Claude Lanzmann was born in Paris, France on November 27, 1925. At the age of 18, he joined the communist resistance during the occupation of France and smuggled small arms under the eyes of the Gestapo in Clermont-Ferrand. After the war, he studied philosophy at the University of Tübingen. He taught briefly at the Free University of Berlin. As a journalist, he covered East Germany for Le Monde and contributed to the journal Les Temps Modernes, eventually becoming the editor in chief for many years.
He was a film director. His films included Why Israel, Shoah, Tsahal, Le Rapport Karski, Le Dernier des Injustes, Napalm, and Shoah: Les Quatre Soeurs. His autobiography, The Patagonian Hare, was published in 2009. He was made a Commandeur of the Légion d'Honneur in 2006 and promoted to Grand Officier in 2011. He died on July 5, 2018 at the age of 92.
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