ANNOUNCER: TONIGHT ON SHOWCASE WITH BARBARA KELLAR, CEO OF LPK, JERRY KATHMAN AND VP MANAGING CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF LPK, LIZ GRUBOW.

STAY TUNED, SHOWCASE STARTS RIGHT NOW.

[MUSIC] KELLAR: HI, I'M BARBARA KELLAR AND THIS IS A REALLY GREAT ISSUE OF SHOWCASE.

TODAY WE HAVE LIZ GRUBOW AND HER SIX FOOT SIX HUSBAND.

WE JUST WENT THROUGH THAT, JERRY KATHMAN, WHO PROBABLY ARE NOT STRANGERS TO YOU.

JERRY AND LIZ ARE LPK, ONE OF THE BEST AND BIGGEST DESIGN FIRMS, CERTAINLY LOCALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY.

RIGHT?

YEAH, BUT THEY HAVE A DIFFERENT STORY TO TELL TODAY.

AND I WANT THEM TO TELL THE STORY.

SO I THINK WE'LL START WITH LIZ.

LADIES, FIRST.

TELL US ABOUT YOUR PROJECT.

GRUBOW: WHERE TO BEGIN.

I MEAN, IT WAS JERRY'S VISION.

WE HAVE A PLACE OUT IN INDIANA AND WE HAD A LOVELY LITTLE CABIN THERE, SETTLER'S LOG CABIN, AND RAISED OUR KIDS THERE.

IT WAS JUST A WONDERFUL PLACE.

BUT JERRY HAD -- HE HAS BIG IDEAS AND HE HAD THIS DREAM OF BUILDING A DACHA, A BIGGER HOME FOR OUR FAMILY.

AND I'LL LET HIM BEGIN AND WE'LL GO BACK AND FORTH WITH THE STORY.

KATHMAN: WELL, I'M A WEST SIDER, AND WEST SIDERS TEND TO HAVE THEIR FISHING CAMPS OR THEIR CABINS IN SOUTHEASTERN INDIANA.

AND SO, AS LIZ SAID, WE ACQUIRED THIS CABIN ABOUT 40 YEARS AGO.

AND OUR KIDS AND THEIR CLASSMATES AND THEIR SOCCER TEAMS VISITED, AND WE HAD A WHOLE LIFETIME OF FUN.

AND THEN AS RETIREMENT APPROACHED, I THOUGHT, "WELL, YOU KNOW, DO WE DO THE USUAL CINCINNATI THING, GET A PLACE IN MICHIGAN OR FLORIDA OR, YOU KNOW, SKI COUNTRY, PETITE-TERRE, NEW YORK, LOTS OF DIFFERENT IDEAS.

BUT I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE FUN JUST TO BUILD A HOME ON OUR PROPERTY IN INDIANA AND WITH LIZ'S RUSSIAN HERITAGE, RATHER THAN JUST CALL IT A TIMBER HOME, WE THOUGHT THAT WE WOULD, IN HONOR OF HER RUSSIAN UKRAINIAN HERITAGE, CALL IT A DACHA.

KELLAR: SPELLED D-A-C-H-A.

KATHMAN: PEOPLE SAY DOCK-A, WHICH IS INCORRECT.

DACHA.

KELLAR: COUNTRY HOME IN RUSSIA IS A DACHA.

KATHMAN: YES.

SUMMER HOME, WEEKEND HOME.

KELLAR: AND DOCTOR ZHIVAGO, IF PEOPLE REMEMBER THE SCENE WHERE THEY'RE OUT IN THE INTO THE COUNTRY LOOKING FOR THEIR HOUSE AND THEY CAN'T GO IN THE DACHA.

BUT THIS -- AND THE FATHER SAYS SO, SO POIGNANTLY WHEN THE SIGN SAYS, "THIS IS FOR THE PEOPLE ONLY."

AND HE SAYS, "WELL, I'M A PEOPLE TOO," BUT THEY END UP IN THE, I GUESS, THE SMOKEHOUSE OR WHATEVER THEY WOULD HAVE CALLED THAT PLACE.

KATHMAN: YES, IT'S CALLED THE ICE PALACE IN THE FILM.

OMAR SHARIF AND JULIE CHRISTIE.

AND WHAT'S FUN ABOUT THAT IS IT'S A BITTER SCENE IN RUSSIA.

IT WAS ACTUALLY FILMED IN SPAIN IN THE SUMMERTIME.

SO THAT'S THAT'S MARBLE POWDER AND SALICYLIC ACID.

AND IT WAS ACTUALLY 80 SOME DEGREES WHEN JULIE CHRISTIE LOOKED GORGEOUS IN HER FURS.

GRUBOW: FILMMAKING AT ITS BEST.

KELLAR: YES.

SO ANYWAY, YOU'RE RECREATING THAT REALLY SPECIAL THING.

GRUBOW: I WAS ALWAYS THE ONE THAT WOULD SAY NO TO ALL THESE IDEAS.

AND THEN MY MOTHER PASSED AWAY.

I MEAN, MY MOTHER, MY MOTHER AND FATHER.

MY FATHER IS UKRAINIAN AND MY MOTHER RUSSIAN.

THEY DIDN'T MEET EACH OTHER TILL AFTER WORLD II, WHEN THEY BOTH, THROUGH SEPARATE JOURNEYS, GOT TO THE US.

AND, I MEAN, SHE GREW UP IN SAINT PETERSBURG.

SHE HAD A JUST A HORRIFIC LIFE AND LIVED THROUGH THE SIEGE AND THE ARTS WAS, I MEAN, SHE WOULD SAY THE ARTS WERE WHAT KEPT HER ALIVE.

AND WHEN SHE PASSED IN HER 90S, JERRY SAID, "WELL, LET'S BUILD THIS IN HER HONOR."

AND THAT JUST, YOU KNOW, I STARTED TO WEEP AND IT WAS THAT.

KATHMAN: THAT GOT HER OVER THE FINISH LINE.

GRUBOW: THAT GOT ME.

KATHMAN: THAT GOT THE APPROVAL.

KELLAR: WELL, I HAVE TO INTERJECT AND SAY, THE REASON WE'RE HERE TODAY IS BECAUSE I'M SITTING READING MY WALL STREET JOURNAL, AS I DO EVERY DAY, AND THE SECTION CALLED MANSIONS, WHICH IS FABULOUS PLACES ALL OVER THE WORLD.

AND HERE'S THIS DACHA IN ALL LIKE THREE COLORFUL WHOLE PAGES.

AND I BECAUSE I LOVE RUSSIA.

I'VE BEEN TO RUSSIA FOUR TIMES TO SEE THE BALLET.

AND THEN THERE'S THIS SMALLER PICTURE, AND I GLANCED AT IT AND THE FIRST GLANCE, "OH MY GOSH, THAT LOOKS LIKE LIZ AND JERRY."

AND THEN I LOOKED AGAIN AND, OH MY GOD, IT WAS YOU.

SO THERE YOU WERE IN FULL COLOR PAGE AFTER PAGE IN THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.

SO THAT'S WHEN WE SAID, YOU'VE GOT TO COME TO SHOWCASE AND TELL US WHAT YOU DID.

AND SO TELL US ABOUT THE PROJECT.

KATHMAN: IT'S A CINCINNATI STORY FROM TOP TO BOTTOM.

I WAS OUT IN THAT FIELD ON MY PROPERTY WITH JACK ROUSE, A GOOD FRIEND OF OURS.

JACK AND MOE, OF COURSE, ARE GREAT PHILANTHROPISTS, GREAT PEOPLE.

AND I SAID, "I'D LIKE TO BUILD A DACHA."

AND JACK, WITHOUT MISSING A BEAT, SAID, "THEN DON'T HIRE AN ARCHITECT, HIRE A SET DESIGNER.

BECAUSE IF YOU WANT TO BUILD A FANTASY, A SET DESIGNER WILL PUT YOU ON THE RIGHT PATH."

THEN HE WENT FURTHER AND SAID, "USE PAUL SHORTT."

AND I KNOW PAUL, PAUL AND I ARE IN THE LITERARY CLUB OF CINCINNATI TOGETHER.

AND SO WE APPROACHED PAUL AND HE MADE A SKETCH.

I HAVE THE ORIGINAL SKETCH ON THE BACK OF A STARBUCKS NAPKIN, FOLLOWED BY A MODEL THAT HE PUT TOGETHER.

THEY LIVE IN CARMEL, CALIFORNIA HALF THE YEAR, AND A FEDERAL EXPRESS BOX SHOWED UP.

AND I'M WALKING AROUND IN THE FIELD IMAGINING THIS DACHA SITTING THERE SOMEDAY.

SO WE MADE IT REAL.

I HAD A BUILDER OUT IN DEARBORN COUNTY, STEVE BROWN, WHO'S FABULOUS TALENT, AND BEFORE WE KNEW IT, OUR DREAM WAS MANIFEST.

NOW, FROM THE BEGINNING, AND IT WAS PAUL'S COUNSEL, HE SAID, "BE SURE AND TREAT IT LIKE A PLACE WORTHY OF HAVING SALONS, AND SO -- THAT WAS THE ORIGINAL IDEA, WAS THAT WE WOULD BUILD IT SO THAT WE COULD USE IT TO ENTERTAIN AND, AND AGAIN, FOR PHILANTHROPY.

KATHMAN: AND FUNDRAISING.

KELLAR: FOR FUNDRAISING FOR THE ARTS.

KATHMAN: SO WE'VE HAD CM AND THE ARIEL QUARTET IN CONCERT.

WE'VE HAD THE DECORATIVE ARTS SOCIETY OF THE CINCINNATI ART MUSEUM THERE, MY LITERARY CLUB HAD AN OUTING THERE.

WE'VE HAD FUNDRAISERS FOR UNITED WAY.

SO, IT IS SOMETHING THAT I HOPE A LOT OF PEOPLE WATCHING THIS PROGRAM WILL SEE.

KELLAR: CET IS NEXT ON THE LIST.

KATHMAN: CET IN THE SPRING.

WE'VE GOT -- KELLAR: A DISCLAIMER HERE, JERRY WAS PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD HERE AT CET, AND HE WAS HONORED AT OUR FUNDRAISER.

KATHMAN: YES.

KELLAR: AND WAS A WONDERFUL HONOREE.

BUT TELL US ABOUT THE DESIGN.

I MEAN, WE KNOW IT'S RUSSIAN, BUT-- KATHMAN: YES, WELL, THE DACHA MEANS SECOND HOME, COUNTRY HOME.

THERE ISN'T A SPECIFIC STYLE, BUT MOST PEOPLE ASSOCIATE IT WITH THAT SCENE IN DOCTOR ZHIVAGO AND THE CUPOLAS AND THE EXTRAVAGANT DETAILS.

THE DACHA MOVEMENT REALLY CAUGHT ON IN THE LATE 19TH CENTURY, WHEN THE INDUSTRIAL CLASS STARTED TO HAVE SIGNIFICANT WEALTH, NOT JUST THE ARISTOCRACY.

THEY STARTED TO BUILD HOMES TO GET OUT OF THE CITIES.

THE CITIES WERE HOT AND THERE WERE LOTS OF SUMMER DISEASES, CHOLERA AND OTHER THINGS.

SO IT WAS A BOTH A PRACTICAL AS WELL AS A REWARDING EXPERIENCE TO GET OUT OF THE CITY.

AND THEY -- MOST OF NORTHERN EUROPEAN ARCHITECTURE IS WOODEN, FROM NORWAY, ACROSS SCANDINAVIA INTO RUSSIA, FABULOUS WOODEN BUILDINGS.

AND SO THE RUSSIANS BEING RUSSIAN, BEING EXTRAVAGANT, THEY HAVE LOTS OF DETAILS AND FILIGREE.

AND THERE WERE MAGAZINES PUBLISHED IN RUSSIAN AND FRENCH SORT OF SHOWING, I CALL IT AN ARMS RACE BETWEEN WEALTHY INDUSTRIALISTS WHO COULD OUTDO ONE ANOTHER WITH THE MORE EXTREME.

KELLAR: SORT OF LIKE NEWPORT HERE.

KATHMAN: YES, EXACTLY, EXACTLY.

SO THAT'S WHAT WE MIMIC.

THAT'S WHAT PAUL STUDIED AND CREATED FOR US IN INDIANA.

KELLAR: WELL, LIZ, YOU'RE AN ARTIST TOO.

YOUR CAREER, YOU'RE STILL WORKING WITH LPK.

GRUBOW: I'M STILL WORKING, YES, AND ALSO VERY INVOLVED IN THE ARTS AND THE MUSEUM.

KELLAR: AREN'T YOU OPERA, STILL PRESIDENT OF THE OPERA?

GRUBOW: I'M CHAIR NOW.

KELLAR: CHAIR, OKAY.

GRUBOW: WONDERFUL MELANIE CHAVEZ IS PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD.

BUT I WAS THE OTHER, YOU KNOW, WE HAVEN'T SCHEDULED OPERA EVENTS YET, BUT OPERA VERY NEAR AND DEAR TO MY HEART AS WELL AS TO MY MOM.

KELLAR: DID YOU END UP WITH GOOD ACOUSTICS?

KATHMAN: YES.

EVANS TESTED IT.

WE HAD AN EVENT WHEN THE DACHA WAS UNDER CONSTRUCTION, AND EVANS IS WALKING AROUND CLAPPING.

KELLAR: YEAH.

KATHMAN: HE APPROVED OF THE ACOUSTICS.

AND THE AERIAL QUARTET EXPERIENCE WAS FABULOUS.

KELLAR: GOOD.

KATHMAN: REALLY WONDERFUL ACOUSTICS.

KELLAR: GREAT.

SO, TELL ABOUT THE DESIGN.

IS THERE A -- YOU WALK IN AND -- KATHMAN: YES.

WELL, IT'S AS YOU APPROACH IT, IT SITS IN THE WOODS AND YOU SEE THE CUPOLAS AND YOU SEE A LOT OF THE EXTRAVAGANCE.

KELLAR: SO YOU HAVE THE CUPOLAS ON?

KATHMAN: YES, YEAH.

AND DIFFERENT LEVELS, JUST SORT OF A WHIMSICAL FEEL.

AND THEN WHEN YOU WALK IN THERE'S A ROOM WITH A 40 FOOT CEILING.

SO IT'S A VERY LARGE -- THAT'S WHERE WE CAN FIT 40 OR 60 PEOPLE FOR AN EVENT.

AND THEN WE HAVE AN OUTDOOR SPACE AS WELL, UNDERCOVER, AND THEN A LAWN NEARBY.

AND THE MATERIAL IS ALL HARVESTED LOCALLY.

STEVE BROWN, OUR BUILDER, ALSO HAS A LUMBER MILL.

SO IT'S ALL THE DOORS ARE INDIANA BLACK WALNUT.

THE PRIMARY MATERIAL IS YELLOW PINE HARVESTED ON OR NEAR THE PROPERTY, AND ALSO CEDAR.

THE STONES ON THE HEARTH ARE FROM THE CREEK BELOW.

KELLAR: WOW.

KATHMAN: AND WE WILL SERVE YOU ON CROCKERY MADE BY HARRY SANTEN, WHO IS A POTTER, ALONG WITH -- SO AND ANN AND HARRY HAVE BEEN THERE.

AND HARRY SAID, "LET ME MAKE SOME THINGS OUT OF THE CREEK CLAY THAT WE SEE AS WE'RE SITTING THERE."

KELLAR: SO TALK ABOUT CULTIVATED NEARBY.

KATHMAN: EXACTLY.

SO, IT'S BEEN GREAT FUN FOR US TO DO.

GRUBOW: I MEAN THE AMAZING THING WAS COVID DIDN'T DELAY.

KELLAR: DIDN'T SLOW YOU DOWN.

GRUBOW: BECAUSE EVERYTHING WAS LOCAL.

AND SO THIS SMALL TEAM CAME TO WORK EVERY DAY AND GOT IT BUILT DURING THAT TIME.

AND I THINK, AGAIN, IT WAS TO BE WORKING AND TO BE OUTDOORS DURING THAT HORRIFIC PERIOD WAS JUST A GODSEND FOR EVERYONE INVOLVED.

KELLAR: YEAH.

DO YOU HAVE LIVING AREAS?

KATHMAN: WE HAVE THREE BEDROOMS AND WE HAVE A VERY NICE MASTER BEDROOM WITH -- AND THEN A COUPLE GUEST BEDROOMS.

AND THEN WE STILL HAVE OUR CABIN ON THE PROPERTY, WHICH ESSENTIALLY SERVES AS A FOURTH BEDROOM.

SO WE HAVE A SON AND DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AND TWO GRANDDAUGHTERS OUT IN SAN DIEGO, AND THEY VISIT, AND OUR DAUGHTER AND HER FIANCE ARE HERE IN THE CITY.

OUR DAUGHTER IS GETTING MARRIED NEXT JUNE, SO WE HOPE TO FILL IT WITH FAMILY AND GUESTS.

WE'RE NOT GETTING ANY YOUNGER.

SO THE IDEA OF -- GRUBOW: SPEAK FOR YOURSELF, JERRY.

KELLAR: YES, LIZ IS, YOU ARE NOT.

KATHMAN: COURSE, OF COURSE.

BUT, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T -- THE DAYS OF HAVING A PARTY THAT ENDS AT ONE IN THE MORNING AND EVERYBODY HAS AN HOUR DRIVE BACK TO THE CITY.

KELLAR: WELL, I'LL JUST SPEND THE NIGHT.

KATHMAN: THAT'S WHERE WE'LL HAVE YOU OUTFIT FOR THE WEEKEND.

KELLAR: YEAH.

SO, YOU PLAN ON HAVING LOTS OF PARTIES, BUT HOW OFTEN DO YOU ALL JUST GO OUT?

KATHMAN: I'D SAY WE'RE AVERAGING ABOUT 50% OF OUR TIME.

OUR HOME IS IN COVINGTON, ON THE RIVER NEAR WHERE THE MIKE FINK USED TO BE, FOR THOSE WHO REMEMBER THAT.

AND WE HAD A VERY URBAN LIFE.

WE DIDN'T HAVE A SINGLE BLADE OF GRASS ON OUR PROPERTY.

SO FOR US TO HAVE A VERY DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE ESTHETICALLY IN THE WOODS, IN A HARDWOOD FOREST IN INDIANA IS A VERY DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE FROM WHAT WE -- GRUBOW: I CALL IT OUR CITY MOUSE AND OUR COUNTRY MOUSE LIFE.

KELLAR: YES, YES, YEAH.

HOW LONG DID THE WHOLE PROCESS TAKE?

KATHMAN: ABOUT FIVE YEARS AGO WAS THAT INITIAL CONVERSATION WITH JACK ROUSE.

TWO YEARS OF PLANNING AND SELECTING THE BUILDER.

AND ALSO I WANT TO SAY FROM PAUL'S ORIGINAL SKETCH, MY ARCHITECT, MARK GUNTHER, HAS DONE A LOT OF WORK FOR US IN OUR OFFICES AND OUR HOME AND OUR CABIN.

SO HE SORT OF TOOK AND REFINED THOSE DESIGNS AND ALLOWED US TO GET THE WORK PERMITS AND THE OTHER THINGS THAT WERE REQUIRED TO BUILD.

THREE YEARS OF INTENSE BUILDING, THREE YEARS STEVE BROWN WAS THERE EVERY DAY.

KELLAR: WOW, THAT'S A LONG TIME.

KATHMAN: IT WAS.

IT WAS A LONG TIME.

KELLAR: WHY WAS IT SO MUCH LONGER?

KATHMAN: IT'S SO UNIQUE.

I MEAN, WE HAVE SOMETHING CALLED LIVE EDGE TREES, A WOOD, SO FROM THE OUTSIDE, SOME OF THE VERTICAL WOOD LOOKS LIKE A TREE.

IT LOOKS LIKE YOU JUST POP THE BARK OFF A TREE.

SO VERY COMPLICATED MILLWORK, VERY COMPLICATED ENGINEERING OF ALL SORTS.

IT'S GEOTHERMAL HEAT.

WE JUST DID A LOT OF THINGS THAT WERE FUN AND TOOK A LITTLE MORE TIME.

KELLAR: YOU DID IT ALL?

KATHMAN: YEAH, WE THOUGHT WE'RE GOING TO DO.

KELLAR: DIDN'T HOLD BACK.

IF WE'RE GOING TO DO IT, WE'RE GOING TO DO IT.

KATHMAN: THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT.

KELLAR: TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT PAUL SHORTT, HIS CAREER BECAUSE PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW WHO HE IS.

BUT THEY'VE SEEN HIS WORK.

KATHMAN: YES, WELL PAUL GREW UP IN MICHIGAN, GOT A DEGREE IN DRAMA AT YALE, AND JACK ROUSE ACTUALLY HIRED HIM TO BE A PROFESSOR AT CCM.

SO YOU MAY NOT KNOW PAUL, BUT YOU HAVE CERTAINLY, IF YOU'RE A CINCINNATIAN, YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED HIS CREATIVITY.

HE'S DONE A LOT OF SET DESIGN AT THE PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK, OPERA, HE'S DONE FOR OPERA COMPANIES ACROSS AMERICA, EUROPE.

HE'S DONE A FEW BUILDINGS.

KELLAR: HE'S DONE BALLET SETS.

KATHMAN: YES, OF COURSE BALLET.

SO, YEAH.

GRUBOW: HE'S SUCH A TALENT.

KATHMAN: A VERY TALENTED GUY.

KELLAR: HE'S THE NAME THAT PEOPLE THINK OF, IF YOU CAN NAME ONE, IT'S PAUL SHORTT.

KATHMAN: THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT.

YEAH.

AND I, I KNEW OF PAUL LONG BEFORE I HAD THE PLEASURE OF GETTING TO KNOW HIM THROUGH THE LITERARY CLUB.

SO WE WERE QUITE HONORED.

WE WEREN'T SURE HE WOULD AGREE, YOU KNOW, IF HE'S SITTING OUT THERE WATCHING THE SUNSET OVER THE PACIFIC OCEAN IN CARMEL, I'M NOT SURE HE WANTED TO GO INDOORS AND SIT AT THE DRAWING BOARD, BUT HE DID.

KELLAR: WHO WOULDN'T WANT TO BE INVOLVED IN THIS PROJECT?

OH, MY GOSH, TO ME, IT'S JUST SO FASCINATING.

KATHMAN: YEAH, IT'S BEEN SO MUCH FUN AND WE'VE GOTTEN TO KNOW THE SHORTTS WELL, MARCIA AND PAUL THROUGH THIS PROJECT AND THEY'RE GOOD FRIENDS AND WE GET THEM OUT THERE PRETTY REGULARLY AS WELL.

KELLAR: TELL US EXACTLY WHERE IT IS.

KATHMAN: IT'S NEAR DILLSBORO.

SO IF YOU HEAD DUE WEST OUT OF CINCINNATI, YOU EXIT AT LAWRENCEBURG.

IF YOU CONTINUE, YOU'LL GO THROUGH AURORA.

THE NEXT TOWN WOULD BE DILLSBORO, THEN IT WOULD BE VERSAILLES, AND EVENTUALLY BLOOMINGTON AND THE UNIVERSITY OF INDIANA.

SO IT'S ROUTE 50, A STRAIGHT LINE OUT, ABOUT 45 MINUTES IF THE WEATHER, IF THE TRAFFIC COOPERATES.

GRUBOW: IT'S AN EASY DRIVE FROM CINCINNATI.

KELLAR: I'VE BEEN THERE, BUT I DON'T REMEMBER HOW WE GOT THERE.

GRUBOW: AND PEOPLE JUST LOVE TO BE OUT IN NATURE.

KELLAR: OH, GOSH.

YEAH.

GRUBOW: AND ONE OF THE DETAILS IS THAT EVERYTHING IS BELOW WINDOW HEIGHT.

SO YOU REALLY GET A 360 DEGREE VIEW THROUGH THE WINDOWS OF THE WOODS AND UH, AND, AND IT'S ALL ABOUT BEING CASUAL AND ENJOYING BEING OUT IN THE OUTDOORS.

AND IT'S JUST, I MEAN, PEOPLE ARE JUST DELIGHTED.

KELLAR: OH, MY GOODNESS.

I AM SURE THEY ARE.

JERRY, YOU'RE ALSO IN THE LITERARY CLUB.

KATHMAN: YES, THE LITERARY CLUB OF CINCINNATI, THE OLDEST LITERARY SOCIETY IN NORTH AMERICA WITH TWO US PRESIDENTS HAVE BEEN PRESIDENTS OF THE CLUB AND A NUMBER OF PROMINENT PEOPLE, CIVIL WAR GENERALS, IMPORTANT PEOPLE IN MEDICINE, LAW, AND SO FORTH FOR 170 YEARS.

YEAH.

SO I'VE BEEN THE PRESIDENT OF THAT CLUB AND AM AN ENTHUSIASTIC MEMBER.

I'M ALSO ON THE BOARD OF THE MERCANTILE LIBRARY AND PUBLIC RADIO, I'M THE VICE CHAIR.

I'M INVOLVED WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI FOUNDATION, WHERE LIZ AND I MET, SHE CAME OUT FROM NEW JERSEY TO GO TO THIS FABULOUS DESIGN SCHOOL THAT WE HAVE IN THIS CITY, AND THAT'S HOW WE MET.

KELLAR: REALLY?

KATHMAN: YEAH.

SO WE'RE LUCKY.

AND LIZ DIDN'T LEARN ENGLISH UNTIL GRADE SCHOOL, SO SHE GREW UP IN A RUSSIAN HOME.

KELLAR: IS THAT RIGHT?

KATHMAN: YES.

KELLAR: TELL US ABOUT THAT.

GRUBOW: WELL, AS I MENTIONED, MY MOTHER AND FATHER COMING TO THE US, MEETING IN NEW JERSEY, AND I GREW UP, THE ONLY FAMILY THAT WAS LEFT, WE ALL LIVED IN ONE HOUSE.

MY MOTHER'S PARENTS WERE ON THE FIRST FLOOR AND WE WERE ON THE SECOND FLOOR, AND MY FATHER'S FATHER WAS IN THE ATTIC.

AND I WAS OUR ENTIRE FAMILY.

BUT IT WAS RIGHT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF LINCOLN TUNNEL.

AND WE WOULD TAKE THE BUS INTO PORT AUTHORITY.

AND BECAUSE MY MOTHER HAD SUCH A HORRIFIC LIFE, AND MY FATHER ALSO, MATERIAL THINGS DID NOT MATTER BECAUSE THEY LOST EVERYTHING.

KELLAR: YEAH.

GRUBOW: BUT EXPERIENCES, SHE WOULD TELL US AT A YOUNG AGE, YOU KNOW, IF YOU LIKED A PERFORMANCE OR, YOU KNOW, TO LOOK AT ART THAT CAN NEVER BE TAKEN AWAY FROM YOU.

SO THAT WAS HIGHLY, HIGHLY VALUED.

AND IT WAS A GREAT PLACE AND WAY TO GROW UP.

KELLAR: SO THEY ONLY SPOKE ENGLISH, OR THAT'S ALL YOU HEARD UNTIL YOU WERE HOW OLD?

GRUBOW: THEY ONLY SPOKE RUSSIAN.

KELLAR: I MEAN THEY ONLY SPOKE RUSSIAN.

GRUBOW: YES, UNTIL I WENT TO KINDERGARTEN AND WE SPOKE RUSSIAN IN THE HOME.

I SPOKE ENGLISH WITH MY BROTHER TO PRACTICE, BUT MY FATHER WORKED, MY GRANDFATHER WORKED, HE WAS AN ENGINEER.

AND MY FATHER TRAGICALLY DIED VERY YOUNG, VERY SUDDENLY WHEN HE WAS 45.

SO THEN MY MOTHER WENT TO WORK AND THAT'S REALLY WHEN SHE WOULD TAKE US TO SEE PERFORMANCES AT THE MET.

BEFORE THEN, THERE WERE SO MANY BALLETS FILMED, YOU KNOW, OF NUREYEV AND FONTAINE.

OH, MY GOSH, WE WOULD GO.

SHE JUST LOVED THAT.

SHE LOVED HIM, ABSOLUTELY.

KELLAR: WHERE DID YOUR PARENTS LIVE IN RUSSIA?

GRUBOW: WELL, MY MOTHER, SAINT PETERSBURG, AND THEN MY FATHER, A TOWN IN THE UKRAINE.

I MEAN, I STILL HAVEN'T DONE THE RESEARCH.

THEY JUST DIDN'T TALK ABOUT THEIR LIVES.

KELLAR: YEAH.

IT WAS NOT A LIFE THAT YOU WANT TO -- THAT YOU WANT TO REMINISCE.

KATHMAN: THEY OPENED UP MORE WITH ME.

I THINK A LOT OF GIS IN WORLD WAR II, THEY TALK TO THEIR GRANDCHILDREN, THEY DON'T TALK TO THEIR CHILDREN.

AND SO I WOULD ASK HER QUESTIONS.

AND, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, AS LIZ SAID, THEY SURVIVED 900 DAYS OF SIEGE IN LENINGRAD, SAINT PETERSBURG, AND THEN THEY WERE CAPTURED BY THE GERMANS AND PUT IN A WORK CAMP IN GERMANY.

AND THEN LIVED ON THE STREETS OF GERMANY AND EVENTUALLY, AS DISPLACED PERSONS ENDED UP IN THE US.

SO IT'S QUITE, QUITE A JOURNEY.

AND AGAIN, AS I WAS COURTING LIZ AND WE WOULD GO TO THE METROPOLITAN OPERA, LITERALLY SAW PAVAROTTI, THE CURTAIN GOES DOWN AND HER MOTHER WOULD SAY, "JERRY, NO ONE CAN TAKE THAT FROM YOU."

THAT WAS HER MESSAGE, IS THAT ANY MATERIAL THING CAN DISAPPEAR TOMORROW, BUT MEMORIES ARE FOREVER.

KELLAR: YOU KNOW, THAT'S ALSO THE PHILOSOPHY I'VE ALWAYS HAD ABOUT TRAVEL.

AND I KNOW GROWING UP WHEN HARDLY ANYONE HAS ANY MONEY.

BUT YOU USE WHAT YOU HAVE TO TRAVEL.

AND I'VE REGRETTED SPENDING ON A LOT OF THINGS, BUT NEVER TRAVEL BECAUSE, AND I'VE SAID THAT TO MY DAUGHTER, "THIS NO ONE CAN TAKE FROM YOU."

KATHMAN: EXACTLY.

KELLAR: SO THIS IS THIS IS HOW YOU SHOULD, YOU SHOULD AND WILL LIVE.

WAS YOUR -- DID YOUR MOM LIVE A LONG, NICE LIFE?

GRUBOW: WELL, SHE LIVED TILL SHE WAS 91, BUT SHE SUFFERED FROM DEMENTIA THE LAST TEN YEARS.

AND SO THAT WAS VERY DIFFICULT.

UH, BUT I MEAN, THE OTHER TRAGIC ASPECT WAS, I MEAN, HER MANNERS WERE JUST IMPECCABLE.

AND WE WERE ALWAYS TOLD, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN NEVER SPEAK RUSSIAN IN FRONT OF SOMEBODY WHO DOESN'T UNDERSTAND RUSSIAN.

KELLAR: THAT'S RUDE.

GRUBOW: SO THE POIGNANT STORY WAS WHEN MY MOTHER WOULD START SPEAKING TO ME IN ENGLISH, IS WHEN I KNEW SHE NO LONGER RECOGNIZED ME AS HER DAUGHTER.

KELLAR: OH.

GRUBOW: SO THAT WAS VERY SAD.

BUT I WOULD GO EVERY MONTH TO SEE HER AND I THINK SHE, I THINK SHE KNEW SHE MET HER GRANDCHILDREN AND SHE KNEW THAT WE WERE IN SUCH A WONDERFUL AND HAPPY MARRIAGE.

AND I THINK THAT GAVE HER SUCH JOY.

KELLAR: YEAH, I THINK THE RUSSIAN, HAVING BEEN THERE FOUR TIMES STRICTLY TO SEE THE BALLET AND OTHER ARTS THAT WE WERE THERE STARTING IN THE SOVIET AREA.

ACTUALLY, MY HUSBAND AND I MET IN RUSSIA ON A BALLET TRIP.

YEAH.

KATHMAN: WOW.

KELLAR: BUT THE RUSSIANS, AND PARTICULARLY BALLET, THROUGH THE WAR, THE DEPRIVATION WAS EVEN FOR THE DANCERS, BUT THEY KEPT GOING.

AND THE STATE SUPPORTED THE ARTS.

KATHMAN: YES.

KELLAR: WHEREAS, YOU KNOW, HERE WE'RE GRUBBING AROUND ALL THE TIME TO FUND AND THEY DIDN'T HAVE THAT PROBLEM.

SO THAT'S WHY THEY, ONE OF THE REASONS THEY HAD THE GREATEST BALLET IN THE WORLD.

KATHMAN: EXACTLY, YEAH.

KELLAR: AND NO QUESTION ABOUT THAT.

KATHMAN: YEAH.

THEY WOULD SIT THERE AND SHOSTAKOVICH'S LENINGRAD SYMPHONY, THEY'RE FREEZING IN THIS AND THEY'RE SITTING THERE AND THEY'RE HUNGRY, AND YET THEY WOULD GO TO A CONCERT.

AMAZING.

KELLAR: ALEXANDER DANILOVA, WHO ESCAPED RUSSIA AND WAS WITH THE BALLET RUSSE DE MONTE CARLO, BUT SHE WOULD TALK ABOUT HOW THEY WERE HUNGRY.

I MEAN, IN THE BALLET SCHOOLS, EVEN THE KIDS WERE HUNGRY AND HOW THEY, WHEN THEY GOT OUT OF RUSSIA AND INTO THE REST OF THE WORLD, THEY WERE AMAZED AT THE FOOD AND THE BREAD.

SHE SAID, "WE'D SEE THIS BREAD," AND THIS IS REALLY POIGNANT.

SHE SAID, "THERE WAS NO ONE GUARDING THE BREAD."

KATHMAN: EXACTLY.

YEAH.

KELLAR: AND SO WE THINK, OH, WE HAVE IT HARD.

NO, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT HARDSHIP IS.

GRUBOW: MY MOTHER TOLD HIM THE STORY SHE TOLD WAS WHEN THEY FIRST CAME TO THE US, AND THEY SAW ALL THESE 5 POUND BAGS OF SUGAR.

SO THEY BOUGHT UP THE-- KELLAR: YEAH, BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THERE WOULDN'T BE ANY MORE.

GRUBOW: AND THEN THEY'RE IN THE US NOW THREE YEARS, THEY BOUGHT A HOUSE, THE ONE THAT I GREW UP IN, AND THEY MOVED ALL THESE BAGS OF SUGAR.

THEY STILL COULDN'T BELIEVE THAT YOU COULD GO ANYTIME AND SEE SUGAR.

KELLAR: THIS IS SO MUCH FUN AND I HATE TO SAY OUR TIME IS ALMOST UP, BUT OUR VIEWERS HAVE, YOU KNOW THE MOVIE MOSCOW ON THE HUDSON.

KATHMAN: YES.

GRUBOW: YES.

KELLAR: OKAY, EVERYBODY SHOULD LOOK THAT MOVIE UP IF YOU WANT TO SEE WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE FROM A FOREIGN COUNTRY AND DEPRIVATION AND ARRIVING IN NEW YORK CITY AT BLOOMINGDALES.

KATHMAN: YES.

KELLAR: YEAH, IT'S A VERY --IT'S A WONDERFUL, VERY FUNNY MOVIE.

BUT YOU GUYS HAVE A TREASURE.

YOU CREATED IT YOURSELF OF STUFF AROUND HERE.

KATHMAN: RIGHT.

KELLAR: AND THERE'S NOTHING ELSE LIKE IT.

AND YOU'RE GOING TO USE IT FOR THE ARTS, AND THAT'S WHAT WE TRULY, TRULY APPRECIATE.

AND I HOPE I'M ON YOUR GUEST LIST TO COME AND SEE WHATEVER IT IS TO SEE BESIDES THE INCREDIBLE BUILDING.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT AND FOR ALL YOU DO FOR THE ARTS IN THE CITY.

YOU'RE TWO REALLY GREAT PEOPLE.

WE'RE REALLY PRIVILEGED TO HAVE YOU.

KATHMAN: THANK YOU.

ANNOUNCER: JOIN US NEXT WEEK FOR ANOTHER EPISODE OF SHOWCASE WITH BARBARA KELLAR RIGHT HERE ON CET.

CAPTIONS: MAVERICK CAPTIONING CIN OH MAVERICKCAPTIONING.COM