Martin Greenfield, who survived Auschwitz during World War II and became a tailor for presidents and Hollywood movie stars, has died. He was 95 years old.
Greenfield “died comfortably” on Wednesday, according to an Instagram post written in tribute, attributed to his three sons, Jay, Tod and David.
He was born Maximilian Grünfeld on August 9, 1928 in what is now western Ukraine, but then part of Czechoslovakia.
His family was prosperous, but when World War II broke out and the Germans occupied their hometown, everyone was sent to the notorious Nazi extermination camp of Auschwitz. His father, mother, two sisters and brother were all killed during the Holocaust.
However, during this period that haunted Greenfield for the rest of his life, he worked in the camp’s alteration shop, repairing the shirts of Nazi troops and planting the seeds of his future career.
Martin Greenfield, who survived Auschwitz during World War II and became a tailor for presidents and Hollywood movie stars, has died. He was 95 years old
Greenfield “died comfortably” on Wednesday, according to an Instagram post attributed to his three sons, Jay, Tod and David.
After being released in 1945, he moved to the United States in 1947, with $10 and without knowing how to speak English.
He soon changed his name to Martin Greenfield and began perfecting the craft that would make him a tailor for politicians, Hollywood stars and even notorious gangsters.
Another refugee and childhood friend connected him with a job at GGG, the Brooklyn clothing manufacturer, where he started working as a floor boy, but worked every job the factory had to offer, according to the New York Times.
He made the grim observation in his memoir: “If the Nazis taught me anything, it was that a worker with indispensable skills was less likely to be rejected. »
Greenfield became close to William P. Goldman, the company’s founder and president, who – after years as a sewer and fitter – made him a “suit doctor”, which put him connecting with clients and friends like Frank Sinatra.
One of his first clients was Dwight D. Eisenhower, then president of Columbia University and, surprisingly, someone Greenfield met when the future commander in chief visited Auschwitz, according to NBC News.
Finally, in 1977, he bought the company and gave it his name. This began a career of work for anyone who represented anyone in American culture.
Among the names thanked in his 2014 memoir are Presidents Gerald Ford, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and future Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden.
His family was prosperous, but when World War II broke out and the Germans took over their area, everyone was sent to the notorious Nazi extermination camp of Auschwitz. His father, mother, two sisters and brother were all killed during the Holocaust. Greenfield is pictured in the center
He soon changed his name to Martin Greenfield and began perfecting the craft that would make him a tailor for politicians, Hollywood stars and even notorious gangsters.
Finally, in 1977, he bought the company and gave it his name. This began a career of work for anyone who represented anyone in American culture.
Greenfield unwittingly became part of a controversy by designing the beige suit Obama wore in 2014, leading the White House press corps to ignore questions about Syria and Iraq and question the outfit.
He was even notoriously a tailor for athletes like LeBron James (pictured), Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony and the 7-foot-tall Shaquille O’Neal.
He unwittingly participated in controversy by designing the beige suit Obama wore in 2014, leading the White House press corps to ignore questions about Syria and Iraq and question the outfit.
Other political dignitaries he worked with included former Secretary of State Colin Powell and New York City Mayors Michael Bloomberg and Ed Koch.
In addition to Sinatra, Greenfield has dressed Martin Scorsese, Denzel Washington and Michael Jackson.
He was even notoriously a tailor for athletes like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony and the 7-foot tall Shaquille O’Neal.
Towards the end of his career, he began working for films and television shows, even dressing an actor who played him in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire and dressing Leonardo DiCaprio in The Great Gatsby.
For all the famous people and luminaries he’s made costumes for, none are as famous as the red suit he created for Joaquin Phoenix in 2019’s The Joker.
Greenfield joked that making Shaq’s suits “required enough fabric to make a small tent.”
He even made clothes for the famous gangster Meyer Lansky, the Jewish gangster influential in building the National Crime Syndicate.
Greenfield wrote about his incredible life story in his 2014 memoir.
For all the famous people and luminaries he’s made costumes for, none are as famous as the red suit he created for Joaquin Phoenix in 2019’s The Joker.
Towards the end of his career, he began working for films and television shows, even dressing an actor who played him in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire.
Even new stars knew Greenfield’s work, like Zac Efron
Greenfield was also credited with dressing Leonardo DiCaprio in The Great Gatsby
“I met him once at the hotel,” Greenfield said. “He was a very nice guy to me and I knew he was in charge. That’s all I’m saying!
Eventually, he passed his business on to two of his three sons, Tod and Jay, whom he had with his wife Arlene, who survives him. The family lived in North Hills, Nassau County, Long Island.
“Martin passed away comfortably on March 20, 2024,” his company’s Instagram account posted on Wednesday.
“Martin Greenfield survived the atrocities of the Holocaust with his humanity intact, living his life delighted to meet everyone he encountered with his infectious smile,” his sons wrote.
“Greenfield lived the rest of his life with his inmate number tattooed on him by the Nazis and tried to ‘live for’ his family, as his father had told him before they separated.”