Listen to Recent Episodes
Episode 5: We’re Still Here
Feb 13 2025 • 51 mins
As this stage of Timothy’s journey draws to a close, he’s confronted with some key remaining questions. After the persecution and rejection that has been experienced, can there be any meaningful return to Germany for the Kuppenheims? What role can commemoration and memorialization play? And assuming it’s even possible, what form should his own reconciliation with Germany take? Timothy explores the Stolpersteine project, one of the most innovative and effective of the various Holocaust memorial projects he’s encountered. He considers whether he should accept German citizenship, to which he is entitled as a descendent of victims of the Nazis. And in all of this, Timothy is forced to look deeply within himself, asking how his family’s heritage and his own journey of discovery should now inform his identity. In a cathartic final moment, Timothy’s far-flung family reunites to honour Felix and Gertrud, Hans and Ilse, Traute and Ursula. And, in so doing, they take a step toward a larger, shared goal: never again.
An English translation of the letter by Levke Linder and Julie Hoffmann is read by Hanna Feldhaus Kent.
The Hidden Holocaust Papers: Survival. Exile. Return. is a production of The Walrus Lab in partnership with the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre. It's presented by Timothy Taylor.
The Executive Producers are Anthony Cantor and Timothy Taylor. Anthony Cantor is the showrunner. Written by Timothy Taylor and Anthony Cantor. Co-produced and edited by Eric Anderson and Sean Prpick. Technical Production, Sound Engineering and Design, and Music Supervision by Rob Julius Janson. Research and translation by Joel Pinsker.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 4: Unrequited Love
Feb 10 2025 • 72 mins
Having traced his grandparents’ and mother’s journeys from Germany to Ecuador, Timothy considers the German-Jewish family history that gave rise to both the Kuppenheims’ success and to their persecution. He begins with the archive’s oldest record, dating from 1813. This document allows him to unpack the groundbreaking career of his great-great-great-grandfather, and also to situate his ancestor in a moment of profound change for German Jews. Continuing in this vein, Timothy visits a collector of the work of his great-great-grandfather, a legendary jeweller. He then considers the tragedy of his great grandparents, visiting the sites of their successes and learning how it all came crashing down. A trip to Heidelberg to learn about his great uncle’s experience of antisemitism gives Timothy an idea for bringing his family’s story full circle.
The voice of Ursula Kuppenheim is provided by Hanna Feldhaus Kent.
The Hidden Holocaust Papers: Survival. Exile. Return. is a production of The Walrus Lab in partnership with the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre. It's presented by Timothy Taylor.
The Executive Producers are Anthony Cantor and Timothy Taylor. Anthony Cantor is the showrunner. Written by Timothy Taylor and Anthony Cantor. Co-produced and edited by Eric Anderson and Sean Prpick. Technical Production, Sound Engineering and Design, and Music Supervision by Rob Julius Janson. Research and translation by Joel Pinsker.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 3: Going Underground
Feb 03 2025 • 75 mins
Ursula’s situation grows much more dangerous in 1944, when the Nazis move to round up Mischlinge like her. Timothy learns that his mother went into hiding on rural farms and scours the archive for clues to the exact locations. Through photographs, he identifies a man who seems to have played a role in protecting Ursula. Tracking down this man’s granddaughter provides an emotional breakthrough, and, remarkably, her family’s photo albums contain pictures of Ursula from 1944. Timothy pieces together clues that lead to the town of Delbrück, where he speaks with a local historian, standing on the very spot where the 1944 photographs of his mother were taken. Through these discussions, another local man is identified who helped Jews hide from Nazis. In a second shock discovery, Timothy learns that that man’s grandson still runs the family jewellery store, and that he has some tantalizing information for Timothy. Timothy has traced his mother’s survival to the very moment she went into hiding. But at this point, the trail seems to have gone cold. Timothy speaks to a survivor who can shed light on his mother’s time underground. Following the story to the immediate post-war period, Timothy learns that Ursula’s experience of liberation was accompanied by its own tribulations.
The voices of Ursula Kuppenheim and Charlotte Knobloch are provided by Hanna Feldhaus Kent.
The Hidden Holocaust Papers: Survival. Exile. Return. is a production of The Walrus Lab in partnership with the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre. It's presented by Timothy Taylor.
The Executive Producers are Anthony Cantor and Timothy Taylor. Anthony Cantor is the showrunner. Written by Timothy Taylor and Anthony Cantor. Co-produced and edited by Eric Anderson and Sean Prpick. Technical Production, Sound Engineering and Design, and Music Supervision by Rob Julius Janson. Research and translation by Joel Pinsker.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.