
Anne Frank's best friend, Hannah Goslar, dead at age 93
Hannah Elisabeth Pick-Goslar, Anne Frank's best friend, passed away on Friday at the age of 93, the Anne Frank House announced. Goslar's burial will take place in Jerusalem, where she also resided. A memorial page dedicated to Goslar was posted on the Anne Frank Foundation's website.
Goslar's father was head of the press service for the Prussian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. After the Nazis seized power, her family emigrated to Amsterdam, where Goslar met Anne Frank. Goslar, born in Germany, went to school with Frank. Anne Frank also called her Hanneli. The two lost touch when the Frank family went into hiding in 1942.
In June 1943, Goslar, along with her father, grandparents and younger sister Gabi, were arrested by the Gestapo and deported to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. While there, she met Anne Frank again, in February 1945, just before Frank died. Goslar eventually survived the war. She later became a nurse and married Walter Pinchas-Pick. The couple had three children and eleven grandchildren and more than twenty great-grandchildren.
The Dutch film My Best Friend Anne Frank, which can be seen on Netflix, is based on the true story that Goslar told after the Second World War. The film received the Golden Film Award last October. Goslar also appeared in the documentary The Last Seven Months of Anne Frank, made by Dutch documentary maker Willy Lindwer. The documentary won an International Emmy Award.
The Anne Frank House states in its memorial, "Hannah Pick-Goslar meant a lot to the Anne Frank House, and we could always call on her. Hannah’s last visit to the Anne Frank House was in October 2012, at the opening of the temporary exhibition ‘So now I’m fifteen.’ Photos, letters, and books of Anne Frank. The exhibition featured photographs of Hannah and Anne. A short video was recorded in which Hannah talked about her friendship with Anne. We offer Hannah’s relatives and friends our deepest sympathy and sincere condolences. May her memory be for blessing."
Reporting by ANP and NL Times