Leo Birinski

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Leo Birinski
Leo Birinski (approx. 1923)
Born	June 8, 1884 Lysianka, Kiev Governorate, Russian Empire (in present-day Cherkasy Oblast, Ukraine)
Died	October 23, 1951(1951-10-23) (aged 67) The Bronx, New York City, NY, United States
Resting place	Potter's Field, Hart Island, New York City
Other names	Leo Gottesmann
Occupation(s)	Screenwriter, Film director Playwright
Spouse	Felicia Aschkenas
Parent(s)	Hersch (Hermann) Gottesmann (father), Carna Birinska (mother)

Leo Birinski (June 8, 1884 – October 23, 1951) was a playwright, screenwriter and director. He worked in Austria-Hungary, Germany and in the United States. As a playwright in Europe, he gained his biggest popularity from 1910 to 1917 but was ultimately forgotten. From the 1920s to 1940s he worked mainly as a screenwriter, first in Germany, later in the United States, to which he emigrated in September 1927. In the United States, he also returned to writing stage plays. He wrote in German and English. Until recently, only a minimal amount of information about his life has been available. Complicating matters, there have been many legends and rumours concerning Birinski's person, including the false report of his "suicide" in 1920 that found its way from newspaper obituaries into encyclopedias.