December 1, 2010
Misha Defonseca, author of fake Holocaust memoir, loses in court
Misha Defonseca
A Belgian woman who fabricated a story about surviving the Holocaust by roaming through Europe on foot and living with wolves will not receive profits from her 1997 book describing the phony war experience.
Almost three years ago, Misha Defonseca admitted that her best-selling memoir was a fake. By that time, the book, Misha: A Memoire of the Holocaust Years, had been translated into 18 languages, became the basis for a French film and attracted the attention of The Walt Disney Co., which had expressed interest in additional film rights.
[Related: Read about Holocaust books]
But, before the fraud was uncovered by the Belgian press, Defonseca became embroiled in legal fight with her publisher, Jane Daniel of Mt. Ivy Press, and her ghost writer, Vera Lee.
According to the Boston Globe, Lee sued Daniel alleging that her rights as co-author had been violated because her name was removed from the cover and put in the copyright section instead.
In addition, Defonseca also sued the publisher saying that Daniel did not live up to her obligations to promote the book and that she hid profits in an off-shore account.
In 2001, a jury awarded $7.5 million in damages to Defonseca and $3.3 million to Lee. The Boston Globe reported that the judge tripled the damages, to nearly $10 million for Lee and $22.5 million for Defonseca, because of the allegedly egregious conduct.
The plaintiffs never recovered those damages. When Defonseca admitted her falsehoods, Daniel appealed the damages saying that the jury had been misled.
Last week, the Globe reported that a panel of judges ruled that the publisher does not need to pay Defonseca the $22.5 million but still owes $10 million to the ghost writer because she never knew the story was a fake.
Lee’s lawyer said she plans to appeal the decision.
I believe that no matter whether the story was true or not, the Author, M. Defonseca should have been rewarded her 22.5 million$ for all the sales that were made. She wrote the book no matter what the truth is. It was a great book, I’ve read it and really don’t care whether it was an autobiography or just a really great story. Defonseca is a talented writer and should be paid. Why should the publisher keep the money? They didn’t write it! It is wrong to deceive, but isn’t it just as wrong to keep something that doesn’t belong to you? No one is perfect in this world. Forgiveness is key. Blessings and Peace to all involved.