Bernard Malamud
A master of moral fables, he captured the immigrant struggle and human comedy with a blend of Yiddish cadence and American realism.
1914–1986 (age 72)·American writer·Birthday: April 26·The Greatest Generation
Biography
Bernard Malamud wrote 'The Assistant' and 'The Fixer,' novels that found universal resonance in specific, vividly drawn corners of American and European Jewish life. Born in Brooklyn to Russian Jewish immigrants, his world was shaped by the hardships of his parents' small grocery store and the vibrant, struggling city around him. He taught for years at Oregon State College, a period of isolation that fueled his writing. Malamud's fiction turned the everyday lives of tailors, grocers, and fixers into stages for profound moral and spiritual crises. His characters, often poor Jews, grappled with suffering, responsibility, and the elusive promise of redemption, rendered in prose that mixed earthy humor with parable-like intensity. 'The Natural' mythologized baseball; his other works probed deeper into human struggle.
The Greatest Generation
1901–1927
Grew up during the Depression, fought World War II, and built the postwar economic boom. Defined by shared sacrifice, institutional trust, and a belief that hard work and loyalty would be rewarded.
Bernard was born in 1914, placing them squarely in The Greatest Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Bernard Was Born
The biggest hits of 1914
Bernard's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1914Born
World War I begins
President: Woodrow Wilson
1919Started school
Treaty of Versailles signed; Prohibition ratified
President: Woodrow Wilson
1927Became a teenager
Lindbergh flies solo across the Atlantic; The Jazz Singer premieres
President: Calvin Coolidge"My Blue Heaven" — Gene Austin
1930Could drive
Pluto discovered
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $3,510President: Herbert Hoover"Body and Soul" — Paul WhitemanBest Picture: All Quiet on the Western Front
1932Could vote
Amelia Earhart flies solo across the Atlantic
Gas: $0.18/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Night and Day" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: Grand Hotel
1935Turned 21
Social Security Act signed into law
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,450President: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Cheek to Cheek" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: Mutiny on the Bounty
1944Turned 30
D-Day: Allied forces land at Normandy
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,400Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Swinging on a Star" — Bing CrosbyBest Picture: Going My Way
1954Turned 40
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1964Turned 50
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1974Turned 60
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1984Turned 70
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1986Died at 72
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
Key Achievements
- Won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award for his novel 'The Fixer' in 1967.
- His novel 'The Natural' (1952) became a foundational American sports myth, later adapted into a major film.
- Served as president of the PEN American Center, advocating for writers' rights and freedom of expression.
- Received the National Book Award a second time for his short story collection 'The Magic Barrel' in 1959.
Did You Know?
He was a notoriously slow and meticulous writer, often producing only a few paragraphs in a full day's work.
Malamud taught creative writing at Bennington College alongside the poet Howard Nemerov.
His father, a grocer, was the model for many of the struggling shopkeepers in his early stories.
He turned down an invitation to appear on the television show 'The Dick Cavett Show', fearing it would trivialize his work.
“A writer is a spectator, looking at everything with a highly critical eye.”
