"No Angel at the Fence"

I went to a lecture today. (So I lied and haven't skipped out of everything I could.)

Summary:
"Herman Rosenblat, a Polish Jewish survivor of Buchenwald and Schlieben, prepared a memoir of his Holocaust experience titled “Angel at the Fence,” to be published by Penguin Berkley in February 2009. A children’s book called “Angel Girl” was already in distribution. A Hollywood movie was planned. At the center was a story of young love that was born alongside the fence of a Nazi concentration camp.
"According to Herman, a young Polish Jewish girl hiding under false identity with her family in the nearby village came to Schlieben daily and brought apples or bread, which she pitched over the electrified fence to him without being seen. Then, twelve years later, on a blind date in New York, the individuals miraculously found each other again and they were married and lived happily ever after. Told twice on the Oprah Winfrey show, first in 1996, then again in 2007, the story circulated on the internet for years and was a particular favorite in Christian and Jewish inspirational circles.
"The problem was that the story was not true. There was no angel at the fence: there were no daily meetings at the concentration camp; other survivors with Herman knew the story was a figment of his imagination; and the girl turned out indeed to be hiding with her family in Germany but over 200 miles away. How was this found out? Why would a Holocaust survivor spin a false memoir story? What can be learned from the episode?"

It was fascinating; I'm really glad I was able to go. It was my first major official Jewish Studies event!