Bernard Edinger
Old photos
Sunday 11 March 2012
If memory serves me right, the photo was taken near Paris nearly 20 years ago at a retirement party for Daniel Fogel who began his Reuters career as a teenage trainee accountant and ended it decades later as Manager France.
Louis died prematurely of cancer not long after this photo was taken and Gil, who had worked for Reuters for 47 years (a possible company record?), died last June aged 94.
My fond memories of both of these dear friends are tinged with some sadness, however.
Three months after Gil’s death, it emerged that his widow had not heard anything from Reuters about receiving a pension. When she approached the relevant services at TR to have this wrong redressed, she was told that she had to prove that her husband had worked for Reuters!
How? For example by providing a copy of his letter of engagement by Reuters in Cairo in 1935!
Aghhhhhh!
Bernard Edinger
nbnbn
Anthony Grey
Saturday 20 March 2010
My father Jacques Edinger, then head of the French Desk in London, was a member of a committee of Reuters journalists created to keep Tony Grey’s plight [● Making the best of it – Anthony Grey’s China ordeal in the ‘raw’] in the public eye and do what they could to help him.
He told me this:
When Tony Grey was about to be released, Reuters was extremely worried about what Grey might say against the company and its responsibilities in what had happened to him.
Doon Campbell was sent by management to meet Grey on his release and to “coordinate with him” what he would tell the press which was, not surprisingly, very interested in the case.
According to my recollections of what my father told me, Grey had sent several messages to Head Office in the days before his incarceration pleading to be allowed to leave China because he could see big trouble coming ahead for him personally.
Management hummed and hawed because, of course, they didn’t want to miss the developing story in Beijing which unfortunately turned out to be Grey’s incarceration in his own home.
Bernard Edinger
He told me this:
When Tony Grey was about to be released, Reuters was extremely worried about what Grey might say against the company and its responsibilities in what had happened to him.
Doon Campbell was sent by management to meet Grey on his release and to “coordinate with him” what he would tell the press which was, not surprisingly, very interested in the case.
According to my recollections of what my father told me, Grey had sent several messages to Head Office in the days before his incarceration pleading to be allowed to leave China because he could see big trouble coming ahead for him personally.
Management hummed and hawed because, of course, they didn’t want to miss the developing story in Beijing which unfortunately turned out to be Grey’s incarceration in his own home.
Bernard Edinger
Patrick Massey
Wednesday 18 March 2009
My first day in London (1971). Around 1:00 pm, Pat tells me: "C'mon, Bernie, let's go to lunch."
We knew each other pretty well since he had literally taught me all the basics during a period of several months in 1969 when he temporarily took over the Tel Aviv bureau where I was a locally recruited junior reporter.
We went down to Mrs Moon's where Pat instantly ordered two large pints for each of us (in order to avoid any spilling in the great noonday crush in that dank cellar, he used to hold one close under his chin and protect the other more or less folded down near his armpit).
I then (remember: I'm French and "lunch" is a sacred word) shouted over the din: "Thanks Pat, but where's the food?"
"What food?" he replied, looking puzzled.
Bernard Edinger
We knew each other pretty well since he had literally taught me all the basics during a period of several months in 1969 when he temporarily took over the Tel Aviv bureau where I was a locally recruited junior reporter.
We went down to Mrs Moon's where Pat instantly ordered two large pints for each of us (in order to avoid any spilling in the great noonday crush in that dank cellar, he used to hold one close under his chin and protect the other more or less folded down near his armpit).
I then (remember: I'm French and "lunch" is a sacred word) shouted over the din: "Thanks Pat, but where's the food?"
"What food?" he replied, looking puzzled.
Bernard Edinger
David Mathew
Saturday 20 September 2008
In 32 years with the Baron, I met an enormous amount of really nice people (yes, and a few – but very few – total s....) but Dave stands out among them as one of the kindest and most considerate of all – a real gentleman.
Bernard Edinger
Bernard Edinger
