Gerald Kersh American writer born in England Date of Birth: 26.08.1911 Country: USA

Biography of Gerald Kersh

Gerald Kersh was an American writer who was originally from England. He tried his hand in various fields but eventually settled on a career in writing, excelling in noir, horror, and detective genres. However, Kersh faced a lawsuit from his relatives. His novel 'Night and the City' had multiple adaptations. Kersh was born in 1911 to a Russian father and a Jewish mother. His talent for writing began to develop when he was just eight years old. Despite not receiving any formal education other than what life presented him, Kersh embarked on a series of jobs in search of earning a living. He worked as a cinema manager, bodyguard, debt collector, fish and chips cook, traveling salesman, French language teacher, and a wrestler in various forms. All these experiences served as preparation for Kersh's true career, which was characterized by his rich imagination and interesting ideas. In 1934, he released his first novel, 'Jews Without Jehovah,' which was an autobiographical story that he chose not to change any names, including those of his numerous relatives who then sued Kersh for defamation. To settle the case, the book was quickly taken off the shelves. Kersh had more success with his novel 'Night and the City,' published in 1938. This book was adapted into films twice, once in 1950 with Richard Widmark in the lead role, and again in 1992 with Robert De Niro. The first film became a classic noir, while the second version relocated the events from London to New York. During World War II, Kersh was drafted into the army. He served in the Coldstream Guards, narrowly escaping bombing raids, and ended the war as a war correspondent and scriptwriter for a specialized military film unit. Gerald found himself in France at the end of the war, during its liberation, and he discovered that many of his French relatives had been in Nazi death camps. After the war, Kersh continued to enjoy commercial success with his work, primarily his horror, science fiction, fantasy, and detective stories. In the mid-1950s, his health began to decline, and his financial situation was shaken when it was revealed that he had not paid income taxes. However, Kersh continued to write novels and stories, some of which received critical acclaim and sold well. In 1958, his short story 'The Secret of the Bottle,' originally published in 'The Saturday Evening Post,' won the Edgar Allan Poe Award from the Mystery Writers of America. In the late 1930s, Kersh announced that all his novels published from that time were not the product of his imagination. He claimed that he wrote the truth, using fictional elements minimally. His novels often depicted the lives of the lower classes and eccentric characters from London. It was implied that Gerald shared his own experiences and autobiographical details in his works. For example, the wrestler in 'Night and the City' and the cinema manager in 'Fowler's End' had similarities to Kersh's own past occupations. After his death in 1968, Kersh's name was rarely mentioned. However, recently there has been renewed interest in Kersh, including from writer Harlan Ellison, who named Kersh as his favorite author.