Eddie Jaku
Holocaust survivor and memoirist
Eddie Jaku survived German concentration camps and later told his story in The Happiest Man on Earth, a memoir published when he was 100.
1 summary 20 min of listening
Australian Born 1920 in Piotrków Trybunalski, Poland Died 2021
About Eddie Jaku
Eddie Jaku was born Abraham Salomon Jakubowicz in Leipzig, Germany, on 14 April 1920. He was an engineer. During World War II he was imprisoned in several German concentration camps, including Buchenwald and Auschwitz. In 1945 he was sent on a death march, escaped, and was rescued by Allied soldiers. He moved to Australia with his family in 1950. In Australia he became a founding member of the Sydney Jewish Museum. In 2013 he received the Medal of the Order of Australia for services to the Jewish community. He often spoke about his experiences, and one of his TEDx talks has drawn views in the hundreds of thousands. His memoir The Happiest Man on Earth came out when he turned 100 and quickly became a best seller. He took the name Edward (Eddie) in honor of his sister Johanna (Henni), who also survived the Holocaust. He died on 12 October 2021.