Robert Edsel's Blog

EXCLUSIVE

George Clooney has started to work on his next project, writing, directing and starring in a big-budget movie about the men who chased down the stolen art of Europe during World War II, he told TheWrap on Saturday.

“The Monuments Men,” which Clooney is co-writing with his producing partner Grant Heslov, will tell the story of a hand-picked group of art experts chosen by the U.S. government to retrieve artwork stolen by the Nazis.

“I’m excited about it,” Clooney told TheWrap at the Palm Springs Film Festival on Saturday. “It’s a fun movie because it could be big entertainment. It’s a big budget, you can’t do it small — it’s landing in Normandy.”

The movie will be based on the book “The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History,” by Robert M. Edsel.

Click Here to Read More: http://www.thewrap.com/movies/column-post/george-clooney-direct-star-monuments-men-about-stolen-nazi-art-exclusive-34177

Monuments officer, Lt. Robert A. Koch, died on November 11 after a lengthy illness.  Koch served with the U.S. Army from 1942 to 1946. While working with the MFAA, he was stationed at the Office of Military Government for Wurtenberg-Baden in Germany. Koch signed the Wiesbaden Manifesto, a document outlining the MFAA opposition of the removal of German-owned artworks from the Wiesbaden Collecting Point to the United States.

Koch became a prominent Northern Renaissance scholar earning his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of North Carolina in 1940 and 1942, respectively. Following his military service, he attended Princeton University for continued graduate studies. In 1948, he received a Master’s of Fine Arts and began working on his Ph.D., which he received in 1954. Koch’s teaching career began at Princeton in the fall of 1948 in the Department of Art and Archaeology.  He was named full professor in 1966. In 1950, he accepted the additional position of assistant director at the Princeton Art Museum. Koch also became Curator of Prints and Drawings in 1961. In 1990, Koch retired from the university and was named professor emeritus.

Among his many honors, Koch was awarded a Fulbright Research Grant in 1956 to study art history in Belgium, and later received a grant from the American Council of Learned Societies in 1961. He was a member of the College Art Association, serving as its director from1961 to 1963. He is also the author of several books, including Joachim Patinir (1968) and Hans Baldung Grien; Eve, the Serpent and Death (1974).

With the passing of Mr. Koch, there are now just seven living Monuments officers.

Veterans and Monuments Men Bernard Taper, Harry Ettlinger and Horace Apgar and President of the Monuments Men Foundation Robert Edsel (second from right) at the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.

During World War II, while tens of thousands of Allied troops were flooding the beaches of Normandy on D-Day, the Monuments Men were impatiently waiting to cross the English Channel for their chance to contribute. For Monuments Man James Rorimer, future director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the gravity of the situation gripped him that day as he wrote in a letter we found while researching my last book:

“We are told that the invasion of Western Europe by overwhelming forces is underway…Now I am thinking of the combat troops and the task which is theirs. We older men are anxious on the one hand to help deal the death blow to tyranny, and on the other we think of our families at home and the obligations which we have as husbands, fathers, sons, and members of the peace-time community.”

-James Rorimer Letter to his Family, June 6, 1944

Over the last few months, I have been conducting research for my next book, Saving Italy, which will also rely on the letters the Monuments Men wrote to their families. One of the first things that occurred to me while reading these letters, was the extent to which the thoughts and feelings conveyed reflect their age and maturity. The Monuments Men had an average age of 40; a few had even fought in World War I. For the most part, these heroes were not the fearless young men who went to war before their adult lives had really begun. In contrast, these men had accomplished careers, they had wives and children, they had learned lessons from life’s experiences, and they had everything to lose. Reading their letters always reminds me about their commitment to saving the cultural world and its great artistic treasures we all cherish, and the courage of their convictions in volunteering to serve.

So today, I would like to thank the Monuments Men for their service, and all of the Veterans and service men and women of our country. Their cumulative sacrifices enable us to live the lives we lead. It is a silent sacrifice, one without complaint, as these brave soldiers “just do their job” out of duty and honor to our nation. We can’t say thank you enough to these remarkable men and women. We celebrate your bravery today and every day.

Click Here to Watch a Video about The Veterans Story

Museum historian Nancy Edwards, left, and author Robert Edsel were both instrumental in determining the history of a bust of Isabella d’Este at the Kimbell Art Museum. The bust was found among articles collected by Adolf Hitler.  Star-Telegram / Ron T. Ennis

Robert Edsel, Nancy Edwards and the Kimbell Museum were instrumental in determining the provenance history behind a bust that is on display at the Kimbell Museum in Fort Worth, Texas.  The article that appeared in the Fort Worth Star Telegram explains how Robert became aware that this bust was in a salt mine at Alt Aussee during and after World War II due to Adolf Hitler’s desire to own it and its incredible travels from auction houses in Europe and America and eventually settle in Fort Worth.

To read the full article as it appeared in the newspaper, click here: Fort Worth Star Telegram – Mystery Woman

To read the full article as it appears on their website, click here: DFW.com – Was Kimbell Statue Hiding a Sordid Sales History?

Please forward this article to all your family and friends.

Watch  Walt Maciborski’s special report about Robert Edsel talk about the Monuments Men and the greatest untold story of World War II on The 33 News at 9pm CST. Robert will also talk about his continued search for displaced cultural items from World War II. Click the link to watch the trailer and for local listing.

General Eisenhower and his wife, Mamie, departing the Met.
(photo courtesy of Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries.)

The Monuments Men Foundation is proud to announce the discovery of an audio recording of General Eisenhower speaking about the importance of art and its protection during war.

The speech was delivered at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City on April 2, 1946 at an event in which General Eisenhower was presented with an Honorary Life Fellowship from the museum with a citation that read:

“To Dwight D. Eisenhower, soldier, diplomat and statesman, through whose irreplaceable art treasures were saved for future generations.”

Award recipients with Texas Governor Rick Perry, including Bill Paxton,
Bob Schieffer, Barbara Smith Conrad and ZZ Top.

Other articles in this newsletter: the announcement of a new book coming out in Spring of 2013, Remembering Maria Altmann, and Robert Edsel presented with Texas Medal of Arts.

Click On the Link to Read The Monuments Men Newsletter

General Eisenhower Talking at Metropolitan Museum of Art on April 2, 1946 about the importance of saving art and culture during World War II.

An amazing discovery of historical significance was recently found, an audio recording from April 2, 1946 that has General Eisenhower specifically talking about his decision to safeguard the world’s cultural treasures during World War II. Eisenhower gave this speech at the Metropolitan Museum of Art when he was honored with a life fellowship. His words reiterate both his actions during the war and America’s actions after the war in dealing with cultural items, both domestically and internationally. It is a unique occurrence to hear Eisenhower speak only on the topic of art.

The Associate Press wrote an article that explaining the finding and its significance that is running on Yahoo! News. Click the link to read the article.

You can listen to Eisenhower’s entire speech on the newly redesigned Monuments Men Foundation website, www.monumentsmenfoundation.org.

Robert Edsel is talking about the “Monuments Men” on “Travel With Rick Steves” radio program this weekend. He is chatting with an original “Monuments Men”, Harry Ettlinger,  a German-born Jew whose family escaped to America and now helps repatriate the treasures of Europe from caves and castles where plunder was stashed.

To find out what station airs “Travel with Rick Steves”, click the link http://www.ricksteves.com/radio/whereitairs.htm.

If you missed the broadcast of this episode, you can still listen to the program through Rick Steves’ Program Archive: http://www.ricksteves.com/radio/archive.htm. The program will be available on February 20th.

About the Program

“Travel with Rick Steves” is a fun, hour-long, practical talk show with guest experts and questions from travelers. This weekly program is a lively conversation between travelers and the experts as we learn to

If you want to learn more about “Travel With Rick Steves” radio program, click here: http://www.ricksteves.com/radio/radio_menu.htm.

Mr. Robert M. Edsel and Ms. Maria Altmann

On February 7th, 2011, Ms. Maria Altmann passed away at the age of 94. She escaped Nazi-occupied Vienna and returned to Austria in 1998 to wage a triumphant fight to recover Gustav Klimt’s Portrait of Adele Block-Bauer, an iconic portrait of her remarkable aunt.

To watch a short video to learn more about her remarkable story, please click the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsSnR0IygJ8

To learn more about her remarkable story, please click the link: http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-maria-altmann-20110208,0,493390,full.story

We will write more about this woman’s remarkable life in the coming days.

Ms. Maria Altmann in front of her aunt's portrait "Portrait of Adele Block-Bauer" by Gustav Klimt

Dear Supporters,

To continue celebrating the release of The Monuments Men paperback edition, we are having a book giveaway contest. Here is how you enter to win your free copy of The Monuments Men:

1. Go to our blog www.monumentsmen.com/blog

2. Under the comment section leave your favorite Monuments Men story or your favorite WWII story. One story will win every day for the next two weeks!

It is that simple. Please share your stories with us for a chance to win.

Thanks,

Robert Edsel