Sunday, December 28, 2008
Books Oprah Picks Another Winner
Posted by Paul Constant on Sun, Dec 28, 2008 at 10:08 AM
You were very nearly subject to a mass-media assault (glowing news stories, Oprah-approved bliss, an inevitable movie adaptation) regarding a new memoir, out in February, called An Angel at the Fence. It was a memoir by a man who says he met the love of his life during the Holocaust. Oprah loved the fuck out of this book and was going to no doubt push it to the top of the bestseller lists..
It's a fake.
The publisher of a disputed Holocaust memoir has canceled the book, adding the name Herman Rosenblat to an increasingly long list of literary fakers and ending with a heartbreaking crash his story _ embraced by Oprah Winfrey among others _ of meeting his future wife at a concentration camp."I wanted to bring happiness to people," Rosenblat said in a statement issued Saturday through his agent, Andrea Hurst. "I brought hope to a lot of people. My motivation was to make good in this world."
Rosenblat's "Angel at the Fence" had been scheduled to come out in February, but Berkley Books, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA), withdrew the memoir following allegations by scholars, friends and family members that his tale was untrue.
"Berkley Books is canceling publication of `Angel at the Fence' after receiving new information from Herman Rosenblat's agent, Andrea Hurst," the publisher said in a statement. "Berkley will demand that the author and the agent return all money that they have received for this work."
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1
Paul, just wondering why you're picking on Oprah Winfrey. She interviewed them twice and loved the book - so what? They also fooled a publishing company, Berkley Books, Atlantic Overseas Pictures, which is making a movie based on the book, and the Huffington Post, which on October 12, 2008 ran a piece that included the following:
There are others that are far more complicit in popularizing this fictional tale. Just curious, why single out Oprah Winfrey?
Now, the Rosenblats' story has inspired a children's book, "Angel Girl." And eventually, there are plans to turn it into a film, "The Flower of the Fence." Herman expects to publish his memoirs next year. Michael Berenbaum, a distinguished Holocaust scholar who has authored a dozen books, has read Rosenblatt's memoir and sees no reason to question it.
There are others that are far more complicit in popularizing this fictional tale. Just curious, why single out Oprah Winfrey?
2
Well, mainly because she debuted their story on her show and she would've been the one who made it into a hit, as she's done dozens (hundreds?) of times before. (I doubt the publishing deal would've been as lucrative as all that, and I doubt the movie deal would've happened yet, without Oprah's approval) Even more than James Frey, this book feels like the baby of Oprah's feel-good hitmaking factory, which seems to often ignore things like facts in its quest to reaffirm the fucking human spirit.
3
If it's not a memoir, you shouldn't call it a memoir. Just call it fiction. If he had done that, he might not have had to return the check. Dumbass..
4
Full story at The New Republic:
http://www.tnr.com/booksarts/story.html?…
More...
http://www.tnr.com/booksarts/story.html?…
One day in the early 1990s, Herman was shot by a burglar at the shop were he worked as a television repairman in Brooklyn. While in the hospital, Herman's mother, who died in the Holocaust, came to him in a vision and told him he needed to share his love story with others, Salomon said Herman told him.
It was after this traumatic event that Herman and Roma started talking publicly about their epic meeting and reunion. On Valentine's Day a few years later, according to Salomon, Herman entered a competition in a newspaper to award the most romantic story. Not surprisingly, he won. His story then made its way to the pages of Chicken Soup for the Couple's Soul. Oprah Winfrey featured Herman and Roma on a special 1996 Valentine's Day show, and again in November 2007. (A spokesperson for Oprah had no comment about whether they fact-check guests' stories). Herman signed with the Ambassador Speaker's Bureau, a conservative agency that represents clients like Alan Keyes and Stephen Baldwin (the evangelical brother of Alec and Billy). He also signed with literary agent Andrea Hurst, and in December of last year, sold the rights to his memoir to Berkley Books.
Since going public with his story a decade ago, Herman appeared twice on "The Oprah Winfrey Show", who called it "the single greatest love story, in 22 years of doing this show, we've ever told on the air," and has been featured on the Hallmark Channel, Lifetime Television, and CBS News. He has been the subject of newspaper articles and inspirational mass-email chains. In March, a feature film, Flower of the Fence, based on Herman's life, is scheduled to go into production with a budget of $25 million dollars. A children's book, Angel Girl, was published in September. Berkley Books' Angel at the Fence has all the makings to become a best-seller. Berkley's winter catalogue for booksellers and reviewers describes Angel at the Fence as "the true story of a Holocaust survivor whose prayers for hope and love were answered," noting that it makes "a perfect Valentine's Day gift."
5
Why has "fiction" become a dirty word? Why does everyone want to be a fucking memoirist? I have to wonder if there's some Oprah influence in all this...does she not gravitate toward tear-jerker, true-to-life type books? Is it any wonder authors are faking realism, given the tremendous boost an Oprah endorsement provides?
6
Paul, your answer @2 to the "why the Oprah hate?" question @1 just seems to raise the question even more. If the result is making bestsellers out of challenging works like The Road and As I Lay Dying, then I say keep the "feel-good hitmaking factory" rolling.
If playa haters are one price Oprah has to pay--or maybe I should say we have to pay--for her success and for helping to enlighten the world, then that's a small price.
If playa haters are one price Oprah has to pay--or maybe I should say we have to pay--for her success and for helping to enlighten the world, then that's a small price.
7
There was a funny article in the times called "Christmastime is Nazitime at the movies", as in, if you want to win an (Oscar|Pulitzer|Golden Globes) be sure and add in some Nazis as the antagonists and you automatically get a few rating points.
This is somewhat true of homosexuality recently, where if a film features anything gay, it can be a regular or even bad movie, but is adopted by the critics.
This is somewhat true of homosexuality recently, where if a film features anything gay, it can be a regular or even bad movie, but is adopted by the critics.
11
#5: Good question. Why has "fiction" become a dirty word?
I had some friends over and one of them asked about the novel I've been writing. He had read some of it and he described it as "autobiographical."
I shook my head. "Not in the slightest. I make shit up."
I had some friends over and one of them asked about the novel I've been writing. He had read some of it and he described it as "autobiographical."
I shook my head. "Not in the slightest. I make shit up."
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