The first of an eight-part German-made television film based on the experience of a Holocaust survivor was broadcast on the national TV network, ARD, this evening. It is titled “Ein Stueck Himmel” (A Piece of Heaven), adopted from the book of the same name by the Jewish author, Jonina David (Davidowicz), who is the only member of her family to survive the Holocaust.
The press, which previewed the series, termed it “the German Holocaust film,” an allusion to the American-made NBC-TV film “Holocaust” broadcast in West Germany in January, 1980. Unlike that production the German series is commanding prime time, beginning at 8:15 p.m. just after the popular evening newscast. It is carried on the nationwide channel rather than the regional outlets as was the case with “Holocaust.”
The story is outobiographical, following the life of the author who experienced the persecution of Jews in Nazi-occupied Poland, beginning in the Warsaw Ghetto when she was eight years old.
German press commentators are speculating as to whether the new series will have the same impact on the German public that the NBC-TV “Holocaust” had two years ago. Although the reaction was intense at the time, shattering German indifference and silence over the persecution of Jews, the effects wore off quickly, according to follow-up public opinion polls.
Mrs. David lives in London where her book was published in 1965. The film adaptation was written by Led Lehman. Since then, several West German publishing houses have indicated interest in the book. The film part of Mrs. David as a young girl is played by the German actress Dana Vavrona.
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