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My wife Suzi Sultana was born in Istanbul in 1927. Her native language is [Judeo-] Spanish, like us. I never knew her father because he died when she was very young. I knew her mother. She was a “passive” woman. She didn’t socialize, nor did she have many friends probably because she had been widowed so young. My wife had 3 brothers: Sami, Vitali and Alber Danon. Alber and Vitali were older and Sami was younger than my wife.
Her older brother Alber, born in 1917, had meningitis when he was 5 so his mental faculties were never normal. He started talking very late and did not go to school. A private teacher taught him certain things including French but it was never much. However, he grew up and even did two years of military service. When their uncle returned from Germany just before World war II, he took Alber to work at his jersey factory. Alber worked there until their uncle died in 1951. Then he worked as an office boy for the Kastro family until his retirement. He had been living with his mother but when she died in 1989, my wife decided it would be best for him to live at our Old People’s Home in Haskoy. He lived there for 10 more years and then one day he fell down and died in 1999.
Her second brother Vitali, who was born in 1922, couldn’t study much because their father died when he was very young. As a young boy he worked at a florist’s in Osmanbey. Then when he grew up, he worked all his life as a salesman at the big china shop in Beyoglu, called “Galeri Kristal”. Vitali had met an armenian girl, called Adırne, when he was 14. They used to play together in Ferikoy, where they lived. Then they decided to get married. The families were against it of course, but when Vitali came on leave during his military service they secretly got married. They had 2 daughters, Linda and Rita. When Linda grew up she married an armenian and so became armenian herself, whereas Rita married a moslem and became moslem. Vitali died in 1982 from a heart attack.
My wife’s third brother, Sami was younger than her. He was born in 1928. He studied at the St. Michel French school [catholic school] but he didn’t finish it. He opened a drugstore that sold perfumes and things like that. He then married Fortune Algazi and they had 2 children: a girl, Sara, and a boy, Yasef. Then he got a heart disease and one day as he was coming home from Sirkeci in a taxi he died inside the taxi in 1989.
Her older brother Alber, born in 1917, had meningitis when he was 5 so his mental faculties were never normal. He started talking very late and did not go to school. A private teacher taught him certain things including French but it was never much. However, he grew up and even did two years of military service. When their uncle returned from Germany just before World war II, he took Alber to work at his jersey factory. Alber worked there until their uncle died in 1951. Then he worked as an office boy for the Kastro family until his retirement. He had been living with his mother but when she died in 1989, my wife decided it would be best for him to live at our Old People’s Home in Haskoy. He lived there for 10 more years and then one day he fell down and died in 1999.
Her second brother Vitali, who was born in 1922, couldn’t study much because their father died when he was very young. As a young boy he worked at a florist’s in Osmanbey. Then when he grew up, he worked all his life as a salesman at the big china shop in Beyoglu, called “Galeri Kristal”. Vitali had met an armenian girl, called Adırne, when he was 14. They used to play together in Ferikoy, where they lived. Then they decided to get married. The families were against it of course, but when Vitali came on leave during his military service they secretly got married. They had 2 daughters, Linda and Rita. When Linda grew up she married an armenian and so became armenian herself, whereas Rita married a moslem and became moslem. Vitali died in 1982 from a heart attack.
My wife’s third brother, Sami was younger than her. He was born in 1928. He studied at the St. Michel French school [catholic school] but he didn’t finish it. He opened a drugstore that sold perfumes and things like that. He then married Fortune Algazi and they had 2 children: a girl, Sara, and a boy, Yasef. Then he got a heart disease and one day as he was coming home from Sirkeci in a taxi he died inside the taxi in 1989.
Location
/İstanbul
Türkiye
Interview
Izak Sarhon