Family history films on PBS

In New York, WNET (the local PBS outlet) is screening two films depicting families and their histories. Other area PBS stations may broadcast them as well.

"The Gefilte Fish Chronicles" (April 1, 7 p.m.) is the story of the DuBroff family who came to Brooklyn in 1904. They've been celebrating the seder together for about a century. Their three surviving daughters are filmed as they prepare the 2004 seder for about 60 relatives plus friends. Work begins right after Purim, and they make everything from scratch.
“The Hidden Child” (April 12, 10 p.m.; April 8): The story of Maude Peper Dahme, a hidden child who survived the war in the Netherlands, lives in New Jersey and is active in Holocaust education.

It’s a remarkable film about a remarkable life. But there is a discordant note. Maude married a German Christian and took her children to a Lutheran Church. It is an unexpected note, since she wears a Star of David throughout her one-on-one interviews with host Sara Lee Kessler. She considers herself Jewish —“I feel comfortable in both worlds”— but I can’t help but feel that while she survived, the Nazis managed to extinguish another Jewish soul.

Read the complete article here