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From right: Mike (in bow tie), Moe, Harry, Abe and our customers. Levine Brothers, New York City, 1928.
THE LEVINE BROTHERS
My Uncle Max, the eldest brother, started Levine Brothers, which sold trimmings and linings for tailors. I am Max’s namesake. I never met him, as he died before I was born while heroically saving a drowning mother and child. The next eldest was Uncle Abe, about whom I remember very little, other than he was very heavy. Then came my mother.
Next, was Uncle Moe, who was shorter than the other brothers. As a child, Moe had smallpox, so he had scars on his face, but he was always a happy guy. Sadly, when his wonderful son Irving got killed during the war, Moe was done in. He never recovered from the loss. Irving died in a war exercise. He was in a small plane and was supposed to bail out, but he didn’t, and so he crashed into a mountain when the plane went down.
Uncle Harry, the fifth child, was the smartest of the uncles, but he didn’t have the personality to match the other brothers. Harry was also very tight.
The flashiest of the brothers was Uncle Mike, the best dresser and the outside salesman. He knew how to hustle business, so he handled all of the big accounts. Anything to do with buying, going to New York, keeping people happy, that was Uncle Mike’s job. Mike also lost a beloved son, Sonny, during World War II. He was shot down over Germany.
Uncle Sol was the youngest brother. He shocked the entire family by getting divorced, but he did get remarried to Leah, and found happiness. Eventually Uncle Sol moved down to San Diego and opened his own business, L.D. Trimmings, which, like Levine Brothers, sold tailor’s trimmings.