Hungarian Heritage Review, 1989 (18. évfolyam, 1-9. szám)
1989-06-01 / 6. szám
News Nuggets HARRISBURG, P.A. - The Pennsylvania Heritage Affairs Commission recently established an ambitious agenda for promoting and enhancing the state’sethnic cultures. Four policy areas were established by the Commission for in-depth committee focus, including the delivery of human services in ethnic communities, preservation of Pennsylvania’s cultural heritage resources, the development of multi-cultural education programs, and the encouragement of productive interethnic relations. Lt. Governor Mark S. Singel, Commission Chairman, praised commissioners and staff for "taking the historic step to make the Commission pro-active and dynamic with a full-plate of policy responsibilities and programs”. The Commission also took action to: 1) - Produce a comprehensive directory of ethnic resourcesin Pennsylvania; 2) - Sponsor a statewide conference on ethnicity in Pennsylvania; 3) - Establish the "Candid Culture" photographic competition as an annual project; 4) - Engage in a joint venture with the federally-funded American Industrial Heritage Project; and 5) - Collaborate on the writing of a publication under the working title "Pride of Pennsylvania", a collection of essays written by Commissioners to showcase their own ethnic and cultural pride. "This is an energized Commission with the competence and determination to make a difference in Pennsylvania", said Singel. "We have set our goals high, and I have nodoubt that we will successfully address the many challenges and opportunities that face us". For more information on any of the activities of the Pennsylvania Heritage Affairs Commission, contact: Shalom Staub, Executive Director of the Commissionat (717) 783-8625. ______ BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - When Imre Roth left Hungary in the 1880’s for the United States, he headed straight for Chicago, which was preparing a World’s Fair at the time. By 1897, the Hungarian immigrant, now called "Emery", was back in New York where, in 1902, he founded the architectural firm of "Emery Roth & Sons". Since then, he and his sons changed the skyline of Manhattan to what it is today. The buildings they designed are monuments to Hungarian architectural genius. Now, Richard Roth, the grandson of Emery Roth, is preparing to change the skyline of Budapest with designs for 11 new hotels, some of them with 1100 rooms, that are scheduled to be built in time for the joint Vienna- Budapest World’s Fair in 1995. After having set up a five-man office in Budapest, Richard Roth said that, to make such a deal as they did with the Hungarian government, it helped to be a "Son of Hungary". "It’s a small country", he^ added, "and very proud of its people who have made it in other places". To be sure, Emery Roth & Sons have certainly "made it in other place". For they are not only one of the top architectural firms in New York, but also in the U.S.A. ! DETROIT, MICHIGAN - The Chrysler Motor Corporation hasn’t got enough trouble selling its products, it seems, so it’s picking on a guy out Aipine, Wyoming-way. The automakers have entered the ring and squared-off against a Hungarian- American, who won’t back off an inch no matter how much Lee Iacocca growls. What caused this David vs. Goliath ruckus, is Chrysler’s charge that Fred (Jeep) Molnár, a bistro owner, is guilty of violating the federal trademark law by calling his place of business "Jeep’s Bar". "Jeep" Molnár, on the other hand, countercharges that, when he was born in 1937, he was christened "Fred", but his dad insisted upon calling him "Jeep" after a cartoon character. What’s more, "Jeep" Molnár claims, his dad dubbed him "Jeep" about three years before Willys-Overland got the bright idea of calling their new four-wheel-drive vehicle the "Jeep". Now, when the legal-beagles of Chrysler saw that they were not dealing with a "wimp", they offered a compromise. But, "Jeep" was not and is not interested in backing off. "I look at it thisway", he says, "If Chrysler wants me to do this (to force him to cut it out), then I feel they should compensate me. They want me to give up a business interest. It’s my name. My dad gave it to me". Now, if Lee Iacocca doesn’t sign a hefty check payable to him, or at least give him a new "Jeep" instead, "Jeep” Molnár asserts: "I’ve decided to defend the last frontier of the American businessman"! So far, the bout is a draw. While Chrysler’s legal-beagles continue to scratch their heads looking for an equitable solution to the problem, Lee Iacocca goes on making like a TV-star selling Chrysler cars over TV. That’s what they get for picking on a Hungarian-American! ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI - If you happen to be a "Svab", or of "Svab" descent, and are interested in tracking down your "family tree", get in touch with Maryann Schicker, P.O. Box 13548, St. Louis, Missouri 63138. Miss Schicker, a Genealogist, publishes " The Hungarian - German Newsletter", a new publication devoted to the ancestors and descendants of a select group of Hungarian-German families such as, for example, the Toths, Horvaths, Siklós, Bildmans, Beckmans, Friesis, Staubs, etc. Take the Fries Family, for example: she found out that, in 1789, John Fries organized a regiment of seven hundred Pennsylvania Dutchmen to oppose collection of taxes Congress had imposed in anticipation of a French war. Crying "Damn the President, damn the Congress, damn the aristocrats", and bolstered by their wives whose weapons were pots of boiling water, they forcibly ejected the tax collectors. When President Adams sent troops to put down the insurrection, Fries was captured, tried, and sentenced to death. But, going against the wish of his political party, the president granted the condemned Hungarian-German a full (continued next page) 4 HUNGARIAN HERITAGE REVIEW JUNE 1989
