Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 2 no. 32 July 16, 1992 1) Israel Narodiczky (Ira Robinson) 2) Maurice Schwartz (Martin Davis) 3) Margaretkes (Martin Davis) 4) That YIVO sale (Zachary Baker) 5) Query (Alan Rutkowski) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 15 Jul 1992 08:23 EDT From: ROBINSO@Vax2.Concordia.CA Subject: Israel Narodiczky Recently I came across a copy of a book entitled _Jewish Books in Whitechapel: a Bibliography of Narodiczky's Press_ compiled by Moshe Sanders and edited by Marion Aptroot. (London, Duckworth, 1991). Narodiczky apparently was the chief Hebrew/Yiddish printer in London in the first half of the twentieth century and his life, as traced by Aptroot in her introduction, is fascinating. If Aptroot is listening in now, or if there is a "Mendele" in England who is in contact, I have discovered a letter written by Narodiczky in the period prior to his emigration to England. Ira Robinson Concordia University 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 15 Jul 92 08:11:22 PDT From: martind@drum.Berkeley.EDU Subject: Maurice Schwartz One of my favorite memories was seeing Maurice Schwartz play the lead in "Shylock's Tokhter" on Second Avenue in New York in the late 1940s. This was a wonderful Ghetto-eye view rather different from Shakespeare's (though the "hath not a Jew eyes" speech was translated quite literally). The climax occurs when Portia's courtroom sophistries are trumped by those of a brilliant young Yeshiva bokher, and the judge reluctantly tells Shylock to proceed to cut his pound of flesh. Maurice Schwartz picked up his knife, held it aloft, and then shouted (they must have heard him on Times Square) "Ikh ken nit! Ikh bin a yid!" A couple of years ago I saw him in the wonderful film UNCLE MOSES (mentioned by Ellen Prince) at a Jewish film festival in San Francisco. (I am often in the Bay Area during the summer.) As we were leaving the theatre, I heard a young woman saying,"That's a fine little actor." I couldn't resist informimg her that "that is no little actor, that is the great Maurice Schwartz!" Martin Davis 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 15 Jul 92 08:24:51 PDT From: martind@drum.Berkeley.EDU Subject: Yiddish songs (margaretkas) My favorite is a lovely song my mother used to sing about the seduction of a girl who is looking for daisies (margaretkas) in the woods. She is approached by "a bokher, a shlanke" who informs her "di zukhst nokh; 'khob shoyn gefinen. Di sheynste margaretke in vald." The lad easily overcomes the girl's scruples (Di mama zogt, mi tur nit). In the final stanza: Di zun is fergangen Der bokher fershwinden, Un Khayele bleybt nokh in vald. zi benkt nokh dem bokher, un zingt zikh dos lidele, tra-la-la-laa la. Martin Davis 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wednesday, July 15 From: Zachary Baker (BM.YIB@RLG.BITNET) Subject: "YIVO for Sale?" Responding to JJ/Yankel's query of July 14, the answer is yes, the YIVO building is for sale, through Sotheby's. YIVO is currently negotiating over another site, elsewhere in Manhattan, which should offer us more and better space, along with such amenities as air conditioning (lacking at 1048 Fifth Avenue). The Institute ran out of space for its collections on these premises approximately 25 years ago. It is the view of both the YIVO Board and Staff that the present site has served its purpose and it is time to move to more appropriate quarters. Zachary Baker, YIVO Library 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 15 Jul 92 10:17:55 MDT From: ARUTKOWS%UALTAVM.bitnet@YaleVM.YCC.Yale.Edu Subject: Query I am working on a translation of a Hebrew article by Shmuel Ettinger on the social and legal status of Jews in Ukraine before 1648. The article contains a quotation from an early Yiddish source about Cossack raids. The source mentions that many Jews were killed "hinter dem nepr." The last word is spelled nun-ayin-pey-reish. Does anyone know the meaning of "nepr?" Thanks. Alan Rutkowski University of Alberta ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol 2.32 If your message is intended for MENDELE, please write to: mendele@vax1.trincoll.edu If you want to discuss personal business or have a shmues with the shames, please write to: nmiller@vax1.trincoll.edu Please sign your articles.