A few decades after Max J. Friedman’s parents died, his grandson wanted to understand more about the family, including his grandparents, a pair of Holocaust survivors who met in a Swedish refugee camp.

Friedman realized he knew very little about who his parents really were, especially about their lives before they met one another. They never spoke of their lives before the Holocaust and very little even about the Holocaust years. He was determined to find out and ended up discovering, after a 5-year, multi-nation search, who they really were — and who he had become as a result. Join us as Gabe and Max discuss his writing journey and what lessons can be found from the Holocaust for society today.

To learn more -- or read the transcript -- visit the official episode page.

Our Guest, Max Friedman, has been telling the stories of others for his whole career — as a journalist, publicist, corporate editorial director, and book ghostwriter. He finally got to share his story by penning a stirring family memoir, Painful Joy: A Holocaust Family Memoir (Amsterdam Publishers).

Early in his career, he held a variety of positions in the communications field, ranging from newspaper and magazine journalism (with articles featured in the The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, TV Guide, and elsewhere) to serving as director of editorial services at Channel 13, New York's public television station as well as the unit publicist for Bill Moyers Journal. 

At Bristol-Myers Squibb for two decades as vice president of communications, he was primarily responsible for the company's global internal communications efforts. He joined the company in 1983 and his work there included speechwriting, employee publications, development and oversight of the company's internet site, brochures, multimedia presentations, corporate advertising, video production, the company's intranet efforts — including a webzine — and its annual report to shareholders. 

He also worked in publishing as an advertising copywriter with Macmillan, in the government (as a spokesman and editor at the Environmental Protection Agency), in education as a grant proposal writer for the City University of New York and in public relations, as an account executive with Ruder & Finn (now Ruder Finn).

He holds a BA in English and Asian Studies from Columbia College and a master’s degree in Journalism from the University of California at Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.

Max and his wife, Jennifer, a reference librarian, live in Larchmont, New York. They raised twin boys and have two grandchildren, one of whom lives in China. For more information, please consult: www.maxfriedman.net.

Our host, Gabe Howard, is an award-winning writer and speaker who lives with bipolar disorder. He is the author of the popular book, "Mental Illness is an Asshole and other Observations," available from Amazon; signed copies are also available directly from the author.

Gabe makes his home in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio. He lives with his supportive wife, Kendall, and a Miniature Schnauzer dog that he never wanted, but now can’t imagine life without.

To book Gabe for your next event or learn more about him, please visit gabehoward.com.

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