Leon Leyson's connection to USC athletics is as the father of Danny Leyson, an All-American water polo player at Troy, who now serves as an assistant coach at UCLA. The recently deceased Leyson has a far greater connection to history as the youngest survivor on Oskar Schindler's list.
Leyson's remarkable tale is the stuff of cinema, more specifically the 1993 Oscar winner for best picture "Schindler's List." He was saved by the German industrialist as a 13-year-old and lived in the Los Angeles area until dying recently of lymphoma at 83.
Click here to read Leyson's incredible obituary in the LA Times.
As a Holocaust survivor, he experienced life's greatest fortune and misfortune. "I can recount dozens of times where if I had stepped ... to my left I would have been gone, or if I happened to step to my right," Leyson told The Times. "It wasn't anything like being smart or clever or anything like that."
Yet, he also watched so many friends and family members die, including two of his brothers. Undeterred, Leyson refused to let the Holocaust define him or the family he would make in America.
"The truth is, I did not live my life in the shadow of the Holocaust," he told the Portland Oregonian in 1997. "I did not give my children a legacy of fear. I gave them a legacy of freedom."
Leyson's remarkable tale is the stuff of cinema, more specifically the 1993 Oscar winner for best picture "Schindler's List." He was saved by the German industrialist as a 13-year-old and lived in the Los Angeles area until dying recently of lymphoma at 83.Click here to read Leyson's incredible obituary in the LA Times.
As a Holocaust survivor, he experienced life's greatest fortune and misfortune. "I can recount dozens of times where if I had stepped ... to my left I would have been gone, or if I happened to step to my right," Leyson told The Times. "It wasn't anything like being smart or clever or anything like that."
Yet, he also watched so many friends and family members die, including two of his brothers. Undeterred, Leyson refused to let the Holocaust define him or the family he would make in America.
"The truth is, I did not live my life in the shadow of the Holocaust," he told the Portland Oregonian in 1997. "I did not give my children a legacy of fear. I gave them a legacy of freedom."
wow, Mr. Leyson's life is the stuff of movies. what an amazing guy. he should have a wiki page, if he already doesnt.
thanks for the article Jordan
I started working at USC about 9 months ago and have actually heard his name a few times. Our university and our country need more men like him.