Robert Katz (27 June 1933 – 20 October 2010) was an American novelist, screenwriter, and non-fiction author.

Biography

Katz was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, the son of Sidney and Helen Katz, née Holland, and married Beverly Gerstel on September 22, 1957. The couple had two sons: Stephen Lee Katz and Jonathan Howard Katz. He studied at

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...

1951–53 and went on to be a photojournalist and writer at the United Hias Service, NYC 1953–57; at the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''. History The society w ...

in New York (1958–63); and then at the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

in New York and Rome (1963–64). He was a freelance writer from 1964 until his death. He fulfilled academic roles at numerous institutions, including being visiting professor of

Investigative Journalism Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a single topic of interest, such as serious crimes, racial injustice, political corruption, or corporate wrongdoing. An investigative journalist may spend m ...

at the

University of California, Santa Cruz The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of C ...

(1986–92). Awarded an ongoing Guggenheim

Fellowship A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned or professional societies, the term refers ...

in 1970, he had also been a fellow of Adlai E. Stevenson College,

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

during 1986 to 1992. He became a grantee of the

American Council of Learned Societies The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) is a private, nonprofit federation of 75 scholarly organizations in the humanities and related social sciences founded in 1919. It is best known for its fellowship competitions which provide a ra ...

in 1971 and a recipient of the

Laceno d'Oro Laceno is an Italian hamlet (''frazione'') and ski resort situated in the municipality of Bagnoli Irpino, Province of Avellino, Campania. It includes a Ski Resort (with 18 km of ski Slopes) with artificial snow if required, a lake with food ar ...

(best screenplay) award at the Neorealist Film Festival in

Avellino Avellino () is a city and ''comune'', capital of the province of Avellino in the Campania region of southern Italy. It is situated in a plain surrounded by mountains east of Naples and is an important hub on the road from Salerno to Benevento. ...

, Italy (1983). Katz was involved in a criminal-libel lawsuit in Italy over the contents of his book ''Death in Rome'', in which he was charged with "defaming the memory of the Pope"

Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

regarding the

Ardeatine Massacre The Ardeatine massacre, or Fosse Ardeatine massacre (), was a mass killing of 335 civilians and political prisoners carried out in Rome on 24 March 1944 by German occupation troops during the Second World War as a reprisal for the Via Rasell ...

of 335 Italians, including 70 Jews, at the Ardeatine Caves in 1944. The book aroused international religious and political controversy; the book was made into the 1973 film ''

Massacre in Rome ''Massacre in Rome'' () is a 1973 Italian war drama film directed by George Pan Cosmatos about the Ardeatine massacre which occurred at the Ardeatine caves in Rome, 24 March 1944, committed by the Germans as a reprisal for a partisan attack aga ...

'' starring

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his mellifluous baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s and gave a memor ...

. which brought the controversy to court, culminating in a two-year criminal trial. Katz was ultimately convicted and sentenced to fourteen months in prison for defaming the memory of Pope Pius XII. The verdict was overturned on appeal and later the case was dismissed by Italy's Supreme Court. Katz lived for many years in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

, Italy. He died October 20, 2010, in

Montevarchi Montevarchi is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy. History The town of Montevarchi sprang up around 1100, near to a fortified Benedictine monastery, founded by bishop Elempert (986–1010) of Arezzo. At first the cas ...

, Italy, as a result of complications from cancer surgery. In February 2024 it was announced that Academy award nominee

America Ferrera America Georgina Ferrera (; born April 18, 1984) is an American actress, director and television producer. She has received List of awards and nominations received by America Ferrera, numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golde ...

would star in and executive produce an

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

series based on the Katz' 1990 book ''Naked by the Window: The Fatal Marriage of

Carl Andre Carl Andre (September 16, 1935 – January 24, 2024) was an American minimalist artist recognized for his ordered linear and grid format sculptures. His sculptures range from large public artworks (such as ''Stone Field Sculpture'', 1977, in ...

and

Ana Mendieta Ana Mendieta (November 18, 1948 – September 8, 1985) was a Cuban-American performance artist, sculptor, painter, and video artist who is best known for her "earth-body" artwork. She is considered one of the most influential Cuban-American ar ...

.'' The series will be scripted by Cherise Castro Smith and co-executive produced by

Amazon MGM Studios Amazon MGM Studios is an American film and television production and distribution company owned by Amazon, and headquartered at the Culver Studios complex in Culver City, California. Launched on November 16, 2010, it took its current name on O ...

and

Plan B Entertainment Plan B Entertainment, Inc., more commonly known as Plan B, is an American production company founded in November 2001 by Brad Pitt, Brad Grey, Kristin Hahn and Jennifer Aniston. The company first signed with Warner Bros. as a replacement for ...

.Grobar, Matt (February 23, 2024). "America Ferrera Set For Series 'Naked By The Window' In Development At Amazon MGM Studios". ''Deadline''. Retrieved March 13, 2024.

Non-fiction writings

*''Death in Rome'', New York:

Macmillan Publishers Macmillan Publishers (occasionally known as the Macmillan Group; formally Macmillan Publishers Ltd in the United Kingdom and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC in the United States) is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be on ...

, 1967. *''Black Sabbath: A Journey through a Crime against Humanity'', Macmillan, 1969. *''The Fall of the

House of Savoy The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...

'', Macmillan, 1971. *''A Giant in the Earth'',

Stein & Day Stein and Day, Inc. was an American publishing company founded by Sol Stein and his wife Patricia Day in 1962. Stein was both the publisher and the editor-in-chief. The firm was based in New York City, and was in business for 27 years, until cl ...

, 1973. *''Days of Wrath: The Ordeal of

Aldo Moro Aldo Moro (; 23 September 1916 – 9 May 1978) was an Italian statesman and prominent member of Christian Democracy (Italy), Christian Democracy (DC) and its centre-left wing. He served as prime minister of Italy in five terms from December 1963 ...

, the Kidnapping, the Execution, the Aftermath'',

Doubleday Doubleday may refer to: * Doubleday (surname), including a list of people with the name Publishing imprints * Doubleday (publisher), imprint of Knopf Doubleday, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House * Doubleday Canada, imprint of Penguin Random ...

, 1980. (

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

nomination 1981) *''Il caso Moro'' (with G. Ferrara and A. Balducci), Pironti, 1987. *''Love is Colder than Death: The Life and Times of

Rainer Werner Fassbinder Rainer Werner Fassbinder (; 31 May 1945 – 10 June 1982), sometimes credited as R. W. Fassbinder, was a German filmmaker, dramatist and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the major figures and catalysts of the New German Cinema moveme ...

'',

Random House Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the foll ...

, 1987. *''Naked by the Window: The Fatal Marriage of

and

'',

Atlantic Monthly Press Grove Atlantic, Inc. is an American independent publisher, based in New York City. Formerly styled "Grove/Atlantic, Inc.", it was created in 1993 by the merger of Grove Press and Atlantic Monthly Press. As of 2018 Grove Atlantic calls itself " ...

, 1990. *''Dossier Priebke'', Rizzoli, 1997. *''The Battle for Rome: the Germans, the Allies, the Partisans and the Pope, September 1943-June 1944'',

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...

, 2003.

Novels

*''The Cassandra Crossing'', Ballantine, 1976. *''Ziggurat'', Houghton, 1977. *''The Spoils of Ararat'', Houghton, 1978.

Filmography

*''

'' (1973) (book "Death in Rome") (screenplay) *''

The Cassandra Crossing ''The Cassandra Crossing'' is a 1976 disaster thriller film directed by George Pan Cosmatos and starring Sophia Loren, Richard Harris, Ava Gardner, Martin Sheen, Burt Lancaster, Lee Strasberg and O. J. Simpson about a diseased Swedish terroris ...

'' (1976) (screenplay) (story) *'' The Salamander'' (1981) (writer) *'' La pelle'' (1981) (screenplay) *'' Kamikaze 1989'' (1982) (writer) *''Dolce e selvaggio'' (1983) (English dialogue) *'' Il Caso Moro'' (1986) (book ''Days of Wrath'') (screenplay) *'' Il cugino americano'' (1986) (story) *'' Hotel Colonial'' (1987) (writer) *'' The Plague'' (1992) (narration) *'' The Contractor'' (2007) (V) (story)

References

External links

Robert Katz's View of Modern Italy
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Katz, Robert 1933 births 2010 deaths 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American non-fiction writers American male screenwriters Writers from Brooklyn Novelists from New York City American male novelists 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers American male non-fiction writers Screenwriters from New York (state) Brooklyn College alumni 21st-century American male writers