Curt Herzstark bio

But in '43 two people from our factory were arrested and one was decapitated. They had listened to English radio stations and transcribed the broadcasts on a typewriter and passed it on. This was discovered because of the typed copy. The typewriter was identified and the owner, he was one of our mechanics, his name was Zur, he was beheaded. The... See more

respect my paternal grandmother above everyone. She was widowed in 1872 and was the daughter of a doctor. In order to support herself she took on the profession of a midwife. I think, that she did have a university degree. She was a woman who knew life with all of its good and bad sides. I was in her care until her death, until I was nine years... See more

I went first to school and then to the Middle School and then High School. In High School, I took Latin and English. As I was finishing up the Lower Middle School, my father said that it did not make sense to finish High School and to waste years studying technology there. Because, what was taught in our field at that time was uninteresting. A... See more

I was born on July 26, 1902 in Vienna. I, Curt Herzstark, am the oldest.

hen I will begin in German. I was born in Vienna on the 26th of January in 1902, a child of the parent Samuel Jakob Herzstark and Marie Herzstark. The marriage was a civil marriage, because my father was born a Jew, and my mother was a true Christian. But they were both free spirits. My father left Judaism but he had no affiliation and remained... See more

And then the first World War started, and the difficulties began. Unfortunately after the war began, the production of calculating machines was no longer possible. Many of the personnel had to enlist and the factory had to produce military equipment, specifically Schrapnel ignitors. This type of work requires precision. The ignitor is suspended... See more

So

Now comes... the CURTA comes in for the first time, no? I knew how in principle to build a machine for the hand in 1938. Naturally the moment that Hitler came all of this was put aside. First, we were not allowed to build any more calculating machines. Secondly, I said to myself, this is a living for me perhaps if I emigrate or something. Aside... See more

HERZSTARK: Yes, we had our basic four function machines. This machine, our machine, could automatically multiply and divide. But we did not produce large numbers of machines because we did not have the capital. We also had electric machines of which we produced about 10-12 in a month. Then we had the Astra to sell and then, of course, the... See more