'I Only Really Got to Know Her Through Her Diary': Otto Frank on How Anne Frank Lives On
Otto Frank initially found it too painful to read, much less publish, his daughter Anne’s diary. But 77 years ago this week, the diary was released to the public. In a 1976 interview on the BBC’s Blue Peter, Otto shared his thoughts on this decision. “I only really got to know her through her diary,” he revealed to host Lesley Judd, as he presented Anne’s personal writings.
Anne had received a simple autograph book from her father for her 13th birthday on June 12, 1942, which she quickly repurposed into a diary. She poured her innermost thoughts onto its pages, confiding in it as she would a close friend. Otto read aloud from her first entry on the children’s TV program: “I hope I shall be able to confide in you completely, as I have never been able to do to anyone before. And I hope you will be a great support and comfort to me.”
In these pages, Anne detailed her fears, dreams, and the mundane yet intense frustrations of life in hiding. Otto, his family, and others had fled to Amsterdam in 1933 to escape the growing Nazi threat in Germany. However, the safety they found there was short-lived. By 1940, the Nazis had invaded the Netherlands, bringing with them harsh antisemitic laws and the need for Jews to hide.
A month after Anne’s 13th birthday, her sister Margot was summoned to a German labor camp. To evade capture, the family moved into a secret annex above Otto’s business in Amsterdam. They lived there for two years, sharing the small space with another family and a family friend. Daytimes were silent; even the toilet couldn’t be used to avoid detection. Supplies were smuggled in by trusted friends.
Throughout this period, Anne continued writing in her diary, inventing characters like Kitty to confide in. Her diary entries described her longing for companionship, her frustrations with the cramped quarters, and the constant fear of discovery.
Anne’s last diary entry was on August 1, 1944. Three days later, the Gestapo raided the annex, arresting all its occupants. The reason for their discovery remains unknown.
After their arrest, the Frank family was sent to Auschwitz. Otto was separated from his wife Edith and daughters Margot and Anne, never to see them again. Anne and Margot were later transferred to Bergen-Belsen, where they died of typhus in March 1945, just weeks before the camp’s liberation.
Otto was the sole survivor from the annex. Returning to Amsterdam after the war, he learned of his family’s fate and retrieved Anne’s diaries and letters, preserved by friends Miep Gies and Bep Voskuijl. Initially, Otto could not bring himself to read them. “I don’t have the strength to read them,” he wrote to his mother in Switzerland on August 22, 1945.
When he finally did read Anne’s writings, Otto discovered a new side to his daughter. Her diary revealed her inner thoughts and emotions, her disputes with her mother, her feelings of isolation, and her dreams for the future. Otto began to appreciate Anne’s literary talent and her profound reflections on their dire situation.
Despite the pain, Otto decided to share Anne’s diary with the world. Encouraged by a friend who worked in publishing, he recognized the importance of her words. “You have not the right to keep the diary as a private property,” his friend urged. “It’s a human document and you should publish it.”
On June 25, 1947, “The Secret Annex,” a compilation of Anne’s diary entries, was published. Otto had edited some parts, removing personal criticisms and sensitive topics, but the core of Anne’s voice remained intact. The book was an immediate success, later translated into over 70 languages, and adapted into a Pulitzer Prize-winning play and a film.
Reflecting on the decision to publish, Otto told Blue Peter’s Judd, “I didn’t regret it because Anne wrote in one of her diaries, ‘I want to go on living after my death.’ In a way, through her diary, she is living on in many hearts.”
Anne Frank’s diary continues to resonate, offering a poignant and personal glimpse into the human impact of the Holocaust. Through her words, Anne lives on, touching countless lives with her story of courage and humanity in the face of unimaginable adversity.
