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Berger, Monica (audio interview #6 of 6)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This interview was conducted in Berger's home at Leisure World in Seal Beach. 11/7/1979
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- 2020-11-04
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- *** File: cbmberger11.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-2:57)... By the time Berger moved to Long Beach, the US was already involved in WWII. Many large companies had factories in Long Beach, including Douglas, Ford, and Proctor and Gamble. Those employers, and the nearby shipyards, employed workers all day and night and Long Beach changed to meet the demands of these employees. (2:57-5:14)... Owning apartment buildings in Long Beach was a challenging business. The stock market crash of the late 1920s devastated many citizens' savings and many had problems paying their rent in the Depression which followed by the crash. One man who had built an apartment in 1918 lost his investment after the 1933 earthquake and economic downturn. (5:14-8:53)... In the 1940s, the approach of war brought money and jobs to Long Beach, and the benefits continued after the end of the war. Although supplies were scarce during the war, Long Beach gained jobs in the port and in the oil industry, and became an international city. (8:53-13:52)... Although Berger wanted to buy more apartment buildings, her husband was not interested in expanding their property holdings. Although they were not rich, they had a consistent income. Later in the 1960s, the neighborhoods around the Lyle apartments deteriorated and grew more dangerous. Meanwhile, the city government planned to replace the older buildings with new construction. Although the city grew, it lost its personal, friendly community feeling. (13:52-17:31)... Venetian Square had many tenants and social events during WWII. After the war, civic leaders and city officials wanted to redevelop the area. Berger felt that the new construction was actually detrimental to the city and made it seem like nothing was permanent. To her, the city became very impersonal and empty. (17:31-20:05)... When the city finalized plans for its new civic center, Berger accepted the decision that he building would be torn down, yet was determined to get a fair price it. She attended city council meetings, and reviewed the plans for the new city hall and civic center. All around the city, people were being pushed out of their homes and property for new development. Much of the older community was uncomfortable with the drastic changes. (20:05-23:13)... The changes in Long Beach sometimes caused problems for older residents. Some, who were immigrants, claimed they did not understand why the city was accommodating newly arrived non-English speakers at their expense. When the older residents came to America, they said they had to learn English on their own. (23:13-28:08)... There were opportunities for recreation in Long Beach. Many tenants at Lyle had active social lives and enjoyed living in Long Beach. People from around the country and from Canada and stayed at Lyle. Berger took pride looking out for her tenants and friends. She cared for a woman who became ill and even accompanied stayed with her when she was hospitalized. Some tenants were so appreciative, they left inheritances for the building managers. (28:08-30:02)... Although the city planned to demolish the building, Berger did not have a problem with vacancies. She made minimal repairs but did not invest in improvements; the tenants understood that the situation. They were grateful to stay because their rents stayed low. Berger felt lucky to have such tenants and to get nice, responsible managers even in the last years of Lyle. (30:02-33:33)... Berger's son became a technical sergeant during WWII, and was not sent into battle. Back in Long Beach, Berger married a good man. Berger found many interesting things to do including attending political and religious lectures. At the time, gambling was not allowed in Long Beach, although there were gambling ships three miles off shore and their operators provided the boats to carry people out to them. (33:33-38:11)... Berger felt sorry for her tenants who were uprooted by the city's plans for a civic center. After they sold the Lyle apartments, Berger's husband died and she bought a smaller apartment building. The next-door apartment building's managers rented to noisy, disruptive tenants who had no concern for the neighborhood. One man always parked in front of her driveway so she could not leave. When she called the police, he retaliated. When she became afraid, she decided to move away. (38:11-40:29)... When she was 86 years old, Berger was involved in a car crash - the first in her life. She was hit by two boys out on a joy ride. The boys were scared, and Berger felt so sorry for them; she took the blame for the collision. The boys and their parents were so grateful, they helped Berger move when she relocated to Leisure World. Then she decided to quit driving. (40:29-42:37)... After living in Leisure World for three years, Berger began experiencing fainting spells. She had a blood condition, and after undergoing treatment, she felt much better. Still, she had a realistic outlook on life and understood that she was approaching 90 years old. Still she was happy that she could maintain an active and enjoyable lifestyle. (42:37-45:22)... The first person to come in Berger's family to come to America was her grandmother's brother. He arrived without papers after a trip from Germany that took 90 days. When he returned to Germany, he joined the military and married a widow with five children. He served in the Hessian Guards. Berger attended his funeral as a young girl, and she was impressed with the ceremony. END OF TAPE *** File: cbmberger12.mp3 (0:00-2:52)... One of Berger's uncles came to New York after WWII. After he died, his wife moved back to Germany. Berger's aunt was born in New York, and came to visit Berger in 1964. Berger's aunt collected a pension from a chemical company until she remarried. (2:52-5:49)... Prior to WWII, Long Beach had a number of German clubs that hosted social events and lectures. During the war, these clubs virtually disbanded. After the war, however, the German clubs slowly revived. Berger was involved in creating a new German Society in Long Beach. The Society grew quickly, but Berger didn't participate much because she was busy managing her rental properties. (5:49-9:56)... Although the Society was German, the members gave it a Latin name since German names were still so unpopular. (9:56-13:40)... The German society in Long Beach had trouble finding a permanent location for it meetings. They rented a hall owned by an African American Elk's Lodge. They had trouble attracting members since younger people didn't seem interested in German society activities. About half of the people Berger knew spoke German; many of them had spoke German in Europe, even if they were not from Germany. (13:40-15:15)... Berger was also involved in a German environmental club called Nature Friends. They continued to meet during the war and maintained a building they owned in the mountains where they arranged hiking trips. (15:15-19:30)... There was a red streetcar that allowed people to travel from Long Beach to other parts of southern California. Some people rode it to work. Many people were disappointed when the service ended, because the trolleys were a convenient way to ride between Los Angeles and Long Beach and to get to clubs, shops, and theaters. Berger sometimes rode the "Red Car" to shop in Los Angeles. Other times she drove. (19:30-22:59)... Berger had charge accounts at department stores. Although she did not need them, she liked that they had a aura of prestige. One time, Berger went with a friend to Reno, where she gambled and won a jackpot. She also bought some nylon stockings. She was more excited about the nylons than the money, because nylons were very hard to find during the war. She also visited Mexico with a friend to shop for other items that were scarce in the US during the war. (22:59-27:00)... When Berger came to California in 1932, she visited Palm Springs and it was little more than a cluster of buildings. Later she went there with her son to see the wildflowers. Later yet, she went again with her husband to see someone who treated his arthritis. Berger rented an apartment in Palm Springs for $100 a week and later bought a trailer there. Berger's husband liked to visit Desert Hot Springs to relax and help ease his arthritis pain. (27:00-30:37)... While they were in Palm Springs, a man tried to sell his trailer park to the Bergers for $9000. They thought he was shady, and turned down the offer. They found out later that the park sold for $90,000. Berger convinced her husband to buy a few acres in Palm Springs for $5000. Later, they sold the land and it became the site of President Eisenhower's home. (30:37-33:39)... After buying a trailer in Palm Springs, Berger and her husband also bought a house on Indian reservation lands. They sold that house and bought another larger property in the area where movie stars lived. When they decided to get rid of that house they traded it for a duplex in Long Beach. While they owned the Palm Springs property, that city decided to put lights in the palm trees lining the streets and taxed the residents to pay for them. The Bergers lived in Palm Springs until 1963. (33:39-38:29)... After the Bergers moved back to Long Beach, Mr. Berger went to Phoenix from time to time for treatment of his arthritis. His condition worsened, and he became hard of hearing and could not drive anymore. Finally, to Berger's relief, he decided to quit driving altogether. Berger herself drove until age 86. Mr. Berger could still care for himself, and he stayed at home while Berger visited Europe. He said he had "been out of America enough," but Berger suspected that he was hiding his pain. (38:29-42:22)... After Berger became ill, she moved from Leisure World to Walnut Manor. She wanted to make sure she was taken care of without having to bother any of her family members. She met many other residents there who were teachers, doctors, and ministers. Most of the people she knew were optimistic and happy rather than disheartened and depressed. She wasn't confined there and went out to visit friends and family members. (42:22-45:13)... Berger was not the type of person who "closed the door on life" once she reached a certain age. Berger used to drive to Phoenix alone, and she memorized every mile of the road. She had first visited Phoenix with a German club, and later went with her husband because it helped him ease his arthritis pain. She enjoyed visiting, but did not want to live permanently in the hot climate. END OF TAPE
- SUBJECT BIO - Monica Berger and her husband owned and managed apartments and other real estate in downtown Long Beach and other parts of southern California in the 1950s and 1960s. During this time, she saw the area change from a residential community of retired folks into a modern civic and international trade center. Berger was born in Germany and followed other members of her family by emigrating to New York. By the time of the Second World War, she'd moved to Los Angeles and opened a beauty shop. She cut and styled women's hair in her shop to support herself and her son. She also participated in local social and political organizations of German immigrants until the war made such activities suspect. After the war, she met and married Peter Berger who had saved his money and retired as a real estate owner and manager. She took over management of some of his real estate holdings and negotiated the sale of a large apartment building in Long Beach when the city took over the land to expand its civic center. Later she and her husband lived in the desert and bought and sold real estate there, before moving back to Long Beach. When her husband died and she became older, she moved to Leisure World, a retirement community in nearby Seal Beach. TOPICS - experiences in Long Beach during WWII; opinions on social changes in Long Beach; experiences with tenants and visitors at Lyle; son's involvement with the military; first car crash at age 86; move to Leisure World family history of uncle immigrating to New York; involvement with German social clubs in the US; participation in club; son's experience with anti-German sentiments; recollection of the Red Car service in Long Bea
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