Marcia Berman grew up in Boyle Heights, as did her father, Isadore Berman. Although he graduated with a degree in chemical engineering from Caltech, the Depression prevented him from having a career in that field. So, with his brother and father, he opened and ran a chain of movie theaters in Boyle Heights. Marcia, who now lives in Eugene, Ore., was for many decades a nationally known and beloved singer/songwriter and teacher in Los Angeles. Isadore Berman died in 1997 at 89.
“My father was always very kind and connected to his family. Whenever we went on an outing or trip, he included his parents and any nieces and nephews that we could squeeze into the car.
He was also very playful. We lived in a duplex, and my aunt and uncle lived on the other side, so my mother was often there visiting. When my father came home from work, he’d sit down at our piano and bang out a particular song, announcing, ‘I’m here!’ Mom would hear the song through the wall, and she’d come running home.
Our family was very close — literally. My grandparents lived on Breed Street, across from the Breed Street Shul, and my dad and his four siblings and their families all lived nearby on Stone Street. When we moved to the Westside, we all lived on Orange Drive.
The relatives did a lot together — Jewish holidays and picnics and weekly lunches. We’d entertain each other with singing and making up skits, which continued into our adulthood. For instance, when my Aunt Sylvia had a birthday, we wrote and put on a musical, ‘My Fair Sylvia,’ and everyone sang and danced.
My grandparents and my parents modeled the importance of being involved in the local and world community. They helped Jews get out of Germany in the 1930s. I remember the whole Boyle Heights Jewish community pulled together after Kristallnacht. One day, there was a march down Brooklyn Avenue to raise money for buying two bombers for our Air Force. One of our theaters, the National, was closed that day and the marquee read, ‘Protest Nazi Horror.’
I learned from my father that kindness, fairness and justice are very important. He inspires me, even today. When I have something I need to do, I think to myself, ‘How would Dad have done it?’
My father died when he was almost 90. I miss just spending time with him, sitting in the same room with him, holding his hand. I dream about my dad, and it feels so real, which is a wonderful gift.”
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