THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS The fame of Flexner name, including a Zionist image Flexner is a name replete with American fame. The several brothers ac- quired inerasable recogni- tion in many spheres: in lit- erature, education, the sci- ences. One became important in American Zionist ranks. Attention to the Flexner name is called again by an important work, An. Ameri- can Sag- a: The Story of Helen Thomas and Simon Flexner (Little, Brown & Co.) The fascinating story about this famous couple also drew incidental atten- tion to a brother of Simon Bernard Flexner, who was a close associate of Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis in the American Zionist movement. In An American Saga, James Thomas Flexner writes with dignity and af- fection about his parents. The heroes of this impor- tant biographical literary gem includes Simon Flexner, the widely-known medical investigator, the leader in the American sci- entific society who was a guide and creative spirit in his field. As the creating di- rector of the Rockefeller In- stitute for Medical Re- search, now the Rockefeller University, he was self- educated, having risen from the poverty of a Ger- man Jewish immigrant family into merited fame. • The family of Helen Thomas, Quakers and orig- inal settlers of Maryland, lost their fortune by freeing 100 slaves in 1810. Her background was aristocra- tic. Mrs. Flexner's father was a founder of Johns Hopkins Medical School and Bryn Mawr College, Helen's sis- ter becoming president of the latter. Helen's mother also was a leader in the feminist movement. Helen was 19 when she met Simon, then 27. She gained literary fame. Such is the fascinating An American Saga. This important volume draws attention to the other famous personalities in the Flexner family. Simon's brother Ab- raham became famous as one of this country's most distinguished educators. There is hardly a book of quotations that does not in- clude his views. Then there was Bernard who became active in the Zionist movement as a Brandeis associate. The Bernard Flexner career is thus recorded in the Universal Jewish Encyclopedia: "Flexner, Bernard, attor- ney and Jewish organiza- tional leader, brother of Ab- raham, b. Louisville, Ky., 1865. He received the LL.B. degree from the University of Louisville in 1898, and in that same year began the practice of law. In 1914 he was appointed by the United States Attorney General chairman of a committee to study the need for legislation affecting children in the District of Columbia. He was a member of the American Zionist Organization while Louis D. Brandeis was its president. "At the Peace Conference at Versailles in 1918 and 1919 Flexner was one of the delegates of the American Jews on behalf of Jewish rights, and aided the American Jewish Joint Dis- tribution Committee as an authority on economic ques- tions, as a member of its executive committee and as chairman of its committee on medical affairs. He served also as vice chair- man of the Reconstruction Committee, as a member of the board of directors of the Loan Bank, as president of the Palestine Economic Corporation, and as one of the organizers of the Cen- tral Bank of Cooperative In- stitutions in Palestine and of the American Joint Foundation. "Flexner wrote Juvenile Courts and Probation (in collaboration with Reuben Oppenheimer; New York, 1922). In 1928 he directed the publication and distri- bution to librarians, throughout the world of the complete record of the Sacco-Vanzetti trial." Thus, a noteworthy biog- raphy about one brother and his equally prominent wife draws attention to an entire family of fame. An American Saga: The Story of Helen Thomas and Simon Flexner earns recognition among the best in biog- raphical writing. —P•S. ********* INVITATIONS? Hattie Schwartz 4c ***** * ENTERTAINMENT? Seymour Schwartz • • • • • 352-7387 * HEB EW COPY AVAILARL E 356-8525 THE FINEST IN MUSIC comics • SPEAKERS DANCERS • CLOWNS ESP • VENTRILOQUIST CARICATURE ARTIS S 4e * • The Finest invitations and Stationery • The Finest Entertainment For Any Occasion • ENTERTAINMENT • INVITATIONS 352-7387 356-8525 BUTTON-EER Photo Buttons 69 ACTNSAT Testing — Of Course! Of Course! FOR THE BEAUTIFUL INVITATIONS. PEOPLE TALK ABOUT Friday, March 30, 1984 Thinking about taking the ACT or SAT test? Indi- vidualized instruction is now available so:you can im- prove your score. Call 398-0116 after 4 P.M. Also tutoring in all subjects (your home) The following 4 questions INC. WHY SEDERAMA 84? 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