The Family Legacy Project Behind Marvelisa Legacies

Leslie Fay was born László Fuchs in Budapest in 1901. His father, Vilmos Fuchs, was connected to the Janina Cigarette Company, and the family name was later anglicized from Fuchs to Fay in America.

In 1939, Leslie traveled to New York with his wife, Elizabeth, for the World’s Fair. Their trip became the beginning of an unexpected exile. Unable to return to Hungary, they were separated from their daughter, who remained behind with Leslie’s father, Vilmos. The separation lasted until 1946 for Marian and until 1957 for Vilmos.

In New York, Leslie worked in the import business and became an active figure in the Hungarian Jewish community. He served as vice-president of the United Hungarian Jews of America and remained on its board until his death. When he died, Az Ember honored “the memory of Vice-President László Fay” and wrote that he left behind his inconsolable wife, Erzsébet Fay.

His family’s story carried the weight of war, exile, and political upheaval. The Fuchs family business and property in Hungary were nationalized by the Communist regime in 1949. His aunt, who was married to the painter Béla Kádár, was killed in the Holocaust with their two sons.

Letters became one of the ways Leslie remained connected to his family across distance and disruption. Between 1951 and 1959, he wrote around 30 letters to his daughter Marian, along with approximately 40 more written jointly with Elizabeth. In May 1958, after his father finally reached “the free soil of America,” Leslie wrote Vilmos’s eulogy.

Leslie died in 1970. After his death, Elizabeth continued running the Mayfair Gallery alone.