Exile

• Episode 23: Song of Resistance

  For Karl Adler, there is nothing more powerful than music. While recovering from an injury sustained as a soldier in World War I, Karl pursues his goal of changing the way music is taught in Germany. And for a while, he’s successful – until a former student (and member of Hitler’s Brownshirts) falsely reports him for sexual harassment. Forced to start over, Karl devotes himself to creating a new cultural association for German Jews. As antisemitic laws take hold and Jews begin to flee Germany en masse, Karl continues to connect people through music – even as the world falls apart around him.  The Karl Adler collection at LBI documents his entire career, including his engagement at the Royal Court Opera of Wurttemberg, his WWI service, and his work with the Conservatory and the Jewish Culture League in Stuttgart. Records of the Jüdische Mittelstelle show Adler intervening with the Gestapo on behalf of Jewish families seeking news of their husbands and fathers who had disappeared or been arrested. A folder of materials he collected about the Jewish history of Buttenhausen includes a photograph of Adler, his voice raised in song, at the dedication of his native town’s Holocaust memorial in 1961. Learn more at lbi.org/adler. Exile is a production of the Leo Baeck Institute, New York and Antica Productions. It’s narrated by Mandy Patinkin. This episode was written by Nadia Mehdi. Our executive producers are Laura Regehr, Rami Tzabar, Stuart Coxe, and Bernie Blum. Our producer is Emily Morantz. Research and translation by Isabella Kempf. Voice acting by Cyrus Lane and David Walpole. Sound design and audio mix by Philip Wilson. Theme music by Oliver Wickham. Please consider supporting the work of the Leo Baeck Institute with a tax-deductible contribution by visiting lbi.org/exile2025. This episode of Exile is made possible in part by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, which is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future.

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• Episode 22: Simson & Co: A Family Forged in Steel

  The Simson family business has been manufacturing everything from firearms to vehicles for decades. But when the Nazis take over, they’re not happy to learn that a Jewish family is supplying weapons to the German army. After a new law forces the Simsons to relinquish their company to the Nazis, the family flees to the United States. Fifty years later, a Simson descendent makes his way back to Germany – and finds out what became of the business empire his family once led.  The LBI Archives hold much of the extensive documentation Ulrike Schulz used to create her history of the Simson company, which was published in German in 2013. Among the records available digitally at LBI are Arthur Simson’s statement to the Zurich police after fleeing there in 1936 and a folder of clippings about the expropriation of the company. Learn more at lbi.org/simson. Exile is a production of the Leo Baeck Institute, New York and Antica Productions. It’s narrated by Mandy Patinkin. This episode was written by Hana Walker-Brown. Our executive producers are Laura Regehr, Rami Tzabar, Stuart Coxe, and Bernie Blum. Our producer is Emily Morantz. Research and translation by Isabella Kempf and David Brown. Voice acting by Manuel Mairhofer. Sound design and audio mix by Philip Wilson. Theme music by Oliver Wickham. Special thanks to Jens Arndt for the use of the film The Simson Suhl Vehicle Works.  Please consider supporting the work of the Leo Baeck Institute with a tax-deductible contribution by visiting lbi.org/exile2025. This episode of Exile is made possible in part by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, which is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future.

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• Episode 21: The Heiress Who Helped End School Segregation

  Hilde Mosse comes from one of the wealthiest families in Berlin and stands to inherit an enormous fortune. But she longs for something more meaningful than the luxurious lifestyle her family provides. So Hilde decides to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. As the Nazis take power in Germany and the Mosse family is forced to flee, Dr. Hilde Mosse lands in New York having nearly lost everything.. She finds her calling treating the mental health of Black youth – and the symptoms of a racist system.  In addition to photographs, school records, and correspondence spanning Hilde Mosse’s entire lifetime, the Mosse Family Collection in the LBI Archives includes the diaries she kept between 1928 and 1934, from the ages of 16-22. Hilde’s papers are just part of the extensive holdings related to the Mosse Family at LBI. Learn more at lbi.org/hilde. Exile is a production of the Leo Baeck Institute, New York and Antica Productions. It’s narrated by Mandy Patinkin. This episode was written by Lauren Armstrong-Carter. Our executive producers are Laura Regehr, Rami Tzabar, Stuart Coxe, and Bernie Blum. Our producer is Emily Morantz. Research and translation by Isabella Kempf. Voice acting by Hannah Gelman. Sound design and audio mix by Philip Wilson. Theme music by Oliver Wickham. Please consider supporting the work of the Leo Baeck Institute with a tax-deductible contribution by visiting lbi.org/exile2025. The entire team at Antica Productions and Leo Baeck Institute is deeply saddened by the passing of our Executive Producer, Bernie Blum. We would not have been able to tell these stories without Bernie's generous support. Bernie was also President Emeritus of LBI and Exile would not exist without his energetic and visionary leadership. We extend our condolences to his entire family. May his memory be a blessing. This episode of Exile is made possible in part by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, which is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future.

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• Episode 20: From Cradle to Grave

  Jacob Jacobson dedicates his life to archiving the history of Jews in Germany. For years, nobody pays much attention—until the Nazis take power. Suddenly, Jacobson’s meticulous research is being used to destroy the people whose history he wanted to preserve. Unwittingly, Jacobson has also become an invaluable asset to the Nazis. Can he protect himself without betraying his community?  One of the most extensive collections in the LBI Archives, the Jacob Jacobson collection includes former holdings of the Gesamtarchiv der Deutschen Juden – birth, death, and marriage records, mohel books, and administrative records from Jewish communities across Germany dating back to 1660. The remaining holdings of the Gesamtarchiv are now divided between the Central Archive of the Jewish People in Jerusalem and Centrum Judaicum in Berlin. Most of what we know about Jacobson’s experiences at the Gesamtarchiv under the Gestapo and in Theresienstadt come from a fragmentary memoir in German and survivor testimony published in London in 1946, both in the LBI Archives. Learn more at lbi.org/jacobson. Exile is a production of the Leo Baeck Institute, New York and Antica Productions. It’s narrated by Mandy Patinkin. This episode was written by Marijke Peters. Our executive producers are Laura Regehr, Rami Tzabar, Stuart Coxe, and Bernie Blum. Our producer is Emily Morantz. Research and translation by Isabella Kempf. Voice acting by Manuel Mairhofer. Sound design and audio mix by Philip Wilson. Theme music by Oliver Wickham. The entire team at Antica Productions and Leo Baeck Institute is deeply saddened by the passing of our Executive Producer, Bernie Blum. We would not have been able to tell these stories without Bernie's generous support. Bernie was also President Emeritus of LBI and Exile would not exist without his energetic and visionary leadership. We extend our condolences to his entire family. May his memory be a blessing. This episode of Exile is made possible in part by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, which is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future.

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• Episode 19: Core Strength: The Story of a Pilates Icon

  Carola’s dream is to be a dancer. In 1935, she moves from Germany to Paris to pursue a career on stage. But as a young, Jewish performer, Carola struggles with a lack of fulfilling work, dwindling funds, and a rising tide of antisemitism. Carola’s strong will carries her through the perils of Nazi-occupied France, losing the love of her life, and the long journey to America – where she finds a new passion that becomes her greatest legacy. The Carola Trier Collection in the LBI Archives includes Carola’s extensive handwritten and typed notes for her unpublished memoir, publicity photographs for her contortionist on wheels act titled “Miss Carola” – and Pilates manuals. LBI also holds the archival collections of her father, the chemist Eduard Strauss, and her husband, Edgar Trier. Learn more at lbi.org/carola. Exile is a production of the Leo Baeck Institute, New York and Antica Productions. It’s narrated by Mandy Patinkin. This episode was written by Emily Morantz. Our executive producers are Laura Regehr, Rami Tzabar, Stuart Coxe, and Bernie Blum. Our producer is Emily Morantz. Research and translation by Isabella Kempf. Voice acting by Hanna Kent. Sound design and audio mix by Philip Wilson. Theme music by Oliver Wickham. The entire team at Antica Productions and Leo Baeck Institute is deeply saddened by the passing of our Executive Producer, Bernie Blum. We would not have been able to tell these stories without Bernie's generous support. Bernie was also President Emeritus of LBI and Exile would not exist without his energetic and visionary leadership. We extend our condolences to his entire family. May his memory be a blessing. This episode of Exile is made possible in part by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, which is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future.  

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