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Steven Salen, a tailor who survived the Holocaust and dressed presidents, dies at 103
NEW YORK — (JTA) — Nothing riled Steven Salen like a powerful man in a bad suit.
“‘That suit fits terribly!’” his daughter Elayne Landau recalled him as yelling at the TV, multiple times. “‘How’s he going to get elected? Elayne, send him a letter.’ He would dictate the letter. ‘I’m watching you on television. That suit fits horribly. You really look like you’re one-sided. Come see me!’
Sometimes, Landau recalled in an interview, she would even send the letter. And a couple of times there was a polite and friendly reply.
Salen, 103, died on Nov. 23 at a hospital in Manhasset, New York. He was a Holocaust survivor, a savvy war-era black marketeer, and then once landing New York, he built up a reputation as an outfitter — a “bespoke tailor,” as his family put it — to the powerful and influential, working until he was 95.
Salen loved talking about the opportunities this country gave him, but like many survivors, he didn’t begin to open up about the horrors he witnessed and suffered until late in his life — in his case, in his 90s.
He enjoyed regaling his children and grandchildren about his clients and what he designed to make them look good, recalled his granddaughter, Rachel Landau Fisher. One time, he saw an old photo of a man on a tarmac in a trim gray overcoat. Salen said he had made the coat.
The photo was of President Richard Nixon shaking hands with Chinese premier Zhou Enlai in Beijing, the launch of a history-shaking visit that thawed U.S.-China ties.
President Richard Nixon shaking hands with Chou EnLai while wearing a coat that Steven Salen told his family he’d made, Feb. 21, 1972. (U.S. National Archives)
“His grandchildren, Jake, Sofia, Rachel and Sam enjoyed his many stories, including a favorite of a Mafia client walking in on FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover in his underwear during a fitting,” his granddaughter, Landau Fisher, wrote in a remembrance.
At his home in Bayside, Queens, he kept mementos of his career: Handwritten entries in ledgers spanning decades, including names like Nixon, and his secretary of state, Henry Kissinger. A framed 1980 check from former President Gerald Ford for $3,170. Gerald Ford tie clips. A hardcover and pristine copy of Kissinger’s remembrance, “White House Years,” with an inscription, “To Steve Salen, who makes me look almost presentable.” A client list from 2000 that includes names like Hearst and Scorcese.
“Martin Scorsese was one of his last clients,” Elayne Landau said of the film director. “So was Harvey Keitel.”
Salen was an old-school, word-of-mouth tailor who started working at FL Dunn on Fifth Avenue in New York, and eventually had his own full-floor atelier on Madison Avenue and 53rd Street, at the heart of the city’s high-fashion district.
In 2011, when Salen already topped 90, the New York style blog “The Trad” profiled his shop. It began, “Back in the ’50s, there were 300-400 bespoke tailors in NYC. Today — there might be 30.”
“They don’t have a web site. They sure as hell don’t have any marketing savvy. Steven can’t even figure out his phone. But they can build you a suit. In fact, they build suits for a lotta shops in NYC who claim to build their own,” the blog reported. “You get chalked up. And then what? Where does your suit go? China? Mexico? Turkey? Or, to the 11th floor of an office building in midtown Manhattan.” (“It ain’t cheap,” the blogger advises.)
Occasionally Salen would pop up in an aside in an article about the rarefied occupants of New York’s social stratosphere, as when the New York Times Magazine profiled antiquarians Leigh and Leslie Keno in 1986 (they are now famed as appraisers on PBS’s “Antiques Road Show”).
“After years of searching for the perfect tailor, they finally found one they feel meets their specifications, a man named Steven Salen,” the Times said. “He passed the brothers’ acid test for tailors by spotting immediately that each twin has an arm that’s a quarter of an inch longer than the other.”
Steve Salen at his granddaughter Rachel Landau’s wedding in 2020. (Family)
Salen would not tell his children about his life before his arrival in the United States unless he had to explain the marks his suffering had left on his body.
“He told the story of how, to his amazement, he twisted off his frozen toes and didn’t even feel it,” Elayne Landau wrote in a eulogy, describing the time her father spent on the Russian front as a slave of the Nazi war machine. “We had seen his feet, you see, so he had to say something about that.”
“He was a Holocaust survivor, but as much as that experience shaped who he was, he did not want to be defined by it,” she wrote. “I understood this because growing up in a community of refugees, we didn’t ask these questions and for the most part, people didn’t offer. People needed to move on.”
He worked ceaselessly, Landau said in the interview. “I remember on Sundays we used to go to Schwartzbaum, which was a woolen shop on the Lower East Side on Delancey street to buy cloth, so this was a seven-day-a-week thing for him,” she said.
And then, in his 90s he began to open up, and Elayne Landau saw an opportunity to get close to the father who spent her childhood working.
“He remarked frequently that he can’t believe he made it,” she wrote in her eulogy. “And he began to want to talk about it. Sadly, by this time, well into his 90s, he could not recall many specifics. But with the help of the few reminiscences that I’d written down through the years, Rachel and I were able to piece together the outlines of his story.”
He was born Zoltan Salomon in Nelipyno, Czechoslovakia in 1919. In 1939, in what he would later describe as some of the best years of his life, he was learning tailoring at a trade school run by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.
Then the Nazis arrived and they deported Salen. He never saw his parents or seven of his 11 siblings again. Russians liberated him in 1943. “He told me how the Russian soldiers gave the Jews guns to shoot their German captors,” Elayne Landau recalled. “He said some people did.”
He joined the Czechoslovakian army and became a supply sergeant, which required sharp business skills to negotiate the black market. A fellow black marketeer had a cousin, Frantisca, who was 18; she and Salen were married within three weeks. They arrived in New York in 1949, and Salen landed a job as a tailor almost immediately.
His wife, who took the American name Frances, predeceased him, and so did his son, Jeff, a founder of the seminal 1970s punk band, Tuff Darts, who died of a heart attack in 2008. He is survived by his daughter, Elayne, son-in-law Matthew Landau, daughter-in-law Diana Salen and his four grandchildren.
“He really wanted to be defined by his American life,” Elayne Landau said. “He was so grateful for being here you could never say anything bad about against America.”
His granddaughter, Rachel Landau Fisher, said he and her grandmother drew slightly different pleasures from their American experience.
“He and his wife were most honored to have tea with First Lady Betty Ford after fitting the president at the White House,” she said. “His happiest place was at a poker table in the Catskills’ Concord Hotel.”
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Indiana University Discloses Institutional Ties to Hamas-Linked Group
Indiana University campus on Dec. 2, 2025. Photo: USA TODAY NETWORK via Reuters Connect
Indiana University disclosed the results of an internal investigation this week into a controversial partnership with the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative, confirming reports that the organization maintains ties to the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.
In a letter dated April 3 to Indiana state lawmakers, university officials said the inquiry was launched after concerns were raised about the organization’s coordination with the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. The review focused on the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative’s connections with the nonprofit group United Mission Relief and Development as well as entities linked with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a militant group from northwest Syria.
Formerly an al-Qaeda affiliate, HTS was proscribed by the US government until last year, when it’s designation as a foreign terrorist group was revoked.
Indiana University’s Muslim Philanthropy Initiative (MPI) operates as part of the school’s philanthropy school. MPI focuses on research, education, and professional training related to Muslim philanthropic traditions, an area it describes as historically underexamined in academic and nonprofit sectors.
The initiative offers workshops on fundraising and philanthropic leadership, with an emphasis on Islamic and Muslim charitable practices. Since its founding, MPI says it has trained more than 3,500 nonprofit professionals across more than 30 countries, disseminating programming which includes webinars and an annual symposium dedicated to contemporary Muslim philanthropy and civil society. The initiative’s stated mission is to equip nonprofit leaders, organizations, and communities with research and practical tools to better understand and develop Muslim philanthropy.
According to the university’s findings, the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative worked in 2025 with United Mission for Relief and Development to organize training sessions in Istanbul and Indonesia. That organization recommended Hayat Yolu as a local partner. At the time, according to the university, staff relied on assurances that the group was legitimate and conducted its own limited vetting.
However, on March 12, the US Treasury Department designated Hayat Yolu, effectively barring Americans from engaging in transactions with the organization. The designation raised alarm about the university’s prior involvement, even though the trainings occurred months earlier. The department also issued a statement describing Hayat Yolu as one of three Turkish nonprofit organizations that “have provided significant material support to Hamas.”
According to the statement, overseas “sham charities” such as Hayat Yolu are a “key element” in how Hamas fundraises. The department added that the group provides banking and financial support for the Muslim Brotherhood, some of whose branches have been designated as terrorist groups.
Indiana University stressed that its Office of the General Counsel determined no state or federal laws were violated, noting that all activity predated the Treasury prohibiting American involvement with the group. The university also stated it immediately ceased any engagement once the designation was announced and suspended related programming.
Still, the findings highlight what critics may see as a troubling lapse in judgment at a time when US institutions face increasing scrutiny over indirect links to extremist networks. Pro-Israel advocates and national security analysts have long warned that charitable and educational partnerships can be exploited by actors connected to terrorism, particularly in regions where oversight is limited.
The university itself acknowledged shortcomings in its report. Investigators found that Indiana University relied too heavily on decentralized vetting processes and government lists, rather than conducting deeper, centralized due diligence on high-risk international partnerships.
In response, Indiana University outlined a series of reforms aimed at preventing similar situations. These include expanding the authority of its Research Security Office, implementing stricter review procedures for international partnerships, and requiring additional training for faculty and staff involved in global programs.
The university is also reviewing oversight of the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative specifically, including whether to integrate its activities more closely into other institutional structures to ensure tighter control.
Indiana state Rep. Andrew Ireland spearheaded the effort to probe MPI and expressed appreciation for the university taking steps to address the issue.
BIG UPDATE: After our letter demanding answers, Indiana University confirmed its Muslim Philanthropy Initiative partnered with and accepted travel benefits from a Hamas-linked “sham charity.”
Now IU is:
halting all training activities and new partnerships
— Andrew Ireland (@AndrewIrelandIN) April 6, 2026
The episode comes amid heightened sensitivity in the United States over any institutional ties to organizations operating in conflict zones or linked to extremist groups hostile to the US, Israel and their allies. While the university maintains it acted in good faith based on the information available at the time, the case underscores how quickly reputational and security risks can emerge.
Indiana University officials said they are committed to ensuring future partnerships “demonstrate transparency and integrity.”
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Zelenskyy Marks Passover With Jewish Leaders, Receives First Ukrainian-Language Torah
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy holds the first-ever Ukrainian-language Torah while meeting with rabbis and Jewish community leaders to celebrate Passover, honoring the resilience of Jewish communities amid the ongoing war. Photo: Screenshot
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with rabbis and other Jewish leaders from across the country to celebrate Passover, receiving the first-ever Ukrainian-language Torah and honoring the enduring strength of Jewish communities amid the ongoing conflict with Russia.
On Monday, Zelenskyy met with members of Ukraine’s Jewish community for the annual Passover celebration, the fifth held amid Russia’s ongoing invasion. He honored the holiday, which commemorates the Israelites’ liberation from Egypt, and praised the community’s courage and resilience in the face of war.
“Today, this is very important for Ukraine. Freedom is what we are fighting for as a nation, and we are grateful for your support — not only of your communities but of our people and our state. Your solidarity matters greatly,” Zelenskyy said.
On the occasion of Passover, I met with rabbis from Ukrainian cities and representatives of Jewish communities.
Passover is about the triumph of freedom. This is exactly what all of Ukraine is fighting for today. I thanked the Jewish community for standing united with us in this… pic.twitter.com/eyAzmcRR1g
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) April 6, 2026
Despite the immense challenges facing Ukraine, Meier Stambler, head of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine (FJCU), emphasized that the country’s statehood and freedom remain intact and that the Jewish community will continue praying and working toward the nation’s ultimate victory.
“Freedom begins within each of us, and we are proud to live in Ukraine during this challenging time. It is an honor to be part of this country, having built our lives and families here, and we remain confident in a just peace and true victory,” Stambler said.
Chief Rabbi of Ukraine Moshe Asman also emphasized the nation’s resilience and hope, urging Ukrainians to stay united in the face of the ongoing war.
“The war will end, and there will be a victory for Ukraine. God bless us. All regimes must fall – and then the entire axis of evil will crumble,” Asman said.
On Passover, the FJCU, together with Chabad emissaries — religious representatives of the global Hasidic movement — provided matzah and holiday kits to over 50,000 Jewish households across Ukraine and organized dozens of large public Seders that drew large crowds.
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‘Antisemitism Is Repellent and Dangerous’: Catholic University of America Rejects Accusations of Anti-Jewish Bias
A general view of the Catholic University of America (CUA) campus in Washington, DC. Photo: Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC denied that recent conflicts with its Students Supporting Israel (SSI) chapter were indicative of institutional antisemitism in a recent statement to The Algemeiner which proclaimed its support for Israel and staunch opposition to rising anti-Jewish hatred in academia and across the Western world.
As previously reported, SSI’s leader, Felipe Avila, publicly accused the university of withholding approval to host events on combating antisemitism and defending Israeli security unless it agreed to feature “opposing viewpoints,” a stipulation that he said would require platforming antisemites or declining to hold events at all.
The cause was picked up by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), which sent the university a blistering demand letter accusing of it chilling free speech and violating its values.
Last week, the university told The Algemeiner that it was sensitive to the appearance created by the dispute and had never been antisemitic or anti-Israel. The school stressed that it would continue to provide robust support for Jewish student groups on campus while holding other events which raise awareness of antisemitism in a manner consistent with its tradition of civil dialogue.
“The Catholic University of America welcomes people of all faiths and stands firmly against antisemitism. We take seriously the safety and dignity of our Jewish students and every member of our community,” a chief communications official said. “Antisemitism is repellent and dangerous. We are committed to confronting it in ways consistent with our Catholic mission and belief in the dignity of every human person.”
The statement came weeks after Pope Leo XIV in January marked International Holocaust Remembrance Day with a statement reaffirming the Catholic Church’s “unwavering” opposition to antisemitism.
The university has held two major events on antisemitism this academic year, including a “Discussion on Campus Antisemitism” in March and “The Church and the Jewish Community in Our Age: A Conversation” in November, with the latter being attended by Catholic bishops, Jewish rabbis, and an official representing the American Jewish Committee (AJC). Its faculty have published commentaries on antisemitism and participated in litigating antisemitism lawsuits brought during encampments of the 2023-2024 academic year.
Meanwhile, the school’s president, Peter Kilpatrick, was one of the few higher education chief executives to condemn unequivocally Hamas’s “kidnapping and maiming of so many innocent people” during the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel.
“Hamas is a terrorist organization and seeks the annihilation of the state of Israel,” Kilpatrick wrote in a letter to the campus community on Oct. 12, 2023. “Its abhorrent acts of terrorism against Israel merit the strongest condemnation. There is no justification for the acts of violence against innocent civilians that we witnessed this week. As the Holy Father [Pope Francis at the time] noted Wednesday, Israel had a right to self-defense.”
A source familiar with the situation on campus told The Algemeiner that the university’s principal concern with SSI events is their tendency to cause shouting matches and confrontations which require the intervention of campus security, adding that its student leader — who once told Inside Higher Ed, “We haven’t been shy about embracing controversy” — is a keen activist. The source also noted that a communication suggesting that SSI would be forced to platform an anti-Zionist was made in error and not reflective of university policy.
However, the university has seen some strong expressions of anti-Zionism. In October, the student government considered a resolution, sponsored by Senator Joseph Ortiz, to ban pro-Israel organizations from campus on the grounds that they support a country “actively pursuing inexcusable evil, such as genocide or terrorism.” The resolution was ultimately tabled.
“We have invited Students Supporting Israel to submit a restructured proposal, and to work within University processes to host a thoughtful conversation,” the university spokesperson said of the recent controversy. “As a private, religious institution, Catholic University is well within its rights to approve or deny any speaker request. We are confident we’ll reach a resolution quickly through good faith dialogue.”
The university’s statements come at a time when some Catholic organizations in the US and outspoken Catholic commentators, such as Candace Owens and Nick Fuentes, have been promoting antisemitic conspiracy theories and using their faith as a reason to oppose Zionism.
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.