Measure of a Man

From Auschwitz Survivor to Presidents' Tailor

Martin Greenfield and Wynton Hall (View Bio)
Hardcover: Regnery, 2014.

He's been called "America's greatest living tailor" and "the most interesting man in the world." Now, for the first time, Holocaust-survivor Martin Greenfield tells his whole, incredible life story. Taken from his Czechoslovakian home at age fifteen and transported to the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz with his family, Greenfield came face-to-face with "Angel of Death" Dr. Joseph Mengele and was divided forever from his parents, sisters, and baby brother.

In haunting, powerful prose, Greenfield remembers his desperation and fear as a teenager alone in the death camp—and how an impulsive decision to take an SS soldier's shirt dramatically altered the course of his life. He learned how to sew; and when he began wearing the shirt under his prisoner uniform, he learned that clothes possess great power and could even help save his life.

Measure of a Man is the story of a man who suffered unimaginable horror and emerged with a dream of success. From sweeping floors at a New York clothing factory to founding America’s premier handmade suit company, Greenfield built a fashion empire. Now 86-years-old and working with his sons, Greenfield has dressed the famous and powerful of D.C. and Hollywood, including Presidents Dwight Eisenhower, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama and celebrities Paul Newman, Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Jimmy Fallon.

Written with soul-baring honesty and, at times, a wry sense of humor, Measure of a Man is a memoir unlike any other—one that will inspire hope and renew faith in the resilience of man.

"From fixing Nazi shirts to America's greatest tailor: Martin Greenfield dies aged 95 after fitting six presidents as well as celebs such as Lebron James and Frank Sinatra—after learning to sew as a teen prisoner in Auschwitz. Martin Greenfield, who survived Auschwitz during World War II and went on to become a tailor to presidents and Hollywood movie stars, has died. He was 95 years old. Greenfield 'died comfortably' on Wednesday, March 20, according to an Instagram post written in tribute, credited to his three sons, Jay, Tod and David. He was born Maximilian Grünfeld on August 9, 1928, in what is now western Ukraine but was then part of Czechoslovakia. His family was prosperous but when World War II broke out and the Germans occupied their hometown, all were sent to the notorious Nazi death camp at Auschwitz. His father, mother, two sisters and brother were all killed in the Holocaust. However, in that time that haunted Greenfield for the rest of his life, he worked at the camp's alterations shop, fixing up Nazi troops' shirts and planting the seed of his future career.... Greenfield wrote about his incredible life story in his 2014 memoir." — Stephen M. Lepore, The Daily Mail (Read the full review)

"It's a remarkable book." — Mark Levin, nationally syndicated radio host

"In 1956, Martin Greenfield was a twentysomething Czech immigrant working as a tailor at the well-regarded Brooklyn suit maker GGG Clothes. Greenfield had gotten in the door, in 1947, with the help of a fellow immigrant friend and eventually worked his way from the lowly post of 'floor boy' to trusted confidante of owner William P. Goldman, who took a shine to his competitive spirit. GGG was a favorite label of Dwight D. Eisenhower, and the young tailor couldn’t help himself from passing advice on foreign policy to the Oval Office via the pockets of the president’s new suits. If Eisenhower wanted to end the Suez Canal crisis, Greenfield suggested in a note, why not give Secretary of State John Dulles a two-week vacation? Eisenhower eventually shared his tailor’s hubris with the D.C. press corps for a few laughs. The anecdote is one of many in Greenfield’s new memoir that demonstrates the extraordinary experience he had with capital-H history in the back half of the 20th century." — Vanity Fair

"I dare you to read Holocaust survivor Martin Greenfield's story and not burst into tears.... Every once in a while a book is written that you'll never forget, and leaves you telling all your family and friends about. Martin Greenfield's Measure of a Man is one of those books." — The Daily Surge