ACerS has only recently learned of the passing of Society Member Alfred Dube on May 20, 2008. Born May 3, 1923, in Pilsen, Czechoslovakia, he was a 30-year resident of Las Vegas.
Prior to World War II, he graduated as a ceramic engineer from the Czechoslovakian Institute of Ceramics. During World War II, he was moved from ghetto to various concentration camps, including Buchenwald and Bergen-Belsen. He was the only survivor out of a 37-member family, all others were murdered during World War II.
After the war, he worked in the underground for an organization that facilitated the acquisition of passports for Jews to escape occupied territories and find passage to Palestine. He also became a model and the subject of a series of art pieces titled “The Muselman” (skeleton) by David Friedman.
When he arrived in the United States with his wife and two-year-old daughter, he had only a total of 60-cents in his pocket. He worked as a pin setter in a bowling alley, while he learned English, one of the five languages he spoke.
His career included the following positions: Director of Design Research and General Manager at Stetson China Co.; General Manager of Blue Mountain Pottery; Managing Director of Bevex Ceramic Tile Co.; President of Canadiana Pottery Ltd.; National Sales Manager of Studiceram Inc.; and Technical Director of Holland Brick and Tile Co.
Michael Pratt, in his book, “Mid Century Modern Dinnerware,” called him the “father of modern dinnerware design.” Dube also authored a book of his own called, “Where Was God?”