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{{Short description|German writer and screenwriter (born 1949)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2022}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = Patrick Süskind
| image =
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1949|03|26|df=y}}
| birth_place = {{nowrap|Ambach, [[Bavaria]], [[American occupation zone in Germany]]}}
| partner = Tanja Graf
| children = 1
| occupation = Writer, screenwriter
| movement = [[Magic realism]]
| influences =
| influenced =
| period = 1980–present
| notable_works = {{plainlist|
* ''[[Der Kontrabaß]]''
* ''[[Perfume (novel)|Perfume: The Story of a Murderer]]''
* ''[[The Pigeon (novella)|The Pigeon]]''
* ''[[The Story of Mr Sommer]]''
}}
}}
'''Patrick Süskind''' ({{IPA|de|ˈpatʁɪk ˈzyːskɪnt|lang|De-Patrick Süskind.ogg}}; born 26 March 1949)<ref name=Focus>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.focus.de/kultur/buecher/so-fluechtig-wie-ein-duft-patrick-sueskind_id_2233545.html |title=So flüchtig wie ein Duft |magazine=Focus |date=28 March 2016 |language=de }}</ref><ref name=DW/> is a German writer and screenwriter, known best for his novel ''[[Perfume (novel)|Perfume: The Story of a Murderer]]'', first published in 1985.

==Early life==
Süskind was born in Ambach, [[Bavaria]]. His father was writer and journalist, [[Wilhelm Emanuel Süskind]], who worked for the newspaper ''[[Süddeutsche Zeitung]]'' and was a co-author of the well-known book ''[[Aus dem Wörterbuch des Unmenschen]]'' (''From the Dictionary of an Inhuman''), a critical collection of essays concerning the language of the Nazi era.<ref>Sternberger, Dolf, Gerhard Storz and Wilhelm E. Süskind. ''Aus dem Wörterbuch des Unmenschen''. Munich: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, 1962. {{in lang|de}}.</ref> His mother, Annemarie Süskind, née Schmitt, was a sports teacher; his older brother {{ill|Martin Erhard Süskind|de}} (1944–2009) was a journalist and speechwriter.<ref name=Focus/><ref name=DW/>

After his [[Abitur|qualification testing]] for university and his mandatory [[Zivildienst|community service]], Süskind studied medieval and modern history at [[LMU Munich]] and two semesters in [[Aix-en-Provence]] from 1968 to 1974, but never graduated.<ref name=Focus/> Funded by his parents, he relocated to [[Paris]], where he wrote "mainly short, unpublished fiction and longer screenplays which were not made into films".<ref>Francke, Eckhart. "Patrick Süskind". ''Kritisches Lexikon zur deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur'', 42. NLG, 1-8 {{in lang|de}}.</ref>

==Career==
In 1981, he had his first major success with the play ''[[Der Kontrabaß]]'' (''The Double Bass''), which was conceived originally as a radio play. During the theatrical season of 1984–85, the play was performed more than 500 times. The only role is that of a tragi-comical orchestra musician. During the 1980s, working with the director [[Helmut Dietl]], Süskind was also successful as a screenwriter for the television productions ''[[Monaco Franze – Der ewige Stenz|Monaco Franze]]'' (1983) and ''[[Kir Royal – Aus dem Leben eines Klatschreporters|Kir Royal]]'' (1987), among others. In 1996 he won the Screenplay Prize of the German Department for Culture for his screenplay of ''{{ill|Rossini (1997 film)|de|3=Rossini – oder die mörderische Frage, wer mit wem schlief|lt=Rossini}}'', directed by Dietl. He rejected other awards, such as the [[Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung|FAZ]]-Literaturpreis, the [[Toucan Prize]], and the [[Gutenberg Prize of the International Gutenberg Society and the City of Mainz|Gutenberg Prize]].

His best-known work is the novel ''[[Perfume (novel)|Perfume: The Story of a Murderer]]'' (1985). ''Perfume'' was on the bestselling list of the German weekly news magazine ''[[Der Spiegel]]'' for nine years, has been translated into 49 languages and {{as of|2019|lc=y}} has worldwide sales of more than 20 million copies.<ref name=DW/> In the early 2000s, it was included in the [[BBC]]'s poll-generated list of the 100 best-loved novels.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/bigread/top100_2.shtml |title=The Big Read: Top 100 |publisher=BBC |date=2 September 2014 }}</ref> Also, it was [[film adaptation|adapted]] into [[Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (film)|a 2006 film]] directed by [[Tom Tykwer]].<ref name=Focus/><ref name=DW/><ref>{{cite news |first=Jess |last=Smee |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/sep/08/film.books |title=Critics sniffy over Perfume, the 'unfilmable' film |newspaper=The Guardian |date=8 September 2006 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.signandsight.com/features/954.html "The book doesn't smell either"]: Dietmar Kammerer interviews director Tom Tykwer, at ''Sign and Sight'', 20 September 2006 (originally appeared in German in [http://www.taz.de/pt/2006/09/14/a0192.1/text ''Die Tageszeitung''] on 14 September 2006).</ref> Süskind has also published a novella, ''[[The Pigeon (novella)|The Pigeon]]'' (1988), ''[[The Story of Mr Sommer]]'' (1991, illustrated by French cartoonist [[Jean-Jacques Sempé|Sempé]]), ''Three Stories and a Reflection'' (1996), and an essay, ''[[On Love and Death]]'' (2006).<ref name=Focus/><ref name=DW/>

== Personal life ==
Süskind lives a [[recluse|reclusive]], private lifestyle and divides his time between [[Munich]] and [[France]]. He rarely grants interviews and few photographs of him have been published.<ref name=Focus/><ref name=DW>{{cite web |first=Cristina |last=Burack |url=https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-most-mysterious-author-patrick-s%C3%BCskind-at-70/a-48050838 |title=Germany's most mysterious author? Patrick Süskind at 70 |publisher=Deutsche Welle |date=26 March 2019 }}</ref>

His spouse is German publisher Tanja Graf [<nowiki/>[[:de:Tanja Graf (Verlegerin)|de]]], with whom he has a son.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.sueddeutsche.de/muenchen/kultur-tanja-graf-wird-neue-chefin-im-literaturhaus-1.2815158 | title=München: Tanja Graf wird neue Chefin im Literaturhaus | date=12 January 2016 }}</ref>

==Selected works==
* ''[[Der Kontrabaß]]'' (''The Double Bass'') (play, 1981)
* ''Das Parfum'' (''[[Perfume (novel)|Perfume: The Story of a Murderer]]'') (novel, 1985)
* ''Die Taube'' (''[[The Pigeon (novella)|The Pigeon]]'') (novella, 1988)
* ''Die Geschichte von Herrn Sommer'' (''[[The Story of Mr Sommer]]'') (novella, 1991)
* ''Drei Geschichten und eine Betrachtung'' (''Three Stories and a Reflection'') (stories, 1996) [Contents: ''Depth Wish'', ''A Battle'', ''Maître Mussard's Bequest'', ''Amnesia in Litteris''.]
* ''Über Liebe und Tod'' (''[[On Love and Death]]'') (essay, 2006)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
*Delseit, Wolfgang and Drost, Ralf. ''Patrick Süskind. Das Parfum. Erläuterungen und Dokumente''. Stuttgart: Reclam, 2000. {{in lang|de}}.

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0845752|Patrick Süskind}}
* [https://portal.dnb.de/opac.htm?method=simpleSearch&query=118885006 Patrick Süskind] at [[German National Library]]
* [http://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5866 Patrick Süskind] at The Literary Encyclopedia

{{Patrick Süskind}}
{{World Fantasy Award Best Novel}}{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suskind, Patrick}}
[[Category:Patrick Süskind| ]]
[[Category:1949 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century German novelists]]
[[Category:21st-century German novelists]]
[[Category:Magical realism writers]]
[[Category:People from Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen]]
[[Category:LMU Munich alumni]]
[[Category:World Fantasy Award–winning writers]]
[[Category:20th-century German male novelists]]
[[Category:21st-century German male novelists]]

Patrick Süskind - Revision history

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