# Hitler's family **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [February 11, 2005, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607 "2005-02-11T17:09:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![bonzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/21 "2005-02-14T12:46:38Z")
Bainbridge’s novel _Young Adolf_ extremely closely - and openly - follows the Liverpool portion of _The Memoirs of Bridget Hitler_ (Duckworth, 1979, ed. by Michael Unger), the book mentioned by Cecil. He’s correct in saying that the _Memoirs_ were quickly discredited by historians, notably in [this NYRB review](http://www.nybooks.com/articles/article-preview?article_id=7761) (payment required) by Hugh Trevor-Roper. While Cecil obviously tends towards the theory that Bridget (the usual spelling of her name) had a hand in the memoirs, this is far from obvious. For instance, as Trevor-Roper and others have pointed out, the text is far too well-written to be the unaided work of someone who was, by all other accounts, near-illiterate. At the very least, some sort of ghost writer must have been involved, in which case it’s rather surprising that they’ve never broken cover. Of course, the same might be said of any independent hoaxer. Bainbridge’s novel actually came out the year before the published edition of the _Memoirs_, but this was partly a result of her persuading her publishers to then issue the original. She’d necessarily added what she had to as a novelist, but she manages to include virtually all the Liverpudlian details touched on in the _Memoirs_. The novel’s a better read, at that. Incidentally, the supposedly startling - and hopelessly implausible - revelation in the _Memoirs_ is not the story of the Liverpool visit that they’re usually remembered for, it’s the claim that it was common knowledge in the family that Hitler had _personally_ shot his neice Geli. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/22 "2005-02-14T13:06:36Z")
Check out the [FBI files](http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/bridgdandwmpatrickhitler.htm) on William Patrick and Brigid Elizabeth Hitler. (Released under the Freedom of Information Act). ---
**Author:** ![Can\_Handle\_the\_Truth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Can\_Handle\_the\_Truth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Can_Handle_the_Truth)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/23 "2005-02-16T14:37:53Z")
> [@devilsknew](#): > > The tone of Cecil’s article seemed pretty “anti-Hitler Family”. Almost reveling in their demise. Why so much vitriole for family members that had the misfortune of simply sharing his name? > Is Cecil jewish? Where have you been for the last 2 years? Everyone knows Cecil’s jewish. And he (and they) have a right to their opinions. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/24 "2005-02-16T15:42:58Z")
> [@Can Handle the Truth](#): > > Where have you been for the last 2 years? Everyone knows Cecil’s jewish. And he (and they) have a right to their opinions. Huh? Cecil was raised Catholic, and I don’t remember anything about him converting. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/25 "2005-02-16T16:36:10Z")
Cecil? Jewish? Are you sure? Cite please. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/26 "2005-02-16T16:41:35Z")
If being “anti-Hitler” is sufficient to make somebody Jewish, there’s a lot of previosuly unsuspected Jews in the world. ---
**Author:** ![user\_hostile](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/user_hostile/32/474_2.png) [@user\_hostile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/user_hostile)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/27 "2005-02-22T15:31:14Z")
Cite? I seem to recall one of the Straight Dope books stating that C.A. is two part’s Groucho and one part Einstein. If that’s not proof enough, then I’m not Jew…uh… wait a second–I’m not. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![loosechange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@loosechange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/loosechange)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/28 "2005-02-23T18:03:22Z")
> [@Priceguy](#): > > Huh? Cecil was raised Catholic, and I don’t remember anything about him converting. He’s catholic, pretty sure. All I know is that I’m 99% sure he went to my high school…a CATHOLIC SEMINARY in downtown Chicago. ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/29 "2005-02-25T18:36:50Z")
A genuine yearbook photo of a school-age Cecil would be worth a lot of money. Do you happen to have one lying about, **loosechange**? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![loosechange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@loosechange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/loosechange)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/30 "2005-02-25T19:15:16Z")
> [@Spiff](#): > > A genuine yearbook photo of a school-age Cecil would be worth a lot of money. > > Do you happen to have one lying about, **loosechange**? 😃 Unfortunately, I’m much younger than Cecil, so I don’t have his yearbook. I could guesstimate his grad year, and give the name of the school, but I’m oddly hesitant to “out” him. !?! ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2005, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/31 "2005-02-26T19:21:15Z")
[Cecil’s yearbook picture?](http://www.collegeboredom.com/pics/Animals%202/nerd%20moneky.jpg) 😃 ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2005, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607/32 "2005-02-26T21:26:58Z")
> [@devilsknew](#): > > [Cecil’s yearbook picture?](http://www.collegeboredom.com/pics/Animals%202/nerd%20moneky.jpg) > > 😃 This is the second time a picture of Ed Zotti has been mistaken for Cecil. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hitlers-family/289607.md?page=1)