Literatureאפרים קישון

Ephraim Kishon

Ephraim Kishon was a Hungarian-born Israeli satirist, playwright and film director, known for his Maariv column and the film Sallah Shabati.

1924 to 2005The Chad Gadya satirical columnThe film Sallah ShabatiSatirical books in 37 languagesThe Kishon Chesster chess computer

Born: 23 August 1924, Budapest
Died: 29 January 2005, Appenzell Meistersrüte
Occupation: writer, playwright, opinion journalist, film director

Ephraim Kishon was born in 1924 in Budapest

Kishon was born Ferenc Hoffmann in Budapest on 23 August 1924, the son of a bank manager. In 1940 he won a novella-writing contest for high school students. Anti-Jewish laws in Hungary barred him from university, so he trained as a goldsmith.

In 1944 he was sent to a labor camp at Jolsva, where his chess skill earned him an office job. He escaped and hid in Budapest with his parents and sister until the end of the war. In 1948 he finished studies in art history and published humor as Ferenc Kishont.

He immigrated to Israel in 1949 with his first wife, Eva Klamer, and a clerk at the port gave him the name Ephraim Kishon. He learned Hebrew on Kibbutz Kfar HaHoresh and began writing for Davar in 1951. From 1952 he wrote the satirical column Chad Gadya in Maariv for about 30 years.

He wrote plays and directed 5 feature films. Sallah Shabati and The Policeman were nominated for the Academy Award and won Golden Globe Awards. He published 42 books for adults and 8 for children, translated into 37 languages, and they sold well in Germany.

In 1981 he set up a second home in Appenzell, Switzerland. He received the Israel Prize in 2002. He died at his home in Appenzell on 29 January 2005 and was buried in Tel Aviv beside his wife Sara.