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68-619: The founding members of the Philadelphia String Quartet were all members of the Philadelphia Orchestra under the baton of Eugene Ormandy . They included Veda Reynolds , first violin, Irwin Eisenberg , second violin, Alan Iglitzin , viola, and Charles Brennand, cello. In 1961, the group was appointed quartet in residence at University of Pennsylvania . The original quartet made its New York City debut at Carnegie Hall during

136-590: A champion of liberty, thereby unleashing a brief outburst of pro-Hungarian emotions. He left embittered because his refusal to oppose slavery alienated his natural constituency, and his long-term impact was minimal. By 1860, 2,710 Hungarians lived in the U.S., and at least 99 of them fought in the Civil War. Their motivations were not so much antislavery as a belief in democracy, a taste for adventure, validation of their military credentials, and solidarity with their American neighbors. An increase of immigration from Hungary

204-621: A degree in philosophy. Motivated by promises made by a dubious impresario , he emigrated to the US in 1921. Until 1918 Ormandy used the stage name "Eugen Blau" in public performances, "Eugen" being the German equivalent of "Jenő". About 1919, after the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, he used "Jenő B. Ormándy". At the time of his arrival in America in 1921, he was using "Jeno Blau", but by 1925 he

272-577: A freelancer) for a dance recital at Carnegie Hall by Isadora Duncan ; Judson later said, "I came to see a dancer and instead heard a conductor." At Judson's instigation Ormandy substituted for the indisposed Arturo Toscanini with the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1931. This led to an appointment as musical director of the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra , a post he held from 1931 to 1936. In this post he became nationally known in

340-492: A guest conductor with other orchestras in Europe, Australia, South America and East Asia. Ormandy built on what Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians calls "Stokowski's voluptuous 'Philadelphia Sound'" and added further polish and precision. Despite, or even because of, this, among many music critics and others, as Harold C. Schonberg opined in a 1967 study, "there was a singular reluctance in musical circles to admit him into

408-619: A murderer in Fritz Lang 's M and went on to play many antagonistic villain roles. Actor Béla Lugosi played Count Dracula in the stage version and subsequent film of Bram Stoker 's classic. Academy Award winner Paul Lukas is perhaps best remembered for his acclaimed role in the film Watch on the Rhine and for his portrayal as Professor Aronnax in Walt Disney 's 1954 film version of Jules Verne 's 1870 novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under

476-565: A position it held until 1982. A fiscal crisis at the university ended their 17-year long contract. In 1968, the US State Department invited the quartet to become the first American string quartet to perform in India. The two-month tour covered the entire country, with concerts played to great acclaim in 14 cities. During its 30-year tenure, the quartet repeatedly toured the world and recorded an extensive chamber music repertoire. From 1976-77,

544-604: A prominent dermatologist , found the Erno Laszlo Institute for cosmetic research. Andor Szentivanyi discovered "The Beta Adrenergic Theory of Asthma." In mathematics, Paul Halmos contributed significantly to probability theory , statistics , and logic . Cornelius Lanczos developed numerous techniques for mathematical calculations, of which the Lanczos algorithm and Lanczos approximation are named after him. Jewish mathematician John von Neumann , acknowledged as one of

612-688: A rather gingerly manner". He conducted much less new music than his predecessor, Stokowski, had done, but did not ignore it, and gave the premieres of works including Rachmaninoff 's Symphonic Dances , which is dedicated to him and the orchestra, Bartók's Piano Concerto No.3 , Britten's Diversions for Piano Left Hand and Orchestra and music by Ginastera , Hindemith , Martinů , Milhaud , Villa-Lobos and Webern . He did not neglect American composers, and among premieres he gave were works by Samuel Barber , David Diamond , Walter Piston , Ned Rorem , William Schuman , Roger Sessions and Virgil Thomson . Schonberg concluded his study of Ormandy with

680-527: A separation," Mrs. Ormandy reported. However, she later filed for divorce, decreed 4 August 1947 "on grounds of extreme mental cruelty." Following the divorce she joined the faculty at the Philadelphia Music Academy while announcing plans to resume her performing. On 15 May 1950 Ormandy married Margaret Frances Hiltsch (1909–1998) in a civil ceremony in Philadelphia. In a statement released by

748-629: Is estimated to be around 4 million. The largest concentration is in the Greater Cleveland Metropolitan Area in Northeast Ohio . At one time, the presence of Hungarians within Cleveland proper was so great that the city was known as the "American Debrecen ," with one of the highest concentrations of Hungarians in the world. In 1583, Hungarian poet Stephanus Parmenius joined Humphrey Gilbert 's expedition to North America with

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816-700: Is ethnic Hungarian; he still speaks some Hungarian today. Peter R. Orszag , the Director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Obama has Hungarian roots. Besides U.S. Representative Lantos there were other Hungarians in the Congress, like Ernest Istook , Joseph M. Gaydos , Eugene Jerome Hainer or Ernie Konnyu . Current U.S. Ambassador to Myanmar, Thomas Vajda , is also of Hungarian descent. Others include famous Holocaust survivor Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel known for his activism and for writing

884-555: Is in New York City . Wallingford, Connecticut , has a vibrant Hungarian-American Club and community. Columbus has a Hungarian American neighborhood named Hungarian Village . The Fifth Ward of New Brunswick, New Jersey remains the traditional heart of the Hungarian community. Hungarian-born population in the U.S. since 2010: Estimated population by state according to the 2018 American Community Survey . Estimated percentage of

952-635: Is the former No. 1 professional tennis player in the world. Joe Namath is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame , as Larry Csonka or Lou Groza , too. Notable players were the Gogolak brothers, especially Pete Gogolak , who invented the soccer style kicking. Famous coach was Don Shula . Former Mr. Universe Mickey Hargitay hit the spotlight when he married Jayne Mansfield . Olympic gymnastics coach Béla Károlyi coached nine Olympic champions, fifteen world champions, and six U.S. champions. Al Hrabosky

1020-502: The Rugrats series, a popular children's show. Animator George Pal was known for producing landmark science fiction films , considered to be first to introduce the genre to film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences founded the "George Pal Lecture on Fantasy in Film" series in his memory. In music, Miklós Rózsa composed numerous film scores ; perhaps his most recognizable score

1088-544: The Abel Prize known for his contributions in several mathematical fields. In art, Bauhaus artist Marcel Breuer became known as one of the first modernists for his modular construction and simple forms. Another Bauhaus artist László Moholy-Nagy , highly influenced by Russian constructivism , helped introduce the movement to the United States; he was a strong advocate of the integration of technology and industry into

1156-579: The Academy Award for Best Directing four times, finally winning for Casablanca , considered by many critic polls to be one of the greatest films ever made . George Cukor , who was of Jewish descent, won an Academy Award for Best Director for My Fair Lady . King Vidor was nominated for the same Academy Award five times. Independent directors and the films that have brought them acclaim include Nimród Antal for his cult film Kontroll ; Peter Medak , infamous for his B-movies ; and László Benedek for

1224-515: The Golden Globe Award -winning film rendition of Death of a Salesman . Joe Eszterhas wrote the screenplay for Basic Instinct , dubbed a cult classic. Andrew G. Vajna produced the Die Hard , Rambo and The Terminator sequels. Ladislas Farago wrote numerous books on World War II espionage, including a screenplay for the film Tora! Tora! Tora! . Animator Gábor Csupó created

1292-563: The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1937 for discovering the biological process of Vitamin C in the human body. Georg von Békésy won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his research on the mammalian ear. George Andrew Olah won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his research on carbocations , and later hydrocarbons and their applicability to ethanol fuel. Ernő László ,

1360-516: The Satmar Hasidic dynasty , which originated in Hungary) where 18.9% of the total population claimed Hungarian as their ancestry. Other places with over 10% are Fairport Harbor, Ohio (14.1%) and West Pike Run Township, Pennsylvania (11.7% ). About one hundred other municipalities have more than 5% of Hungarian-American residents, but the highest number of Hungarian Americans living in the same place

1428-641: The Soviet Union , and again, Hungarians rose up in revolution. Like the 1848 revolution, the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 failed and led to the emigration of 200,000 "56-ers" fleeing persecution after the revolution, 40,000 of whom found their way to the United States. There was a renewed economic migration after the end of communism in Hungary during the 1990s to 2000s. According to the 2010 U.S. Census , there were 1,563,081 persons of Hungarian ancestry in

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1496-457: The United States as of 2006, with − according to 2000 census data − 1,398,724 of them indicating Hungarian as their first ancestry. Estimates of the number of Hungarian Americans in the United States exceed 4 million, but also include the large number of ethnic Hungarian immigrants, most of whom have emigrated from Romania, the former Czechoslovakia, or the former Yugoslavia. The states with

1564-412: The miniseries Shogun with Richard Chamberlain ) and made over 30 films including the cult classic The Warriors . Director Frank Darabont , nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director three times, is most popular for Stephen King adaptations, including The Shawshank Redemption , ranked among audience polls as one of the greatest films of all time . Michael Curtiz was nominated for

1632-476: The "Father of California Viticulture" or the "Father of Modern Winemaking in California." The first large wave of emigration from Hungary to the United States occurred in 1849–1850, when the so-called " Forty-Eighters " fled from retribution by Austrian authorities after the defeat of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 . Lajos Kossuth gave a seven-month speaking tour of the U.S. in 1851 and 1852 to great acclaim as

1700-510: The "Real Top 20 of Conducting," saying, Schonberg called Ormandy "an excellent technician with a technicolored approach". Grove comments that Ormandy may have contributed to this image by concentrating on the late-Romantic and early 20th-century repertory that showed to advantage the lush sound he could command in works by composers such as Debussy , Ravel , Richard Strauss and Tchaikovsky . Schonberg commented that Ormandy programmed very little Haydn or Mozart and approached Beethoven "in

1768-463: The 1963-64 season. The foursome resigned from the orchestra to become quartet-in-residence at the University of Washington (UW) in 1966. The move angered Philadelphia Orchestra management, which sued UW to prevent the quartet's departure, claiming a contract violation. The players eventually won the right to leave the orchestra. In 1966, the quartet moved to Seattle to become UW's Quartet-in-Residence,

1836-561: The DEA agent Hank Schrader , in the critically acclaimed American crime drama series Breaking Bad is also of Hungarian descent from his father's side. Actress Drew Barrymore 's mother is Hungarian. Actor Tony Curtis has been in over 100 films, including his iconic roles in Some Like It Hot and The Defiant Ones . Actress Jessica Szohr of Gossip Girl is of partial Hungarian descent. Actor Peter Lorre became famous after his role as

1904-514: The Oscar for Close Encounters of the Third Kind ). Laszlo Kovacs , most famous for his work on Easy Rider and Five Easy Pieces , won three Lifetime Achievement Awards for cinematography. Ernest Laszlo , who worked on over 60 films, won an Academy Award for cinematography for 1965's Ship of Fools . Andrew Laszlo , worked first in television ( Ed Sullivan 's Beatles at Shea Stadium and

1972-546: The Philadelphia Orchestra Association, the two were described as "family friends for many years [...] Mrs. Ormandy came to the United States about 12 years ago from Vienna [...] shortly thereafter she became an American citizen. During the war years Mrs. Ormandy became a licensed pilot in preparation for the WASP training program. However, as the unit was then disbanded, she enlisted in the U.S. Navy and for two years

2040-576: The Philadelphia Orchestra had three gold records and won two Grammy Awards . Ormandy's first digital recording was a performance of Béla Bartók 's Concerto for Orchestra for RCA Red Seal in 1979. Hungarian Americans Hungarian Americans ( Hungarian : Amerikai magyarok , pronounced [ˈɒmɛrikɒji ˈmɒɟɒrok] ) are Americans of Hungarian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau has estimated that there are approximately 1.396 million Americans of Hungarian descent as of 2018. The total number of people with ethnic Hungarian background

2108-457: The Philadelphia Orchestra, but continued to appear as its conductor laureate. His last concert was with his Philadelphia colleagues at Carnegie Hall on January 10, 1984. His tenure, as chief conductor and then laureate was the longest unbroken association between a conductor and a major American orchestra. He died of pneumonia at his home in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , on March 12, 1985, at

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2176-694: The Philadelphians began a 23-year association with Columbia Records . His many recordings for Columbia include the first US recording of the Fourth Symphony of Dmitri Shostakovich and the first ever recording of Mahler's Tenth Symphony in the performing version by Deryck Cooke. (Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra gave the first public performance of the Mahler/Cooke Symphony No. 10 at the express invitation of Mahler's widow Alma.) In 1968, conductor and orchestra returned to RCA Victor, recording for

2244-530: The Seas . Actress Ilona Massey was frequently billed as "the new Dietrich " and famously played the role of a femme fatale in Love Happy . Sex symbol Zsa Zsa Gabor was perhaps better known for her status as a socialite and nine marriages than her stint as an actress. Her younger sister Eva Gabor was known for her role on the television show Green Acres , and her older sister Magda Gabor famously helped save

2312-521: The Soviet Red Army , a period of chaotic democracy in the years immediately after the war, a variety of repressive Communist regimes, and a popular uprising that was put down at gunpoint... [where] many young people were killed; countless others were interned. Some two hundred thousand Hungarians escaped to the West. I was one of them. In 1956, Hungary was again under the power of a foreign state, this time

2380-482: The US through his recordings, which included the first versions on disc of Kodály's Háry János suite and Schoenberg's Verklärte Nacht . In 1936 he returned to Philadelphia as joint conductor with Leopold Stokowski . After two years he became the orchestra's sole music director; he held the post for 42 years (1938–1980), before stepping down to be its conductor laureate. He took the Philadelphia Orchestra on several national and international tours, and appeared as

2448-531: The US, including many university and community residencies. The quartet also toured Brazil, Columbia, and Chile in 1983 and India in 1985. In 1984, Adam Iglitzin founded the Concerts-in-the-Barnat the Olympic Music Festival. It was awarded Best Classical Music Festival by readers of Seattle Weekly . Karen Iglitzin founded the "Chamber Music Institute" in 1984, which operated in the summer on

2516-557: The age of 85. In honor of Ormandy's vast influence on American music and the Philadelphia performing arts community, on December 15, 1972, he was awarded the University of Pennsylvania Glee Club Award of Merit. He was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II as an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in 1976, and received of Yale University 's Sanford Medal . He

2584-470: The age of five, being the youngest student to date. From 1909 a student of Jenő Hubay , he passed the finals in chamber music and in violin in spring of 1915. From 1917 Blau undertook first tours in Hungary and Germany; among other things as concertmaster of the Berlin Blüthner Orchestra . In 1918 he became briefly professor for violin at his old university. From 1917 to 1920 he also completed

2652-497: The arts. Lajos Markos was a significant portrait artist, having created portraits for iconic celebrities such as John Wayne . Photographer Sylvia Plachy published several photobooks detailing her personal history in Central Europe . In politics, Tom Lantos was a U.S. Representative for San Francisco , being the only Holocaust survivor to serve in the U.S. Congress . The father of former New York governor George Pataki

2720-541: The city's Academy of Music. Soon after arriving in New York she took a position at Capitol Theatre where Ormandy was a violinist. For more than a decade she was harpist for the New York Philharmonic, the only woman on its roster. The two later did broadcast performances on WABC radio, where Ormandy was one of the staff conductors. In the fall of 1946, the couple parted. "There is no talk now of divorce [...] It's just

2788-588: The creation of Microsoft Office and invented the concept of " intentional programming ." Leslie L. Vadász and Andrew Grove were key leaders in the history of the Intel Corporation . In sociology, Thomas Szasz was a prominent figure in the antipsychiatry movement, as well as a vocal critic of state control over medicine . In astronomy, Victor Szebehely became a leading figure in NASA 's Apollo program . In biology and chemistry, Albert Szent-Györgyi won

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2856-503: The critically acclaimed Night . Agoston Haraszthy , a famous traveler and writer, became known as the "Father of California Viticulture" and perhaps one of the most accomplished viticulturists in US history. Joseph Pulitzer , a journalist of Jewish descent famous for helping create " yellow journalism " and posthumously establishing the Pulitzer Prizes . Csaba Csere was editor-in-chief of Car and Driver from 1993 to 2008. In

2924-501: The end of the quartet's original members. Violinist Stanley Ritchie filled the opening. Brennand died in 1976, replaced cellist Carter Enyeart. They performed the Beethoven Cycle at Meany Hall at UW, and continued to tour internationally. From 1983-1987 the quartet consisted of members Karen Iglitzin , 1st violinist and Iglitzen's daughter, Eisenberg, Alan Iglitzin, and Roger Lebow, followed by Alexander Segal. They performed across

2992-1009: The farm. Many teenagers came to live and study quartets with the Philadelphia String Quartet. Alumni included many who became professional players. The Olympic Music Festival name passed to another organization, but the original barn series continued. The name of the quartet was revived by violist Radhames Santos. Co-founder, Veda Reynolds, (b:1922-d: 2000) Served as 1st violinist from 1960-1975 Stanley Ritchie, from 1975-1981 Peter Marsh, from 1982-1983 Karen Iglitzin, from 1983-1987 Stefan Hersh, from 1988-1992 Co-founder, Irwin Eisenberg (1919-2014) Served as 2nd violinist from 1960-2000 Roberta Hersh, from 1988-1992 Co-founder: Alan Iglitzin (b:1931) Served as violist from 1960-2000 Co-founder, Charles Brennand (b:1929-d:1976) Served as cellist, 1960-1976 Carter Enyeart, 1976-1982 Roger Lebow, 1982-1984 Alexander Segal, 1985-1987 Jennifer Culp, 1988-1992 Eugene Ormandy Eugene Ormandy (born Jenő Blau ; November 18, 1899 – March 12, 1985)

3060-643: The foremost mathematicians of the 20th century, contributed to a wide variety of fields, including computer science , economics , quantum theory , statistics , and hydrodynamics . Neumann's work on nuclear physics was influential in the Manhattan Project . The John von Neumann Theory Prize and the IEEE John von Neumann Medal are named in his honor. Peter Lax is a winner of the Wolf Prize in Mathematics and

3128-751: The intention of writing a chronicle of the voyage and its discoveries. Parmenius reached Newfoundland , likely becoming the first Hungarian in the New World . Hungarians have long settled in the New World, such as Michael de Kovats , the founder of United States Cavalry , active in the American Revolution . Hungarians have maintained a constant state of emigration to the United States since then; however, they are best known for three principal waves of emigration. Agoston Haraszthy , who settled in Wisconsin in 1840,

3196-422: The label until 1981. His recordings of Saint-Saëns 's Symphony No. 3, "Organ'" were considered the best ever produced by Fanfare Magazine which remarked of the 1974 RCA Red Seal recording with organist Virgil Fox : "This beautifully played performance outclasses all versions of this symphony." The Telarc recording of the symphony with Michael Murray from 1980 is also highly praised. Under Ormandy's baton,

3264-638: The largest Hungarian American populations include: A plurality of Hungarian Americans within the United States reside on both the East and West Sides of the Greater Cleveland Metropolitan Area. It has often been said that Metropolitan Cleveland has the most Hungarians outside of Hungary itself. Once known as "Little Hungary," the Buckeye–Shaker neighborhood on the East Side of Cleveland proper

3332-479: The lives of 240 Jewish families during the World War II because of her relationship with a Portuguese ambassador . Harry Houdini , considered by many to be the greatest magician of all time, was an expert escapologist , introducing it as an art form. He was also a major critic and investigator of Spiritualists . In filmmaking, Vilmos Zsigmond was nominated for four Academy Awards for Cinematography (won

3400-645: The population by state according to the 2018 American Community Survey rounded to the nearest hundredth of a percent. In entertainment, Szőke Szakáll, known as S. Z. Sakall , was a Hungarian-Jewish film character actor. He was in many films including In the Good Old Summertime , Lullaby of Broadway , Christmas in Connecticut and Casablanca in which he played Carl, the head waiter. The comic style of Ernie Kovacs influenced numerous television comedy programs for years to come. The Fox Film Corporation

3468-682: The quartet played the entire cycle of quartets by Ludwig van Beethoven , including the Quartet No. 3 in D Major , Quartet No. 9 in C Major , Quartet No. 16 in F Major , and the Grosse Fugue . They championed new music, and had a close musical relationship with the American composer, George Rochberg . They commissioned and premiered his 2nd quartet. They had a close relationship with Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera . The Philadelphia String Quartet worked with Ginastera extensively before they performed

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3536-650: The ranks of great conductors". He was thought superficial; Toscanini dismissed him as "an ideal conductor of Johann Strauss" and a similar remark is attributed to Igor Stravinsky . Donald Peck, principal flute of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra , reports that a fellow flutist was won over when Ormandy conducted the Chicago in Beethoven 's Ninth Symphony ; he told Peck that it was the greatest Ninth he had ever heard. The conductor Kenneth Woods ranked Ormandy 14th of

3604-518: The streets as spoken by older residents who have never left the area. Other cities which include a significant Hungarian American presence include metropolitan New York City , Buffalo, New York , Chicago, Illinois , Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas and Virginia Beach, Virginia . The highest percentage of Hungarian Americans in any American town, village or city is in Kiryas Joel, New York (the great majority of its residents are Hasidic Jews belonging to

3672-460: The title of "the father of the hydrogen bomb ," for his concept of a thermonuclear weapon that uses the energy of nuclear fusion. But he also worked in the Manhattan Project along with other Hungarian physicists like Eugene Wigner (who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1963 for his work on the discovery and application of fundamental symmetry principles of elementary particles) and Leó Szilárd . It

3740-448: The words, "Ormandy does not conduct with the overwhelming personality of a Furtwängler , or with the ferocity and clarity of a Toscanini, or with the immense knowledge and classicism of a Szell . But he has carved out an area for himself, and within it he is secure, a perfect workman and a sensitive interpreter. And it is an area that takes in a great deal more than Strauss waltzes". In 1980, aged 80, Ormandy retired as chief conductor of

3808-696: The world premiere of his revised 2nd quartet. The founding quartet earned the Washington Governor's Arts Award. A quartet of their UW students won the Coleman Chamber Music competition prize. Their residency included relationships with Washington State University, Eastern Washington University and Central Washington University where the quartet held open rehearsals and performed with faculty members. Their LPs included works from Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Bergsma, Bercera, Chihara, and other living composers. Reynolds departure in 1975 marked

3876-483: Was Szilárd who persuaded Albert Einstein to write his historic letter to Franklin Roosevelt concerning atomic warfare . Theodore von Kármán was responsible for a number of key theories in aeronautic and astronautics research and development. László Bíró made "biro" the ballpoint pen . In computer science, John George Kemeny co-developed the BASIC programming language in 1964 with Thomas Eugene Kurtz . Computer software businessman Charles Simonyi oversaw

3944-442: Was a Hungarian-born American conductor and violinist, best known for his association with the Philadelphia Orchestra , as its music director. His 44-year association with the orchestra is one of the longest enjoyed by any conductor with any American orchestra. Ormandy made numerous recordings with the orchestra, and as guest conductor with European orchestras, and achieved three gold records and two Grammy Awards . His reputation

4012-407: Was a cultural enclave for Hungarians and Hungarian Americans in the early to mid-twentieth century before many left for nearby suburbs, such as Shaker Heights . In their place arrived African Americans and other groups in the 1960s. Remnants of Hungarian culture can still be seen in the Buckeye Road area today, namely in street names, restaurants and shops as well as occasionally hearing Hungarian on

4080-453: Was a popular Major League Baseball player, nicknamed "the Mad Hungarian". Gene Mako won four Grand Slam doubles titles in the 1930s. In volleyball , Karch Kiraly is the only person to have won Olympic gold medals (or indeed medals of any color) in both indoor and beach volleyball . Joe Kovacs is two-time world champion in shot put and is currently the fourth best shot putter in history. Jewish physicist Edward Teller acquired

4148-425: Was also observed after World War II and The Holocaust , a significant percentage of whom were Jewish. Andrew Grove (1936–2016), one of the three founders of Intel Corporation summarized his first twenty years of life in Hungary in his memoirs: By the time I was twenty, I had lived through a Hungarian Fascist dictatorship , German military occupation , the Nazis' " Final Solution ," the siege of Budapest by

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4216-443: Was as a skilled technician and expert orchestral builder. Ormandy was born in Budapest , Austria-Hungary , as Jenő Blau, the son of Jewish parents Benjamin Blau, a dentist and amateur violinist, and Rozália Berger. His musical talents emerged early. Blau received his first violin lessons from his father at the age of three and a half and was proficient enough as a violinist to enter the Royal National Hungarian Academy of Music at

4284-433: Was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1977. After Ormandy's death the US Congress and President Ronald Reagan declared that November 18 would be "Eugene Ormandy Appreciation Day", with a recognition ceremony held on that date at the Academy of Music. On 8 August 1922 Ormandy married Stephanie Goldner (1896–1962). "Steffy" Goldner had come to New York in 1921 from her native Vienna, where she had attended

4352-482: Was for the 1959 epic Ben-Hur . In classical music, Eugene Ormandy , music director for the Philadelphia Orchestra , was appointed an honorary Knight Command of The Order of the British Empire by the Queen of the United Kingdom and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom . In rock music, Tommy Ramone and Gene Simmons , both of Jewish descent, founded bands The Ramones and Kiss respectively In sports, Monica Seles won nine Grand Slam singles titles and

4420-438: Was formed by William Fox . Comedian, actor and producer Louis C.K (born Louis Székely) is a U.S.- Mexican dual citizen. His grandfather, Géza Székely Schweiger, immigrated to Mexico with his family from Hungary. Actress Vilma Bánky starred in numerous silent films opposite Hollywood actors such as Rudolph Valentino and Ronald Colman . Actor Adrien Brody 's mother was Hungarian. Actor Dean Norris most known for playing

4488-431: Was going by "Eugene Ormandy". The origin of the surname "Ormandy" is uncertain. Speculation that it was either his middle name or that of his mother appears to be unfounded. His father changed his surname to "Ormándi" on March 22, 1937, a few weeks before emigrating to the United States. Arthur Judson , the most powerful manager of American classical music during the 1930s, first heard Ormandy when he conducted (as

4556-420: Was the first Hungarian to settle permanently in the United States and the second Hungarian to write a book about the United States in his native language. After he moved to California in the Gold Rush of 1849, Haraszthy founded the Buena Vista Vineyards in Sonoma (now Buena Vista Carneros) and imported more than 100,000 European vine cuttings for the use of California winemakers. He is widely remembered today as

4624-446: Was then stationed at Norfolk, VA., in operations work at the Naval Air Station." The couple remained wed until his death in 1985. Ormandy's recording career began with the Minneapolis Symphony for RCA Victor in 1934 and included the first US recordings of symphonies by Anton Bruckner (No. 7) and Gustav Mahler (No. 2). He remained with RCA Victor after becoming music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1938. In 1944, Ormandy and

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