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A Bi-Czar Story

Were the Romanovs really saved by a Jew?

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Q: I continue to be amused, and
amazed, by this whole Marilyn
Monroe thing. She was a lousy ac-
tress, yet everyone seems to think
she was the most fascinating per-
son in the history of Hollywood.
Didn't anyone dislike her?
A:Actually, many loathed
working with her (chief among
her detractors were Clark
Gable and Laurence Olivier).
For a unique Jewish per-
spective, Tell Me Why offers
this insight from actor Tony
Randall, who said of Monroe, "I
never could understand what
it was all about. She was ab-
solutely talentless. To work
with her was agony. In the first
place, she never was there.
You'd wait. Five o'clock at night
she'd show up on the set."

The first Ben-Gurion on
record lived many years earli-
er. His name was Nakdimon
Ben-Gurion, one of the wealth-
iest men in Jerusalem of the 1st
century B.C.E., in the last years
of the Second Temple. He was
sometimes known by a Greek
name, Nicodemus.
Nakdimon Ben-Gurion was
a pious man who studied with
rabbis and was a great philan-
thropist. During the siege of
Jerusalem, he and two other
magnates helped lay up stores
of food and supplies. The
Zealots burned the provisions,
hoping the starving people
would fight the Romans. With
the fall of Jerusalem, Nakdi-
mon lost his wealth and his
family was reduced to poverty.

Q: The most compelling conspir-
acy story I know involves the Ro-
manovs (the last living Russian
czar, his wife and five children).
I've heard that not just Anastasia
and Alexei may still be alive, but
that all of them supposedly sur-
vived. One story I recall even has a
Jew saving the family (though they
were, of course, decidedly anti-Se-
mitic). What does Tell Me Why
know about this?
A: Count me in with those
who believe all the Ro-
manovs were killed. But
many continue to insist oth-
erwise, and each year we
seem to see a new book or TV
show about how Nicholas
and/or his family "escaped."
The most popular of these
has a guard saving a woman
who came to be known as
Anna Anderson and claimed
to be the czar's youngest
daughter, Anastasia.
Ms. Anderson had many
David Ben-Gurion, how did you get that name? (including surviving mem-
bers of the czar's family)
fooled. However, DNA test-
language for Jewish life, both
in and outside of the Land of Is- ing has since shown she could
rael. As an adult, he would in- not have been Anastasia —
sist that Jews change their though her DNA did match
surnames to Hebrew names. that of Franziska Schanzkows-
In 1906 Ben-Gurion made ki, a Polish woman and former
aliyah, building a living as an mental patient who looked ex-
agricultural worker. He was ac- actly like Anna and conve-
tive in the affairs of the left-wing niently disappeared soon before
Poalei Zion political party. In Anna showed up as Anastasia.
1910, he moved to Jerusalem (Wow! What a coincidence!)
The Jewish man who sup-
and joined the editorial staff of
the party's newspaper, Achdut. posedly had a hand in saving
He wrote articles under the by- the entire Romanov family was
line Ben-Gurion. Thereafter, he Aaron Simanovitsch.
Simanovitsch met Czar
was known as David Ben-Guri-
Nicholas through their mutual
on.
friend Rasputin, the mysteri-

Q: I've always been interested in
how David Ben-Gurion, the former
Israeli prime minister, got his
unique last name. Did he come up
with it himself?
A: David Ben-Gurion was
born in 1886 in Plonsk, north-
west of Warsaw; his original
last name was Gruen.
From his youth, Ben-Gurion
was an ardent believer in the
exclusive use of the Hebrew

ous confidante of the czar's wile,
Alexandra. Seeking to improve
life for the Jewish community
so often the target of govern:
ment-sponsored Pogroms
Simanovitsch appealed to
Rasputin to speak with the
Russian minister ofjusticeln.
stead, Rasputin brought
Simanovitsch directly to the
czar (who reportedly was sym.
pathetic — this once).
Simanovitsch maintained
contact with the czar, including
in the days after the Communist
Revolution when Nicholas and
his family were sent to Ekater•
mburg. Here, they were hidden
away in an estate, Ipatievialsi
known as "The House of Special
Purpose"), until the new Soviet
leader, Lenin, could decide what
to do with them.
Most believe the czar andhii
family were shot in 1918 and
their bodies buried in a forest
outside Ekaterinburg. Another
story has it that Simanovitsch
was contacted by King George
V of England, who was desper•
ate to save his relative, Czar
Nicholas II.
According to this tale,
Simanovitsch befriended the
head of the troupes guarding
the Romanovs and convinced
him to release the family. They
managed to fool eveiyone by fir.
ing off a massive round of hi-
lets into mannequins (provided
by King George), which were
then burned and buried along
with treasures that had be-
longed to the czar. Ipatiev was
doused with human blood, and
Nicholas and his family
whisked off to safety in Eng.
land. (For complete details, see
The Conspirator Who Saved the
Romanovs, by Gary Null.)
Interesting story, but Tell Me
Why isn't convinced. The main
problem has to do with the fact
that scientists have positively
identified numerous bones as
those of the Romanov
Could it really be that King
George had the mannequins
n b a o rn c t?elysI
e.. hoEuf t n h, ae exactly
te that,
dm
matched

Send questions to Tell Mell'hy,
The Jewish Netus, 27676 1
M
Franklin Road, Southfield ,
(810)
354.6069.
48034, or fax to
All letters must be signed and in.
elude the writer's address. (2 116!„'
tions answered in the column oil
initials
feature only the writer's
and city of residence.