born June 14, 1933, 0141; ód 017A; , Pol.
died May 3, 1991, New York, N.Y., U.S.
Polish-born U.S. writer.
He claimed that his horrific experiences as a Jew in World War II Poland and Russia caused him to be mute for much of his childhood. He studied political science and became a professor of sociology before immigrating to the U.S. in 1957. His novel The Painted Bird (1965) is a graphic, surrealistic tale of the horrors surrounding the war. Other successful novels were Steps (1968) and the satiric fable Being There (1970; film, 1979). After his suicide, it was revealed that much of his past had been fabricated.