Brotherly Love - The David Greenglass Story

Last July 1^st a man passed quietly away in New Jersey. He was living under an assumed name; and though he insisted that he was not ashamed of what he had done; he still never used his real name again. This is the story of David Greenglass; brother of Ethel, and brother in law to Julius; or more succinctly, the infamous Rosenbergs.

The Rosenbergs were executed on June 19, 1953 at Sing Sing prison in New York for allegedly selling the secrets of the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union. Undoubtedly they had something to do with it, but with Mr. Greenglass testifying against his own sister; and then recanting that testimony later in life; you have to wonder just who actually did transfer the documents to the Soviets.

Mr. Greenglass testified that he watched his sister type up the notes detailing the research data which he himself had been privy to while working at Los Alamos in New Mexico as part of the Manhattan Project. He was a machinist with access to the working plans for the bomb. His testimony was given in exchange for a lenient sentence. In essence, he did the spying, got his sister and brother in law involved, turned State’s Evidence against them which ensured their conviction for espionage and ultimately the death penalty. 

The Rosenberg’s had two sons; Michael and Robert. Their uncle David was instrumental in sending their parents to their death. The boys were adopted by Abe Meeropol and his wife Anne, both of New York City. Abe Meeropol was the school teacher who wrote the song “Bitter Fruit” in 1937. The song was immortalized by the great Billie Holiday in 1939. 

David Greenglass wrote a book about his life and the trial in 2001. He also gave an interview with CBS in which he stated, “As a spy who turned his family in…. I don’t care. I sleep well.” He also claimed that his sister was “stupid” and “could’ve cut a deal.”  In the 1989 Woody Allen film “Crimes and Misdemeanors” Mr. Allen says this about his arrogant brother in law, “I love him like a brother- David Greenglass.”  Let that be his epitaph.

"Strange Fruit" by Billie Holiday

There is so much I want to write about this recording by Billie Holiday. The documentary video above will answer most questions about the song. About the only thing missing here is that Commodore Records was owned by Billy Crystal's Uncle, and that Billie Holiday was a frequent dinner guest in their home while Mr. Crystal was growing up.

It was only through Commodore Records that this song saw the light of day when it did. For a more insightful view of that story read Billy Crystal's "700 Sundays", which is the story of his relationship with his father, and also encompasses the story of Commodore Records and Abe Meeropol, the New York City school teacher who wrote the song in 1937 after seeing a photograph of the lynching of two black men, Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith. The photograph haunted Mr. Meeropol for days. He wrote a poem about it under the pen name of Lewis Allan. It ranks alongside Louis Armstrong's "Black and Blue" for sheer poignancy and painful lyrics.

Both songs represent an era in American history in which there can be no pride, as there are no real winners in a struggle that should never have happened in the first place.

Interesting note; Abe Meeropol and his wife, adopted the children of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg after they were electrocuted for espionage in 1953. Whether or not the Rosenberg's were guilty of the crime made no difference to this extraordinary couple.

If you have never heard this dark and foreboding song in its entirety, here it is - sung live by Ms. Holiday;