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In emotional ceremony, heirs to ‘Cabaret’ inspiration Fritz Grünbaum take back 7 Egon Schiele works stolen by the Nazis
(JTA) — They had seen the pictures before, in the collections of the museums that owned them until earlier this year. But the heirs of Fritz Grünbaum, a Viennese cabaret performer killed in the Holocaust, said the works had conveyed a powerful effect now that they had been restored to Grünbaum’s estate.
“When viewing these artworks, imagine Fritz and Elisabeth in their lively Vienna apartment, singing, dancing, cracking jokes,” Timothy Reif, a distant relative, said in his remarks during a somber ceremony in downtown Manhattan Wednesday afternoon. He was referring to Grünbaum’s wife, who is presumed to have been killed by the Nazis in 1942. “Remembering their lives defeats Hitler’s plan to erase this brave Jewish man’s name from the book of history.”
Reif and other heirs and co-executors had been called to the ceremony to receive seven pieces by the 20th-century Austrian expressionist Egon Schiele that were part of Grünbaum’s vast art collection. They were seized earlier this year from a number of prestigious museums and collections by the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, as part of an effort to repatriate art stolen by the Nazis.
“On behalf of my entire family, I offer our deep gratitude to each of you here today, for all you are doing and have done for the cause of justice,” Reif said.
Grünbaum was killed in the Dachau concentration camp in 1941, and the significance of the ceremony’s timing, during the Days of Repentance between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, was apparent to the attendees.
“It’s not lost on me where we are on the calendar that our ceremony coincides with the Jewish High Holidays, the time of reflection,” Bragg said to a room of about 100 attendees Wednesday afternoon. “This ceremony has reminded me that despite the horrors of the tragic destruction caused by the Nazis, it is never too late to teach the world about incredible people like Mr. Grünbaum.”
Onlookers view works by Egon Schiele from Fritz Grünbaum’s extensive private collection, now returned to his heirs in a ceremony in New York on Sep. 20, 2023. (Jackie Hajdenberg)
David Frankel, one of the co-executors of Grünbaum’s estate, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that the timing “heightens the sense of awe surrounding all of this and the emotional investment that the DA’s office and assistant DA [Matthew] Bogdanos has put into this.”
On Thursday, Grünbaum’s heirs will give the works to Christie’s, which will auction them for charity later this year. The profits are set to go to artists in underserved communities, similar to a previous auction of restituted artworks that Grünbaum’s estate organized in the fall of 2022.
Grünbaum was said to be the inspiration for the master of ceremonies character in the Broadway musical and subsequent film “Cabaret.” In addition to his work as a comedian, librettist, film and radio star, Grünbaum was also known for his political activity and outspoken opposition to antisemitism. In 1910, he famously slapped an Austrian officer after the officer made antisemitic remarks, and then was challenged to a duel in which he was injured. He later became a vocal critic of the Nazis in a Viennese daily newspaper.
“They should remember him as not only as a great artist, but also an anti-Nazi,” Frankel said. “Someone who stands up for human rights and was courageous enough to risk his life to do it.”
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The post In emotional ceremony, heirs to ‘Cabaret’ inspiration Fritz Grünbaum take back 7 Egon Schiele works stolen by the Nazis appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.