(Times of Israel) Rich Tenorio - A new book, Dutch Girl: Audrey Hepburn and World War II, by veteran star chronicler Robert Matzen, describes Hepburn's life in the city of Arnhem and nearby Velp during the war where she displayed heroism on behalf of individuals in danger. In 1942, the Nazis executed her uncle, Otto Ernst Gelder, Count van Limburg Stirum. Audrey, known at the time as Adriaantje, refused an order to join a Nazi artists' committee, ending her burgeoning dance career, which had made her Arnhem's most famous ballerina by 1944. Hepburn also assisted Dr. Hendrik Visser 't Hooft, who helped shelter hundreds of Jews in Velp throughout the war. She was one of the ones bringing messages to families protecting Jews. She also danced to raise money for the resistance and to feed Jews in hiding. Her family members risked their lives sheltering a British soldier, and she and her mother assisted as nurses. At one point the Nazis rounding up Dutch women and girls to work in German kitchens including Hepburn, but she escaped.
2019-06-14 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive