Jurek Becker (, probably 30 September 1937 – 14 March 1997) was a Polish-born German writer, screenwriter and

East German East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

dissident. His most famous novel is '' Jacob the Liar'', which has been made into two films. He lived in

Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of canti ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

for about two years and survived the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

Childhood

Jurek Becker was born, probably, in 1937. His birth date is not entirely clear because his father gave a birth date that was intended to protect the child from deportation. After the war Becker was claimed by a father, but Jurek was never sure if he was his real father, and who said he no longer remembered Jurek's correct birth date. It is probable that Jurek Becker was some years younger than is generally reckoned. He lived in the

Łódź Ghetto The Łódź Ghetto or Litzmannstadt Ghetto (after the Nazi German name for Łódź) was a Nazi ghetto established by the German authorities for Polish Jews and Roma following the Invasion of Poland. It was the second-largest ghetto in all of Ge ...

as a child. When he was five, he was sent to the

Ravensbrück concentration camp Ravensbrück () was a German concentration camp exclusively for women from 1939 to 1945, located in northern Germany, north of Berlin at a site near the village of Ravensbrück (part of Fürstenberg/Havel). The camp memorial's estimated figure o ...

and later to

Sachsenhausen Sachsenhausen () or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a German Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used from 1936 until April 1945, shortly before the defeat of Nazi Germany in May later that year. It mainly held political prisoners ...

. His mother was murdered in the

, but his father survived; father and son were reunited after the war and settled together in

East Berlin East Berlin was the ''de facto'' capital city of East Germany from 1949 to 1990. Formally, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet sector of Berlin, established in 1945. The American, British, and French sectors were known as ...

Career

After completing his national service in the East German army in the 1950s, during which time he became firm friends with the actor

Manfred Krug Manfred Krug (; 8 February 1937 – 21 October 2016) was a German actor, singer and author. Life and work Born in Duisburg, Krug moved to East Germany at the age of 13, and worked at a steel plant before beginning his acting career on the stage a ...

, Becker studied philosophy in

but was expelled for expressing non-conformist views. In the 1960s he wrote film scripts, one of which, ''Jakob der Lügner'' ("Jacob the Liar"), he turned into a novel when the film production was halted. It was made into a film by the East German film company

DEFA DEFA (''Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft'') was the state-owned film studio of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) throughout the country's existence. Since 2019, DEFA's film heritage has been made accessible and licensable on the PRO ...

in 1974, and in 1975 became the only East German film ever to be nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

(in the foreign-language film category), though it did not win. A 1998 remake, starring

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...

in the title role, had limited success. By the mid-1970s differences of opinion with the GDR authorities were becoming apparent, and Becker was one of the original twelve signatories of the petition against the expulsion of writer and singer

Wolf Biermann Karl Wolf Biermann (; born 15 November 1936) is a German singer-songwriter, poet, and former East German dissident. He is perhaps best known for the 1968 song "Ermutigung" and his expatriation from East Germany in 1976. Early life Biermann was b ...

in November 1976. In 1977 he moved from East to

West Berlin West Berlin (german: Berlin (West) or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin during the years of the Cold War. Although West Berlin was de jure not part of West Germany, lacked any sovereignty, and was under mi ...

, though somewhat unusually he retained his East German citizenship. He continued to publish novels and short stories, some on Jewish themes, others not. Becker died in 1997 of

colon cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel mo ...

that was diagnosed in December 1995.

Works

In German

Becker was primarily a novelist, but he also wrote film and TV scripts. Several of his novels deal with the victims of the Holocaust: ''Jakob der Lügner,'' ''Der Boxer,'' and ''Bronsteins Kinder.'' ''Jakob der Lügner'' remains his most successful work. *'' Jakob der Lügner'' (1969) *''Irreführung der Behörden'' (1973) *''Der Boxer'' (1976) *' (1978) *''Nach der ersten Zukunft'' (1980) – short story collection *' (1982) *''Bronsteins Kinder'' (1986) *''Amanda herzlos'' (1992) *''Warnung von dem Schiftsteller'' (1990) – lectures *''

Liebling Kreuzberg Liebling Kreuzberg is a television series on ARD, which was first aired in five seasons with a total of 58 episodes from 1986 to 1998. The scripts of seasons one through three and five were written by Jurek Becker, who tailor-made the role of i ...

'' (1986 and 1988) – TV series

In English translation

*' (1986) *'' Jacob the Liar'' (1990) *''Bronstein's Children'' (1999) *''The Boxer'' (2002) *''My Father, the Germans and I'' (2010)

Filmography

*'' Jacob the Liar'', directed by

Frank Beyer Frank Paul Beyer (; 26 May 1932 – 1 October 2006) was a German film director. In East Germany he was one of the most important film directors, working for the state film monopoly DEFA and directed films that dealt mostly with the Nazi era ...

(1975, based on the novel '' Jacob the Liar'') *''The Boxer'', directed by (1980, TV film, based on the novel ''The Boxer'') *''Sleepless Days'', directed by (1982, TV film, based on the novel ') *', directed by

Andreas Dresen Andreas Dresen (born 16 August 1963) is a German film director. His directing credits include '' Cloud 9'', '' Summer in Berlin'', ''Grill Point'' and ''Night Shapes''. His film '' Stopped on Track'' premiered at the Un Certain Regard section at ...

(1991, short film, loosely based on the story ''Romeo'') *', directed by

Jerzy Kawalerowicz Jerzy Franciszek Kawalerowicz (19 January 1922 – 27 December 2007) was a Polish film director and politician, having been a member of Polish United Workers' Party from 1954 until its dissolution in 1990 and a deputy in Polish parliament since ...

(1991, based on the novel ''Bronstein's Children'') *''Sleepless Days'', directed by Gabriele Denecke (1991, TV film, based on the novel ') *''Wenn alle Deutschen schlafen'', directed by

(1995, TV film, based on the story ''Die Mauer'') *''

Jakob the Liar ''Jakob the Liar'' is a 1999 American war comedy-drama film directed by Peter Kassovitz, produced by Steven Haft, Marsha Garces Williams and written by Kassovitz and Didier Decoin. The film is based on the book of the same name by Jurek Becker ...

'', directed by

Peter Kassovitz Peter Kassovitz (born 7 January 1938) is a Hungarian-French film director and scriptwriter. Personal life He was born to Jewish parents in Budapest, Hungary. He fled the country at the time of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. He is the father ...

(1999, based on the novel '' Jacob the Liar'')

Screenwriter

*'' Ohne Pass in fremden Betten'' (dir. Vladimír Brebera, 1965) *'' Jungfer, Sie gefällt mir'' (dir.

Günter Reisch Günter Reisch (24 November 1927 – 24 February 2014) was a German film director and screenwriter. He served in the German Army during the last stage of World War II. On 20 April 1944 he became a member of the Nazi Party. After his release from a ...

, 1969) *' (dir. , 1970) *'' Jacob the Liar'' (dir.

, 1975) *' (dir.

, 1977/78) *''

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

'' (dir.

Peter Lilienthal Peter Lilienthal (born 27 November 1929) is a German film director, writer, actor and producer. His 1979 film ''David'' won the Golden Bear at the 29th Berlin International Film Festival. His 1984 film '' Das Autogramm'' was entered into the 34th ...

, 1979) *''

'' (1986–1998, TV series) *''

The Passenger – Welcome to Germany ''The Passenger – Welcome to Germany'' (german: Der Passagier – Welcome to Germany) is a 1988 German drama film directed by Thomas Brasch. It was entered into the 1988 Cannes Film Festival. Cast * Tony Curtis – Mr. Cornfield * Katharina T ...

'' (dir.

Thomas Brasch Thomas Brasch (19 February 1945 – 3 November 2001) was a German author, poet and film director. Life Born in Westow, Yorkshire, England, Thomas Brasch was the son of German Jewish Communist émigré parents. In 1947, the family returned to Ea ...

, 1988) *' (dir. , 1990) *' (dir.

, 1991) *''Wir sind auch nur ein Volk'' (1994–1995, TV series) *''Wenn alle Deutschen schlafen'' (dir.

, 1995, TV film)

References

Notes Bibliography *. *. {{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Jurek 1937 births 1997 deaths Writers from Łódź East German writers Łódź Ghetto inmates Ravensbrück concentration camp survivors Sachsenhausen concentration camp survivors Heinrich Mann Prize winners 20th-century Polish Jews Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany German people of Polish-Jewish descent Deaths from colorectal cancer Deaths from cancer in Germany 20th-century German novelists German male novelists Jewish concentration camp survivors 20th-century German male writers Polish emigrants to East Germany Members of the German Academy for Language and Literature