In an historic “first,” the closing ceremonies of the four-day World Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors in Jerusalem will be transmitted live via satellite Thursday, June 18 (1-2:30 pm, EDT), over the facilities of the Public Broadcasting Service, it was announced here today. It is expected that PBS stations throughout the United States will carry the transmissions at times to be announced locally.
The live transmission is the first ever from the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Premier Menachem Begin will deliver a major address to the some 7,000 people from 22 countries who will be concluding their gathering. Many of them will be joined by their children and grandchildren in Israel on that day.
Daily highlights of the World Gathering on June 15, 16, 17 and 18 also will be transmitted via satellite on PBS facilities, it was announced. These daily segments will last one-half hour and will be hosted by former CBS News correspondent David Schoenbrun and talk-show hostess Laurel Vlock. They will be seen in New York on Channel 13 at 11:30 PM (EDT). The broadcasts are being produced by Joel Levitch of Jason Films, and funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Over 7,000 survivors are expected to attend the tribute to the six-million Jews who perished in the Holocaust and to pass a legacy of commitment to the next generations. The Gathering is being led by Honorary Chairmen Elie Wiesel, Simone Veil and Stefan Grayek and Executive Committee Chairman Ernest Michel and Vice Chairman Benjamin Meed.
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