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Dan Ben-Amotz

April 11, 2024

Dan Ben-Amotz (Hebrew: דן בן אמוץ, April 13, 1924 – October 20, 1989) was an Israeli radio broadcaster, journalist, playwright, and author, as well as a former Palmach member. Despite having immigrated from Poland in 1938, he was often considered the epitome of the "Sabra", a native born Israeli Jew.[1][2][3]

Dan Ben-Amotz
BornMoshe Tehilimzeigger
(1924-04-13)13 April 1924
Równe, Poland
Died20 October 1989(1989-10-20) (aged 65)
Jaffa, Israel
Occupationradio broadcaster, journalist, playwright, author
Nationality Israeli
Period1950s–1980s

Biography edit

 
Dan Ben-Amotz in Sdot Yam, 1946

Moshe Tehilimzeigger (later Dan Ben-Amotz) was born in Równe (then in Poland, now in Ukraine). He was sent to the British Mandate for Palestine by his parents in 1938.[1] His parents were murdered in the Holocaust.[2][4]

In Palestine he was sent to Ben Shemen Youth Village, where his counselor was Shimon Peres. He changed his name to Moshe Shimony and later to Dan Ben-Amotz, feeling the latter had the right sabra sound. Reinventing his personal history to portray himself as a true native sabra, Ben-Amotz claimed to be an orphan who had relatives in some of the older Zionist settlements.[1]

In the 1940s, Ben-Amotz served in the Palmah and joined the Palyam during the 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine.[3]

Media and literary career edit

Amotz spent the years of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War in Europe as a national emissary. After the war he worked for a short while as a Paris correspondent for Israeli papers. He then traveled to the United States and went to Hollywood. He made friends with Marlon Brando and Blackie Dammett, Anthony Kiedis's father, and had a small part in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951).[1]

In the 1950s Ben-Amotz returned to Israel. He was the star of the radio show "Three Men in a Boat", a weekly satirical review that became the country's most popular show, and wrote regularly for Israeli newspapers.[1][4] In 1956 he published A Bag of Fibs with Haim Hefer, a collection of tall stories from the Palmah folklore, which gained cult status.[5]

According to the Los Angeles Times, "Ben-Amotz was one of the pioneers in the revival of modern Hebrew from a dormant language of prayer and study. He authored a dictionary of Hebrew slang and wrote articles and novels that shocked many Israelis with their frankness."[4]

 
Memorial plaque on Dan Ben-Amotz house in Jaffa

In the 1980s he was diagnosed with liver cancer. When his disease became known to the public, he also brought to light the truth about his personal history. He made a much-publicized trip to Poland that included a tour of Auschwitz.[1] On April 8, 1989, he held a farewell party at the "Hamam" club in Jaffa, to which he invited 150 acquaintances. The invitees included Amos Keinan (a former rival), Amos Oz, Meir Shalev, Gila Almagor, Yaakov Agmon, Shlomo Artzi, Yosef Lapid, Yehudit Ravitz and Nurit Galron. After the party he made a trip to the US, to say goodbye to his children from his first marriage.[6] He died in 1989 in Jaffa and was survived by two sons and two daughters.[2] His funeral was held on October 22.[6]

On January 11, 1992, journalist Amnon Dankner published a biography of Ben-Amotz, in which he argued that Ben-Amotz had incest with his mother when he was thirteen. He also claimed that in his last years, Ben-Amotz had forced himself on underage girls he would pick up in Jaffa. These claims led to a police investigation of some of Ben-Amotz's friends. The book stirred a scandal. Some saw it as exploding the myth of Dan Ben-Amotz, while others saw it as an attempt to gain financially from exploiting Ben-Amotz's legacy by spreading groundless criticism against Ben-Amotz, and many of Ben-Amotz's relatives, who were also Dankner's friends, threatened to file a libel suit against Dankner and broke off contact with him.[7]

Published works edit

Parents Meeting (1962) was semi-autobiographical short story about the hardships of the new immigrants in an Israeli boarding school in the Yishuv. The screenplay for the movie Siege (1968), in which he also acted, dealt with the difficulties that a war widow faces in militaristic Israeli society. His novel To Remember, To Forget (1968) revealed some autobiographical motifs – the protagonist is a young man who lost his family in the Holocaust and attempted (by changing his name) to re-create himself as a true sabra.[1] In the book, Ben-Amotz tried to confront such questions as his European past and German guilt over the Holocaust.[4] In 1972 he published his dictionary of Hebrew slang, which he co-wrote with Netiva Ben Yehuda.[4] The novel Does Not Give a Damn (1973) told of a soldier who was wounded in battle and his rehabilitation efforts.

 
Photo of Netiva Ben-Yehuda with Dan Ben-Amotz from Palmach Archive

Novels edit

  • Lizkor lishcoah. 1968; as To Remember, to Forget', 1968.
  • Lo sam zayin [Does Not Give a Damn]. 1973.
  • Ziyunim zeh lo ha-kol: Roman mafteah le-lo man'ul (Screwing Isn't Everything). 1979.
  • Ziyunyune ha-derekh: Roman mafteah le-lo man'ul (sequel to Ziyunim zeh lo ha-kol). 1980.

Short stories edit

  • Arba'ah ve-'arba'ah: Sipurim [Four and Four: Stories]. 1950.
  • Sipurim poh sipurim sham. 1982.

Plays edit

  • Tefos kamah she-atah yakhol (Seret-metah-meforash) [Catch As Much You Can] (screenplay). 1975; as Mishak yeladim [Nothing to It], 1982.
  • Tel-Aviv ha-ketanah: Hizayon [Little Old Tel-Aviv], with Hayim Hefer. 1980.
  • 'Al 'akhbarim va-anashim, with Ehud Manor, adaptation of Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (produced 1990).

Screenplays edit

  • Matzor [Siege], with Gilberto Tofano, 1968
  • Sheloshah yamim ve-yeled, with Uri Zohar and Amatsia Hiouni, adaptation of a story by A. B. Yehoshua, 1976.

Other edit

  • Yalkut ha-kezavim, with Hayim Hefer. 1956.
  • Mah nishma' [What's New]. 1959.
  • Ekh la-'asot mah [How to Do What]. 1962.
  • Milon olami le-'ivrit miduberet [The World Dictionary of Hebrew Slang] (2 vols.), with Netiva Ben-Yehuda. 1972, 1982.
  • Yofi shel milhamah. 1974.
  • Keri'ah tamah; Sifrutek [Reflection in Time]. 1974.
  • Nashim kotvot le-Dan Ben-Amots: Bi-teguvah le-sefer "Ziyunim zeh lo ha-kol," with Varda Rasiel Jackont (correspondence). 1980.
  • Sipurei Abu-Nimer [Stories and Fables from Arab Folklore]. 1982.
  • Sefer ha-felots veha-shikhehah, with Donald Wetzel and Martin Riskin. 1985.
  • Kelil tif'eret ha-melitsah (dictionary and reader of 19th century Hebrew). 1986.
  • Ten hiyukh: Metav ha-kezavim she-lo hikhzivu ba-'itonut hatseva'it, with Ze'ev Anner and Dani Kerman. 1989.
  • Editor, with Shlomo Shva, Erets Tsiyon Yerushalayim. 1973.
  • Translator, with Amnon Dankner, Adif melafefon 'al hagever mi-pene she, (Why Cucumbers are Better Than Men by M. L. Brooks). 1985.

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Kaplan, Eran (2002). . novelguide.com. Archived from the original on July 23, 2011. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c "Dahn Ben-Amotz, Israeli Author, 65". The New York Times. October 22, 1989. Retrieved August 22, 2008.
  3. ^ a b "Dahn Ben-Amotz". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved August 13, 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Dan Ben-Amotz; Cultural Symbol for Israelis". The Los Angeles Times. October 27, 1989. Retrieved Jan 2, 2015.
  5. ^ Rubinstein, Danny (June 12, 2007). ירושלמי נכנס למסעדה בהודו ומזמין כוס תה [A Jersalemite enters a restaurant in India and orders a cup of tea]. Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved August 22, 2014.
  6. ^ a b Prosch, Tahel (October 20, 2008). דן ואני [Dahn and I]. City Mouse (in Hebrew). Retrieved October 20, 2008.
  7. ^ Gadot, Yifat (January 11, 2008). היום לפני - הביוגרפיה של דן בן אמוץ [1992] [On this day – The biography of Dan Ben-Amotz [1992]]. News1 (in Hebrew). Retrieved September 5, 2008.

External links edit

  • Sela, Maya (23 November 2012). "The film after the scandal: Can this trampled Israeli icon be resurrected?". Haaretz. Retrieved 2 January 2015. "A new documentary seeks to tell another story of Dan Ben Amotz after a shocking posthumous biography erased his legacy."
  • Dan Ben-Amotz's Life and Times. Posted on Uri Avnery's official video channel (in Hebrew). April 2009. Retrieved January 5, 2015. Yehonatan Geffen reading a poem during Ben-Amotz's farewell party in April 1989: "The organizers asked me to write a song of mourning. What came out was a song of envy. A song of envy for Dan, who succeeded in accomplishing what most people ask for. To live directly across from the sea. Against all the rules. And to screw anything that moves - including flags." [Geffen Interrupts reading to hug Ben-Amotz.] Geffen: "You hear about his conquests, and you become yellow with envy. Tell me, when does he have time to write? After all the young women and divorcees, he still runs over to stick it to the sacred cows."

April 11, 2024
amotz, hebrew, דן, בן, אמוץ, april, 1924, october, 1989, israeli, radio, broadcaster, journalist, playwright, author, well, former, palmach, member, despite, having, immigrated, from, poland, 1938, often, considered, epitome, sabra, native, born, israeli, born. Dan Ben Amotz Hebrew דן בן אמוץ April 13 1924 October 20 1989 was an Israeli radio broadcaster journalist playwright and author as well as a former Palmach member Despite having immigrated from Poland in 1938 he was often considered the epitome of the Sabra a native born Israeli Jew 1 2 3 Dan Ben AmotzBornMoshe Tehilimzeigger 1924 04 13 13 April 1924Rowne PolandDied20 October 1989 1989 10 20 aged 65 Jaffa IsraelOccupationradio broadcaster journalist playwright authorNationalityIsraeliPeriod1950s 1980s Contents 1 Biography 2 Media and literary career 3 Published works 3 1 Novels 3 2 Short stories 3 3 Plays 3 4 Screenplays 3 5 Other 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksBiography edit nbsp Dan Ben Amotz in Sdot Yam 1946Moshe Tehilimzeigger later Dan Ben Amotz was born in Rowne then in Poland now in Ukraine He was sent to the British Mandate for Palestine by his parents in 1938 1 His parents were murdered in the Holocaust 2 4 In Palestine he was sent to Ben Shemen Youth Village where his counselor was Shimon Peres He changed his name to Moshe Shimony and later to Dan Ben Amotz feeling the latter had the right sabra sound Reinventing his personal history to portray himself as a true native sabra Ben Amotz claimed to be an orphan who had relatives in some of the older Zionist settlements 1 In the 1940s Ben Amotz served in the Palmah and joined the Palyam during the 1947 48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine 3 Media and literary career editAmotz spent the years of the 1948 Arab Israeli War in Europe as a national emissary After the war he worked for a short while as a Paris correspondent for Israeli papers He then traveled to the United States and went to Hollywood He made friends with Marlon Brando and Blackie Dammett Anthony Kiedis s father and had a small part in A Streetcar Named Desire 1951 1 In the 1950s Ben Amotz returned to Israel He was the star of the radio show Three Men in a Boat a weekly satirical review that became the country s most popular show and wrote regularly for Israeli newspapers 1 4 In 1956 he published A Bag of Fibs with Haim Hefer a collection of tall stories from the Palmah folklore which gained cult status 5 According to the Los Angeles Times Ben Amotz was one of the pioneers in the revival of modern Hebrew from a dormant language of prayer and study He authored a dictionary of Hebrew slang and wrote articles and novels that shocked many Israelis with their frankness 4 nbsp Memorial plaque on Dan Ben Amotz house in JaffaIn the 1980s he was diagnosed with liver cancer When his disease became known to the public he also brought to light the truth about his personal history He made a much publicized trip to Poland that included a tour of Auschwitz 1 On April 8 1989 he held a farewell party at the Hamam club in Jaffa to which he invited 150 acquaintances The invitees included Amos Keinan a former rival Amos Oz Meir Shalev Gila Almagor Yaakov Agmon Shlomo Artzi Yosef Lapid Yehudit Ravitz and Nurit Galron After the party he made a trip to the US to say goodbye to his children from his first marriage 6 He died in 1989 in Jaffa and was survived by two sons and two daughters 2 His funeral was held on October 22 6 On January 11 1992 journalist Amnon Dankner published a biography of Ben Amotz in which he argued that Ben Amotz had incest with his mother when he was thirteen He also claimed that in his last years Ben Amotz had forced himself on underage girls he would pick up in Jaffa These claims led to a police investigation of some of Ben Amotz s friends The book stirred a scandal Some saw it as exploding the myth of Dan Ben Amotz while others saw it as an attempt to gain financially from exploiting Ben Amotz s legacy by spreading groundless criticism against Ben Amotz and many of Ben Amotz s relatives who were also Dankner s friends threatened to file a libel suit against Dankner and broke off contact with him 7 Published works editParents Meeting 1962 was semi autobiographical short story about the hardships of the new immigrants in an Israeli boarding school in the Yishuv The screenplay for the movie Siege 1968 in which he also acted dealt with the difficulties that a war widow faces in militaristic Israeli society His novel To Remember To Forget 1968 revealed some autobiographical motifs the protagonist is a young man who lost his family in the Holocaust and attempted by changing his name to re create himself as a true sabra 1 In the book Ben Amotz tried to confront such questions as his European past and German guilt over the Holocaust 4 In 1972 he published his dictionary of Hebrew slang which he co wrote with Netiva Ben Yehuda 4 The novel Does Not Give a Damn 1973 told of a soldier who was wounded in battle and his rehabilitation efforts nbsp Photo of Netiva Ben Yehuda with Dan Ben Amotz from Palmach ArchiveNovels edit Lizkor lishcoah 1968 as To Remember to Forget 1968 Lo sam zayin Does Not Give a Damn 1973 Ziyunim zeh lo ha kol Roman mafteah le lo man ul Screwing Isn t Everything 1979 Ziyunyune ha derekh Roman mafteah le lo man ul sequel to Ziyunim zeh lo ha kol 1980 Short stories edit Arba ah ve arba ah Sipurim Four and Four Stories 1950 Sipurim poh sipurim sham 1982 Plays edit Tefos kamah she atah yakhol Seret metah meforash Catch As Much You Can screenplay 1975 as Mishak yeladim Nothing to It 1982 Tel Aviv ha ketanah Hizayon Little Old Tel Aviv with Hayim Hefer 1980 Al akhbarim va anashim with Ehud Manor adaptation of Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck produced 1990 Screenplays edit Matzor Siege with Gilberto Tofano 1968 Sheloshah yamim ve yeled with Uri Zohar and Amatsia Hiouni adaptation of a story by A B Yehoshua 1976 Other edit Yalkut ha kezavim with Hayim Hefer 1956 Mah nishma What s New 1959 Ekh la asot mah How to Do What 1962 Milon olami le ivrit miduberet The World Dictionary of Hebrew Slang 2 vols with Netiva Ben Yehuda 1972 1982 Yofi shel milhamah 1974 Keri ah tamah Sifrutek Reflection in Time 1974 Nashim kotvot le Dan Ben Amots Bi teguvah le sefer Ziyunim zeh lo ha kol with Varda Rasiel Jackont correspondence 1980 Sipurei Abu Nimer Stories and Fables from Arab Folklore 1982 Sefer ha felots veha shikhehah with Donald Wetzel and Martin Riskin 1985 Kelil tif eret ha melitsah dictionary and reader of 19th century Hebrew 1986 Ten hiyukh Metav ha kezavim she lo hikhzivu ba itonut hatseva it with Ze ev Anner and Dani Kerman 1989 Editor with Shlomo Shva Erets Tsiyon Yerushalayim 1973 Translator with Amnon Dankner Adif melafefon al hagever mi pene she Why Cucumbers are Better Than Men by M L Brooks 1985 See also editHebrew language Hebrew literature Culture of IsraelReferences edit a b c d e f g Kaplan Eran 2002 Ben Amotz Dahn novelguide com Archived from the original on July 23 2011 Retrieved September 5 2008 a b c Dahn Ben Amotz Israeli Author 65 The New York Times October 22 1989 Retrieved August 22 2008 a b Dahn Ben Amotz The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature Retrieved August 13 2013 a b c d e Dan Ben Amotz Cultural Symbol for Israelis The Los Angeles Times October 27 1989 Retrieved Jan 2 2015 Rubinstein Danny June 12 2007 ירושלמי נכנס למסעדה בהודו ומזמין כוס תה A Jersalemite enters a restaurant in India and orders a cup of tea Haaretz in Hebrew Retrieved August 22 2014 a b Prosch Tahel October 20 2008 דן ואני Dahn and I City Mouse in Hebrew Retrieved October 20 2008 Gadot Yifat January 11 2008 היום לפני הביוגרפיה של דן בן אמוץ 1992 On this day The biography of Dan Ben Amotz 1992 News1 in Hebrew Retrieved September 5 2008 External links editSela Maya 23 November 2012 The film after the scandal Can this trampled Israeli icon be resurrected Haaretz Retrieved 2 January 2015 A new documentary seeks to tell another story of Dan Ben Amotz after a shocking posthumous biography erased his legacy Dan Ben Amotz s Life and Times Posted on Uri Avnery s official video channel in Hebrew April 2009 Retrieved January 5 2015 Yehonatan Geffen reading a poem during Ben Amotz s farewell party in April 1989 The organizers asked me to write a song of mourning What came out was a song of envy A song of envy for Dan who succeeded in accomplishing what most people ask for To live directly across from the sea Against all the rules And to screw anything that moves including flags Geffen Interrupts reading to hug Ben Amotz Geffen You hear about his conquests and you become yellow with envy Tell me when does he have time to write After all the young women and divorcees he still runs over to stick it to the sacred cows Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Dan Ben Amotz amp oldid 1207908351, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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