Talk:Władysław Szpilman

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Szpilman's book was certainly published in Poland after the war, however not in the full version. I don't think it is clearly said in the article. --Martewa 18:13, 13 Sep 2004 (UTC)

What he published after the war was not the same version that was published many years later, but I think the narrative was the same. About my statement that the new version (1998) was not yet published in Polish, I just wrote what my copy (in swedish) said, I'm sorry about that. [[User:Sverdrup|❝Sverdrup❞]] 18:50, 13 Sep 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Sources

This article needs sources. It seems more like an exact description of what happens in the film than anything else. Presumably while Roman Polanski's film is accurate and true to actual events, surely there must be some extra events not mentioned in the film or events that were different. 84.68.195.161 23:53, 15 April 2006 (UTC)

When I edited this article, I referred to Szpilman's book (The Pianist: The Extraordinary True Story of One Man's Survival in Warsaw, 1939-1945), the websites listed under "External links", and the compilation of Hosenfeld's dairies and letters to his family (see Wilm_Hosenfeld#References). None of the information seemed to conflict with that presented in other related articles. HTH, Jim_Lockhart 03:57, 16 April 2006 (UTC)
I reworked the article today because I saw some problems with the English translation as I was reading it, so I rephrased many sentences and rewrote some to conform better to the English style I see used here at Wikipedia. Hopefully I did it correctly. Please let me know if I did not. - BaseballBaby 18:34, 14 June 2006 (UTC)
Good job; the article flows more smoothly now. What do you think about replacing all occurrences of the phrase "Polish Radio" with "Polskie Radio" just to make it more clear that it was the actual name of the broadcasting service. --Mathew5000 20:07, 14 June 2006 (UTC)

I assume the only real source available for the WW2 period of Szpilman's life is his own memoir? I think it should probably be made expressly clear that that's the only source which obviously can't be considered neutral, even though it is not disputed and there is no particular reason to doubt it. Also I wonder if the last few paragraphs of the article should be restructured so it's strictly chronological (for example, put the statement of his death after the publication of his memoirs. --Mathew5000 02:56, 23 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Absolute fact?

"Szpilman's survival is credited in part to Wilm Hosenfeld, a German captain who had grown ashamed of his country's Nazi policies. Hosenfeld discovered Szpilman when the latter was searching for something to eat. Hosenfeld asked Szpilman who he was and demanded proof that he was a pianist, leading him to an old piano. At this point, Szpilman had not touched a piano for two and a half years, yet out of fear for his life he played Chopin's Ballade No.1 in G minor, op. 23. Hosenfeld provided Szpilman with food and army clothes to keep him from freezing to death when the Germans evacuated Warsaw. When the Soviet Union's Red Army captured Warsaw and Szpilman went out to greet his rescuers, he was shot at and nearly killed. He called out "I'm Polish!" to the soldiers. When they asked why he was wearing a German officer's coat, he answered, "I was cold." Hosenfeld later died in Soviet captivity."

This sounds exactly like in the film. Can anyone confirm please, especially the quotes...

[edit] Introduction

Presently, the introduction reads:

... He is best known as the protagonist of the Roman Polański film The Pianist, based on Szpilman's autobiographical book recounting how he survived World War Two.

Given the fact that Szpilman spent the better part of the War hiding from the Germans (for obvious reasons), would it not be more accurate to change this to "... how he survived the Holocuast" or perhaps even "... how he survived the Second World War and the Holocaust"? It just seems to me that this phrase doesn't properly describe his plight as a Jew under Nazi occupation. --Todeswalzer 01:03, 23 September 2006 (UTC)

Good call! “...How he survived the Holocaust and the Second World War” would be far better. But now I notice one other problem: The notion that he is best known the the protagonist in the film. Maybe that’s what he’s best known for outside Europe or Poland, but it certainly isn’t what he was best known for in Poland. Perhaps this should be adjusted too. Jim_Lockhart 15:33, 8 June 2007 (UTC)