Robert J. Avrech is an American

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

whose works include the

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

film ''

Body Double In filmmaking, a double is a person who substitutes FOR another actor such that the person's face is not shown. There are various terms associated with a double based on the specific body part or ability they serve as a double for, such as stun ...

'' (with

Brian De Palma Brian Russell De Palma (born September 11, 1940) is an American film director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is best known for his work in the suspense, crime and psychological thriller genres. De Palma was a leading ...

) and ''

A Stranger Among Us ''A Stranger Among Us'' is a 1992 American crime drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Melanie Griffith. It tells the story of an undercover police officer's experiences in a Hasidic community. It was entered into the 1992 Cannes Film F ...

'' (

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engin ...

). He won an Emmy Award for his screenplay ''

The Devil's Arithmetic ''The Devil's Arithmetic'' is a historical fiction time slip novel written by American author Jane Yolen and published in 1988. The book is about Hannah Stern, a Jewish girl who lives in New Rochelle, New York, and is sent back in time to exper ...

'', based on the young adult novel by

Jane Yolen Jane Hyatt Yolen (born February 11, 1939) is an American writer of fantasy, science fiction, and children's books. She is the author or editor of more than 350 books, of which the best known is '' The Devil's Arithmetic'', a Holocaust novella. H ...

. He is also the author of the children's novel ''The Hebrew Kid and the Apache Maiden'', and the memoir ''How I Married Karen'', and publishes personal and political writings on his

blog A blog (a Clipping (morphology), truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in Reverse ...

, Seraphic Press.

Personal life

Avrech is an Orthodox Jew and a graduate of the

Yeshiva of Flatbush The Yeshivah of Flatbush is a Modern Orthodox private Jewish day school located in the Midwood section of Brooklyn, New York. It educates students from age 2 to age 18 and includes an early childhood center, an elementary school and a secondary ...

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

Yeshiva University High School for Boys The Marsha Stern Talmudical Academy, also known as Yeshiva University High School for Boys (YUHSB), MTA (Manhattan Talmudical Academy) or TMSTA, is an Orthodox Jewish day school (or yeshiva) and the boys' prep school of Yeshiva University (YU) ...

, and

Bard College Bard College is a private liberal arts college in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. The campus overlooks the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains, and is within the Hudson River Historic District—a National Historic Landmark. Founded in 1860, ...

. He was the father of two daughters and a son, but his son Ariel died of complications from severe pulmonary fibrosis at the age of 22. Avrech established Seraphic Press in his son's memory, to publish works "for Jewish teens," however only one such title, ''The Hebrew Kid and the Apache Maiden'', has been published. His writings have also appeared in

The Jewish Press ''The Jewish Press'' is an American weekly newspaper based in Brooklyn, New York, and geared toward the Modern Orthodox Jewish community. It describes itself as "America's Largest Independent Jewish Weekly". ''The Jewish Press'' has an online ...

. Avrech also established the Ariel Avrech Memorial Lecture series at Young Israel of

Century City Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of Downtown Los Angeles, Century City is one of ...

in memory of his son. Early titles in this lecture series included "What Was the Rosh Yeshiva Reading: Intellectual Openness in 19th Century Lithuania", while more recent titles have included "Shifting Alliances: Why Liberals No Longer Reliably Support Israel — And Conservatives Do".

References

External links

*
Seraphic Secret
– Avrech's blog
Interview
with Steve Savitsky, President of Orthodox Union (25 November 2014)
Interview
with Danielle Berrin of the Jewish Journal (8 January 2014) {{DEFAULTSORT:Avrech, Robert J. Living people Jewish American novelists American Orthodox Jews American male screenwriters Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American Jews Jewish American screenwriters American children's writers Jewish American memoirists