.

So while Bogie's suit and Dietrich's dress may well be what most catch one's eye, and fancy, there is quite a bit of informative insight that gives the exhibit instructional depth.

Although it fits well into the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center--both figuratively and literally, as it makes the fullest use of exhibition space on the lower level I've yet seen--Light & Noir may not be extensive enough to warrant more than an hour's drive on its own...or the museum's $12 admission.

But it makes for a rather unique, engaging and both light & noir complement to the permanent exhibit, and especially when combined for an enlightening afternoon, it is well-worth your while to make it to the museum by January 10.

Click here to learn more about the Light & Noir exhibit and some special programs being held in conjunction.

Chicago History Museum's '1968 Exhibit' Provides Informative Look at an Important Year -- Museum Exhibit Review

Exhibition Review

The 1968 Exhibit

Chicago History Museum

Thru January 4

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I was only around for 77 days, 4 hours and 19 minutes of 1968, and I remember absolutely none of it.

Despite this, and well beyond it being the year I entered the world, I have long been aware of the importance of 1968.

Few years have ever been as tumultuous, or contained as many massively newsworthy events--even just from a United States perspective.

So for reasons with rather little to do with my personal connection--though I can't deny the inborn affinity abetted my interest--I was intrigued to see The 1968 Exhibit at the Chicago History Museum.

I was happy to time my late 2014 visit with a Bank of America Museums on Us weekend, which allows their customers free entry to participating institutions nationwide, but my friend Dave--who as a non-BofA customer paid the regular $14 fee for full museum access including all special exhibits--also voiced his pleasure with the 1968 show, finding it well-worth his time and money.

Many of the year's most momentous events were lowlights rather than highlights--the ongoing Vietnam War, the death of 17,000 U.S. soldiers in it (in '68), the protests against it, the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, the tempestuous Democratic National Convention in Chicago--and informative displays covered all of these with nice depth, short of an imposing plethora of wall text.

From an actual helicopter used in Vietnam to the camera that captured the most iconic image of RFK's death to shoes worn by civil rights leader Ralph Abernathy in the company of MLK, the exhibit--a traveling show organized by the Minnesota History Center in partnership with the CHM and two other museums--features several compelling artifacts that amplify the monthly timelines chronicling the year's big events.

Short but informative videos address the King assassination and its aftermath, and the DNC and accompanying protests, with other interactive offerings available on demand for those desiring greater depth on the timeline events.

From Cesar Chavez to the Poor People's Protest to the Black Power salute by Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the Olympics, many additional socially significant touchstones are covered.

But the show also portrays the lighter side of 1968, though not without noting how the war, protests, riots and assassinations wove through the music, movies and television of the times.

Just some of the memorabilia I enjoyed seeing--and freely photographing--includes articles of clothing worn by Jimi Hendrix, Mr. Rogers and Catfish Hunter, who pitched a perfect game for the nascent Oakland A's on May 18.

While not all that much was truly revelatory about events that have long been well-chronicled--though it was cool to see kids taking in the exhibit, and having a good go at a 1968 music quiz--I was struck by a few things that reflected how different the world was then, but also how similar times are now.

Racial strife and police brutality unfortunately are just as topical today as they were in 1968.

And given our 21st century, 24-hour news, Twitterverse sensibilities, it was jarring to note a panel on RFK that imparted that when he announced his candidacy for President in March 1968--he would be killed on June 5--it came as a surprise to sitting president Lyndon Johnson and the other prime Democratic contender, Eugene McCarthy.

Although it was repeatedly illustrated how Vietnam was the first war to be chronicled on TV, and rather intensively at that, the striking differences of what was meant and effected by mass communication between then and now is just one of the striking between-the-lines the exhibit imparts.

I, and even more so Dave, was familiar with many--though certainly not all--of the events mentioned on each of the monthly timelines. 

But we were both a bit befuddled and bemused by the March 4 citation of the "Linda LeClair Affair," which found Barnard co-ed Linda LeClair disciplined for living off-campus with her boyfriend, thereby "focusing national attention on young people, sexuality, and women's liberation." (Learn more here.)

I certainly get that social mores were quite a bit different in 1968 than they are today. But the Linda LeClair Affair doesn't seem it should have been that big a deal then--and my mom says she doesn't recall ever hearing about it--and given that a Google search primarily brings up related references to Barnard College and "The 1968 Exhibit," it certainly seems (particularly compared to much else that happened that year) to be barely a footnote in history.

Yet still, on some level of appreciating 1968 for the day-to-day lives of those who were conscious for all of it, it--like the exhibit itself--seems worth knowing about.

If you can get to the Chicago History Museum--previously long known as the Chicago Historical Society and located at Clark & North--by January 4 (allowing for one last free weekend for Bank of America customers), it's well worth taking a trip back in time to the year of my birth. 

(More 1968 Exhibit photos below. To learn more visit the museum and exhibit websites.)

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There is always something that can be learned from the Chicago History Museum's permanent collection, though I've found it a bit less interactive than ideal. 

But as a long-term "temporary" exhibit, I highly recommend Vivian Maier's Chicago, a photo gallery of a terrific photographer essentially unknown during her lifetime. The excellent documentary, Finding Vivian Maier--not part of the CHM exhibit but one of the best movies I've seen this year--can provide great background on this unique artist. 

And for those who love fashion, Chicago Styled: Fashioning the Magnificent Mile, which showcases several nifty dresses sold in shops along North Michigan Avenue over the years, is well worth a gander.

Below are some additional photos I took in The 1968 Exhibit:

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'Life? or Theater?' Paints a Moving Picture of Charlotte Salomon -- Museum Exhibit Review

Museum Exhibition Review

Charlotte Salomon

Life? or Theater?
an exhibit of semi-autobiographical paintings,
accompanied by captions

Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, Skokie

Thru September 21

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On Sunday, July 6, which was sadly, by sheer coincidence, the 75th anniversary of the last Jewish enterprises in Germany being closed and the 72nd anniversary of Anne Frank and her family going into hiding, I visited the Illinois Holocaust Museum in Skokie, my hometown and a village in which many Holocaust survivors would rebuild their lives--and eventually the museum devoted to disallowing anyone to forget.

I spent a bit of time in the Permanent Collection--I wish I had time for a docent/survivor-led tour, which seemed superlative when I stumbled upon it later--but having seen it on multiple occasions, I devoted the bulk of this visit to the museum's new Special Exhibit about Charlotte Salomon, who somewhat akin to Anne Frank, was a young woman who left behind a heartrending work of self-expression before dying in a Nazi concentration camp.

Born in 1917, Salomon was a visual artist who attended art school in her hometown of Berlin at a time when German universities were restricting their Jewish student quota to 1.5% of the student body. She studied painting there for two years and won a prize, but left when Nazi anti-semitism made it too dangerous.

After Kristallnacht, with her father and step-mother she left Germany. While they wound up in the Netherlands, Charlotte lived in the south of France, initially with her grandparents on the estate of a wealthy American named Ottilie Moore, but eventually by herself in a hotel (as Moore, who treated Charlotte well, had moved back to the U.S.)

It was there, around the turn of 1940 into 1941 that Charlotte Salomon began painting over 1,300 gouache (opaque watercolor) artworks for a semi-autobiographical series--accompanied by captions and suggested musical cues--entitled Life? or Theater? A Play With Music.

This somewhat fantastical operetta of her life to that point--which tragically included the suicide of several female family members, including her mother who died when Charlotte was 9, explained to her as due to influenza with the truth revealed only after her grandmother took her life in late 1939--was created with Salomon stating that she was driven by "the question: Whether to take her own life or undertake something wildly unusual."

Awe-inspiringly, she opted for the latter, and would subsequently find love, get married and become pregnant, only to horrifically be discovered by the Nazis, sent to Auschwitz and murdered upon arrival (her husband and unborn child also perished in the Holocaust).

Shortly before her death, with Nazis closing in, she had entrusted Life? or Theater? to a friend, saying:

"Keep this safe. It is my whole life."

After the war, the friend would give the series to Ottilie Moore, who had returned to France and to whom Charlotte had dedicated her deeply personal masterwork.

When Charlotte's surviving parents--her father, Albert, a surgeon, had re-married in her teen years to a singer named Paula Lindberg--came to the south of France looking for traces of their daughter, Moore was able to share Charlotte's astonishing work with them.

It was subsequently entrusted to the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam, who organized the exhibit of nearly 300 original Life? or Theater? paintings that is now on display at the Illinois Holocaust Museum.

The complete Life? or Theater? collection can be viewed on the Amsterdam museum's website--the images I've included, all seen in Skokie, come from there--but is definitely worthwhile for anyone able to get to the Illinois Holocaust Museum before September 21. (Visitors should allot at least an hour to fully view and read through the Salomon exhibit, and that or more for the permanent collection and other exhibits if not previously seen.)

Before telling you a bit more about the exhibit itself, I felt it necessary to summarize its back story, as Charlotte Salomon: Life? or Theater? largely defies a sound-bite description.

It is not quite what it may seem, and is formidably a case of "The whole being greater than the sum of its parts."

Although the exhibition consists of a collection of paintings by an artist whose work--according to Wikipedia--impressed Marc Chagall, it is not really an art exhibition analogous to the Art Institute of Chicago's Magritte show (which I recently reviewed) or the fine Kandinsky retrospective at the Milwaukee Art Museum (which should be the subject of my next post).

With her life cruelly cut short at age 26, and Life? or Theater? completed a few years earlier, Salomon's art does not aesthetically reach the heights of legendary painters whose works adorn top art museums.

Strictly from a visual standpoint, I felt her most adroit and compelling works were largely self-portraits, although her pieces depicting numerous people felt a bit similar--if more crudely drawn--to some by Maurice Prendergast.

But even if all of the gouaches may not individually be described as brilliant works of art, what can be is the series itself--and the simple fact that Salomon created it, demonstrating great gumption and productivity under considerable duress.

While fully appreciating why this is a wonderful exhibit for the Holocaust Museum to present, also a bit surprising in viewing it was how little of Salomon's extensive output--although the exhibition includes about 1/4 of her total Life? or Theater? paintings, the sequence of events in Salomon's somewhat fictionalized life story is fully represented--deals directly with the Holocaust, Hitler, Nazis, Jews, hiding or even desolation.

Part of this is due to the work being created prior to her life turning most dire, or any awareness of Nazi atrocities beyond their dissipating the Jews out of Germany.

Through her images, words--initially created on overlays, but subsequently within the artworks themselves; in the exhibit, English captions accompany all the paintings--and accompanying musical recommendations, Salomon chronicles her parents meeting, her own birth, her mother's death, her father's new wife, a voice teacher for her stepmother with whom Charlotte was smitten, going to live with her grandparents in France, her grandmother's suicide and the deferred revelation about how her mom and other relatives died.

The rise of Nazism is referenced only briefly, and I believe just a single swastika is shown.

Although Charlotte Salomon faced numerous tragedies and grave difficulties throughout her short life, and would die horrifically and needlessly like 6 million other Jews and a nearly equally-appalling number of non-Jews, what makes Life? or Theater? most heartbreaking isn't its storyline itself, but how and why any chance for a sequel was precluded.

Many viewers will likely be most intrigued by Charlotte's extended depiction of a wistful, then developing, romance with her stepmother's vocal coach--Amadeus Daberlohn in keeping with the series' use of fictionalized names; Alfred Wolfsohn in real-life. (Charlotte Salomon is Charlotte Kann within the artwork.)

Per one of the few extemporaneous notes the exhibit includes among the paintings, "It is unclear if Wolfsohn and Salomon actually had a love affair or if it was all imagined. Regardless, Wolfsohn encourages Salomon in her artistic pursuits."

According to Wikipedia, the term "graphic novel" was first used in 1964 and only became a prevalent term for long-form comic books after 1978.

While Life? or Theater? is far from precisely analogous, particularly to loop in young visitors who were largely absent on Sunday but who would likely identify with Charlotte's thoughts, obsessions and travails, perhaps the Illinois Holocaust Museum should--in apt venues--promote this unique exhibit as:

A pioneering graphic novel of astonishingly prolific, imaginative and tragic proportions. 

But however how one wants to see Life? or Theater?--as an art exhibition, a 2-dimensional operetta, a collection of semi-autobiographical storyboards Charlotte Salomon created to maintain her sanity, a graphic novel or simply the lasting legacy of a remarkable young woman, symbolic of history's most horrific event--the point is that it very much merits being seen.