William Begell

William Begell was born Wilhelm Beigel in Vilna on May 18, 1927. With the liquidation of the Jewish ghetto in 1943, Begell was sent to the local HKP labor camp along with his mother and grandmother. With their encouragement, he escaped the camp the following year; his mother and grandmother were deported and killed four days later. His father had been shot by the SS in 1943. After the war, Begell completed his studies in Germany. In 1947, he immigrated to the U.S., where he established a publishing business, Begell House. His first wife, Esther, and their two children predeceased Begell, who died in New York City on July 4, 2009. He was survived by his second wife, Yelena Shafeyeva.

Biography

William Begell was born Wilhelm Beigel in Vilna on May 18, 1927. With the liquidation of the Jewish ghetto in 1943, Begell was sent to the local HKP labor camp along with his mother and grandmother. With their encouragement, he escaped the camp the following year; his mother and grandmother were deported and killed four days later. His father had been shot by the SS in 1943. After the war, Begell completed his studies in Germany. In 1947, he immigrated to the U.S., where he established a publishing business, Begell House. His first wife, Esther, and their two children predeceased Begell, who died in New York City on July 4, 2009. He was survived by his second wife, Yelena Shafeyeva.