1. Yehonatan Geffen, known as Yonatan Gefen, was an Israeli author, poet, songwriter, journalist, satirist and playwright.
16 Facts About Yehonatan Geffen
1. 2.
In 1972, after his return from studies at Cambridge University in London, Geffen began writing a satirical column for the weekend supplement of the Hebrew-language mainstream newspaper Ma'ariv.
3.
Yehonatan Geffen joined the entertainment troupe "Lul" with Uri Zohar, Arik Einstein and Shalom Hanoch.
4.
Much of Yehonatan Geffen's success came from his works for children, including the song "HaYaldah Hachi Yafah BaGan" and the poetry collection HaKeves HaShisha-Asar.
5.
Yehonatan Geffen wrote many popular lyrics for adults, poems, plays and books.
6.
Yehonatan Geffen frequently collaborated with David Broza, rendering Spanish songs into Hebrew.
7.
Yehonatan Geffen translated into Hebrew a variety of songs and poems.
8.
Yehonatan Geffen woke up every night due to recurring nightmares from the battles.
9.
Yehonatan Geffen was often criticized for his strong left-wing leanings, which bordered on provocation, and even received death threats.
10.
Yehonatan Geffen was one of a group of journalists who in 1973 published the book The Failure, the first book to document the Yom Kippur War.
11.
In February 2018, Yehonatan Geffen published a poem on his Instagram feed that ended with the following lines, comparing Palestinian activist Ahed Tamimi with David, Joan of Arc, Hannah Senesh and Anne Frank:.
12.
Yehonatan Geffen published an apology but didn't remove the poem from his Instagram profile.
13.
In 1967, while Yehonatan Geffen was serving in the IDF, his mother overdosed on medication and died.
14.
Yehonatan Geffen was married for the first time in 1969 to actress and television personality Nurit Makover.
15.
Yehonatan Geffen married a second time, to television actress Ava Haddad.
16.
Yehonatan Geffen died of a heart attack on 19 April 2023 at the age of 76.