| Repository: | Western Reserve Historical Society |
| Creator: | Berger, David |
| Title: | David Berger Papers |
| Dates: | 1965-2006 |
| Extent: | 0.30 linear feet (1 container and 1 oversize container) |
| Abstract: | David Berger (1944-1972), an American and Israeli citizen, was a champion weightlifter and a member of the Israeli weightlifting team at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, Germany. He was murdered by Arab terrorists on September 6, 1972, along with ten other Israeli athletes. Berger was a 1962 graduate of Shaker Heights High School in Shaker Heights, Ohio. He studied psychology at Tulane University, graduating in 1966, after which he completed a master's degree in business administration and a law degree at Columbia University. Throughout the mid and late 1960s, Berger competed successfully in many weightlifting competitions. He represented the United States twice in the Maccabiah Games, an international Jewish athletic event held in Israel every four years. In 1965 he won a silver medal and in 1969 he won gold, setting a world record. He also won a silver medal at the 1971 Asian Games. He is in the Hall of Fame of the Amateur Athletic Union. Berger moved to Israel in 1970 after visiting the country with his family. The collection consists of certificates, newspaper clippings, programs, a resolution, a script, commemorative stamps, a statement, and a transcript. |
| MS Number | MS 5132 |
| Location: | closed stacks |
| Language: | The records are in English and Hebrew |
David Berger (1944-1972), an American and Israeli citizen, was a champion weightlifter and a member of the Israeli weightlifting team at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, Germany. He was murdered by Arab terrorists on September 6, 1972, along with ten other Israeli athletes.
Berger was a 1962 graduate of Shaker Heights High School in Shaker Heights, Ohio. He studied psychology at Tulane University, graduating in 1966, after which he completed a master's degree in business administration and a law degree at Columbia University. Throughout the mid and late 1960s, Berger competed successfully in many weightlifting competitions. He represented the United States twice in the Maccabiah Games, an international Jewish athletic event held in Israel every four years. In 1965 he won a silver medal and in 1969 he won gold, setting a world record. He also won a silver medal at the 1971 Asian Games. He is in the Hall of Fame of the Amateur Athletic Union. Berger moved to Israel in 1970 after visiting the country with his family.
The David Berger Papers, 1965-2006 and undated, consist of certificates, newspaper clippings, programs, a resolution, a script, commemorative stamps, a statement, and a transcript.
This collection will be of value to researchers interested in sports history, the history of the Olympic Games, and terrorism in the late twentieth century. Those with an interest in the history of Jewish involvement in sports will find much valuable information here. The collection includes an official weightlifting program from the 1972 Olympic Games and the script of a play about David Berger and his family written by Cleveland, Ohio, area playwright Faye Sholiton. Of special interest is a statement from a local Zionist youth group, which renamed itself in honor of David Berger after the athlete's death. Philatelists may be interested in the commemorative stamps.
None.
Separated MaterialAll photographs and audiovisual materials have been removed to the photograph and audiovisual collections respectively. David Berger's dress uniform from the 1972 Olympic Games was removed to the museum collections, along with a banner of the local youth chapter of the American Zionist Association renamed in honor of Berger.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 5132 David Berger Papers, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gift of Benjamin Berger in 2010.
Processed by Peggy Wasserstrom and Sean Martin in 2012.
David Berger Papers 1965-2006 undated |
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| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Certificates (oversize material removed to Oversize Container 1) 1965 1969 1986 2005 undated | |||||||||
| 1 | 2 | Newspaper clippings (oversize material removed to Oversize Container 1) 1972-2006 | |||||||||
| 1 | 3 | Programs, 1969 (Maccabiah Games), 1972 (Olympic weightlifting program, in German), 2002 (Israeli Olympic Committee commemorative booklet, in Hebrew) 1969 1972 2002 | |||||||||
| 1 | 4 | Resolution, University Heights, Ohio, mayor 1972 | |||||||||
| 1 | 5 | Script, A Form of Hope, by Faye Sholiton 2002 | |||||||||
| 1 | 6 | Stamps, commemorative, from Haiti and Israel 1972 undated | |||||||||
| 1 | 7 | Statement, The History of the First Flag of David Berger AZA 1976 | |||||||||
| 1 | 8 | Transcript, interview with Jim McKay 1998 | |||||||||