Yehuda Barkan (Hebrew: יהודה ברקן‎; born March 29, 1945) is an Israeli actor, film producer, film director and screenwriter.

Biographie

Yehuda Ezekiel Berkowitz (later Barkan) was born in Netanya. He studied at the Bialik and ORT in schools in Netanya. During his military service in the IDF Barkan served in a Combat Engineering Corps unit and the Northern Command Military band.

After his military service, Barkan joined the Dizengoff Command Band (להקת פיקוד דיזנגוף), a band which was based on the characteristics of an Israeli military band, which was composed of veteran members of military bands whom performed songs and skits.

In the early 1970s, Barkan participated in a sketch on the Israeli radio show Hamim VeTaim (חמים וטעים) in which Barkan and his colleagues, Moshe Timor, Shlomo Bar-Aba and others, made live prank calls. This became the inspiration for his later practical joke films.

In 1975 Barkan got married. From his first marriage Barkan had three children. During the 1980s Barkan married again.

In November 2008 Barkan was arrested by the Israeli Tax Authority on suspicion of tax evasion.

At the beginning of the 2000s, Barkan became a Baal Tshuva, got married for the third time and moved to the religious moshav Beit Gamliel with his family. From his first marriage Barkan has four children.