The Jose Hess Diamond Engagement Ring. The Strange Story Of Mr. Fink Locked doors, no gun, a murder victim. H NS l'HU I U ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATE EDITOR Soon after, detectives arrived. Seeing the body, they quickly concluded that Fink had killed .7'\ himself. But there was a big problem. No gun. Detectives searched exten- sively. New York City's finest were sent to the scene, as well. But no one could make sense of it. A bolted door, windows un- broken and locked from the in- side, and absolutely no murder (or suicide) weapon. ,_\ Naturally, the case grabbed, and held, the public's attention. Everyone offered a guess as to what had really happened, the 1 most popular being that, for reasons unknown, Fink had created a secret contraption, hidden in the walls, with which he shot himself by some kind of remote control. But it simply wasn't true. -\ Not only did detectives scour every inch of the facility, they tore up the ceilings and the walls. They found nothing. In the end, police declared the case a murder. The story of Mr. Fink's strange demise continued to fill the pages of newspapers for _ years afterward. In addition to -\ Ben Hecht, director Alfred Hitchcock was said to have been intrigued by the case, and considered making a film about Isidor Fink. The case remains open to this day. . Leonard Bernstein: Not young at art. 30400 Telegraph Road Suite 134 Bingham Farms N AIR-MA ST E R HEATING & AIR CONDITIONING CO. RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL SERVICE * SALES * INSTALLATIONS IT'S GOOD TO HAVE HOBBIES... INSTALLING AIR CONDITIONERS IS OURS! cr) w MICHAEL LEVEY cr) OWNER & PRESIDENT LLJ CC LLJ LLJ F- CERTIFIED TECHNICIANS, RADIO-DISPATCHED & FULLY STOCKED TRUCKS, IN-HOUSE SHEET METAL SHOP, CUSTOM DESIGNED SYSTEMS, FREE IN-HOME ESTIMATES, 24-HR EMERGENCY SERVICE. BERKLEY W. BLOOMFIELD NORTH OAKLAND 399-1800 788-9073 682-9090 MASTER CARD & VISA WELCOME Your Independent Lennox & Trane Dealer 36 http:/www.glolink.com/airmaster Q: My 3-year-old son loves tele- vision cartoons, especially "Tiny Toons." His favorite character is Taz, the Tasmanian Devil. My oth- er son, a day-school fourth-grad- er, recently told us that "Taz" actually is the name of a rabbi. Now my little one is confused and wants to know if all rabbis are like the cartoon character. I've admonished my older son for telling his little brother such silly things, but he in- sists it's the truth. Could there re- ally be a rabbi named "Taz"? A: It sounds like your fourth- grader is learning his lessons well. Yes, there actually was a rab- bi identified as Taz (although it is pronounced Tahz). "Taz" is an acronym formed from the Hebrew words Turei Zahav ("Golden Rows"), a commentary on the Shulchan Aruch, Code of Jewish Law, written by Rab- bi David ben Shmuel ha-Levi (1586-1667). Rabbi David spent the last 13 years of his life as rabbi of the Polish city of Lvov (known to Jews as Lemberg; today, it is the Ukrainian city of Lviv). Al- though he wrote much, the Turei Zahav was his most im- portant work, and he has come to be known as the Taz. Q: I recently read The Mystery of the Fabulous Laundryman by Ben Hecht, which I understand is based on a true story about someone Jewish. Is that so? A: It is indeed, and certainly the case that inspired The Mystery of the Fabu- lous Laundryman is worthy of an entire episode of "Unsolved Mysteries," at minimum. It's that bizarre. The murder victim — or rather, the supposed murder victim — was one Isidor Fink, born in 1899. His body was dis- covered on March 9, 1929, at a laundry he owned on East 32nd Street in New York City. It wasn't exactly the best neighborhood; robberies were rampant at the time. Fink was known to be especially cautious, though, keeping his doors and windows locked at all times. On March 9, a woman living next to Finks laundry called po- lice to report a strange sound. She had heard three quick shots — almost certainly from a gun — then a hard thud, like a body falling. The first to arrive on the scene was a patrolman, Albert Kattenborn. He pushed re- peatedly at the front door, but was unable to enter; it had been bolted shut, from the inside. Atop the door was a small glass window. The patrolman managed to break the window open, then sent a small boy through to open the front door. Kattenborn walked in. Isidor Fink was dead on the floor. Two bullet wounds pierced his chest; one was through his left wrist. Kattenborn imme- diately sealed off the premises. 0: I loved the music and style of the late composer-conductor±\ Leonard Bernstein. My guess is he was a child prodigy. Is that so? A: Not really. In fact Mr. Bernstein, born in 1918 in Lawrence, Mass., showed no in- terest whatsoever in music un- til he was 10. Then, an acquaintance asked his moth- er to keep an upright piano in the Bernstein home. Young__ Leonard was intrigued, and—\ quickly began teaching himself to play. The composer of West Side Story and "Kaddish," among others, he died in 1990. Send questions to Tell Me Why, The Jewish News, 27676 Franklin Road, Southfield, MI 48034, or fax to (810) 354-6069," All letters must be signed and in elude the writer's address. Ques- tions answered in the column will feature only the writer's initials and city of residence.