This Day, May 2, In Jewish History by Mitchell A and Deb Levin Z"L
May
2
373:
“Bishop Athanasius of Alexandria…aggressive opponent of Arianism and polemicist
against Judaism died today.”
693:
The Sixteenth Council of Toledo, which had opened on April 25, met for the last
time. Among its other accomplishments,…
May 2
373:
“Bishop Athanasius of Alexandria…aggressive opponent of Arianism and polemicist
against Judaism died today.”
693:
The Sixteenth Council of Toledo, which had opened on April 25, met for the last
time. Among its other accomplishments, the council took further steps in the
on-going, ever more vicious, suppression of the Jews by the Christian Visigoth.
The law code, which granted “tax freedom to Jewish conversos” now transferred
the tax obligation to Jews who had not converted. Also, the council ruled that
“converts were allowed to trade with Christians, but not until” they had proven
themselves “by recitation of creeds and eating of non-kosher food. The council
also enacted penalties against Christians who entered into business
transactions “with unconverted or unproven Jews.”
907:
King Boris I of Bulgaria died. At the time of his death, Boris was actually a
monk having abdicated his throne in 889.
During his reign, Bulgaria continued to provide a refuge for Jews
fleeing from Byzantine persecution.
According to some reports, there was an attempt to convert the pagan
Bulgars to Judaism. True or not, Christianity would become the state religion.
1108
(20th of Iyar, 4868): Solomon Ibn-Farussal was murdered shortly
before the forces of Islam defeated the Christians at the battle of Ucles. Yehuda Halevi composed an elegy upon hearing
of Ibn-Farrusal’s murder. Ibn-Farussal reportedly was “in the service of a
Christian prince” who had sent him as an emissary to the Spanish city of
Murcia. The “Christian prince” may well have been Alfonso VII, the monarch who
led the Spaniards to defeat at Ucles.
1160: In the Montpellier region of southern France, an
agreement was concluded according to which every priest who stirred up the people
against the Jews should be excommunicated. The Jews in return pledged to
pay four pounds of silver every year on Palm Sunday
1194:
In one his first acts after returning from his imprisonment in Austria, King
Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter. The Jews had paid a disproportionate share of
that ransom. The 5,000 marks the Jews were compelled to pay was triple that
paid by the citizens of London. There is no record of any Jews having lived in
Portsmouth during the Middle Ages, though there were a scattered few in nearby
Bosham, Chichester and Southampton, and an important community in Winchester.
The first Portsmouth Jews, attracted by the opportunity of trading with the
fast-growing Royal Navy in its home port and possibly by a sense of kinship
with the new German-speaking monarchs of these isles, settled in Oyster Street
in the 1730s - Jacob Thulman signed in Hebrew in the Borough Sessions in 1736 -
but soon moved out of Old Portsmouth to Portsea, in the heart of the city’s commercial
district. The first recorded mention of a Jewish community in Portsmouth is the
purchase of the thousand-year lease of a plot of land by Lazy Lane (now Fawcett
Road) for use as a Jews’ burial ground in December 1749. The lessees were
Benjamin Levi (engraver), Mordechai Samuel (jeweler), Lazarus Moses (chapman)
and Mordechai Moses (chapman). Fawcett Road cemetery was still in use until it
became full in the early 1990s. [Editor’s Note-The word “chapman” probably
meant that these men were merchants or peddlers.]
1293(17th of Iyar, 5053): Rabbi Meir of Rothenberg passed away. The
last of the Tosophists, he was the leading Rabbi in Germany. Convinced that
there was no future in Germany, he agreed to lead a large contingent of
families to Eretz-Israel. While waiting for the other families, he was seized
by the Bishop of Basel. The Emperor ordered him held in prison as a lesson to
any of "his Jews" who would try to leave Germany and thus cause him a
financial loss. He refused to be ransomed, saying that it would serve as an
impetus for further extortions. He died in a prison near Colmar, and his body
was held there until it was ransomed some years later.
1352: In Nuremburg, “Vischlein the son of Masten, Semelin
the son of Nathan of Grefenberg, and Jacob the son-in-law of Liebetraut
appeared before the council requesting to be received again as citizens,
declaring that, in return, they would remit all debts the citizens owed them
and would sell all houses held in pawn; they agreed to settle only where the citizens
permitted, and asked merely to be protected against the nobility.
1481:
The Pope called upon all Christian princes to send back to Spain the Jews who had
fled from the Inquisition.
1561:
“By a decree promulgated today, King Sigismund August appoint Stanislav
Dovorino as superior judge of Pinks and Korbin and placed all the Jews of Pinsk
and the neighboring villages under his jurisdiction and their associates were
ordered to turn over the magazines and stores to the magistrate and burghers of
Pinks
1605:
Massacre of the Jewish community of Bisenz, Austria.
1611:
King James Bible is published for the first time in London, England, by printer
Robert Barker. For many Jews (as well as
non-Jews) the language of the King James Bible is the only version of the
TaNaCh they know.
1634(Iyar
4): Jacob Bassevi of Treuenberg, the “court Jew” who provided financial
assistance to Rudolph II, Matthias and Ferdinand II who used his influence to
protect the Jews of the Holy Roman Empire and Italy passed away
https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2644-bassevi-von-treuenberg-jacob
1649:
Solomon Franco, reportedly the first Jew to live in the “North American
colonies” today “was given funds for passage to sail from Boston to Holland
because the Puritans of the General Court in Massachusetts did not want him in
their colony but apparently the English had no problem with him living after he
“converted to Anglicanism” in 1688, the same year in which he published Truth Springing Out of the Earth “a
royalist panegyric dedicated to King Charles II.”
https://lib.ugent.be/catalog/rug01:001602753
1670:
King Charles II of England grants a permanent charter to the Hudson's Bay
Company to open up the fur trade in North America. “The first known Jew to
settle in what is now Canada was Ferdinande Jacobs, a fur trader with Hudson's
Bay Company who came to Manitoba in 1732.” (Jewish Virtual Library)
1713(6
of Iyar, 5473): Joseph Josel Wertheimer, father of Rabbi Samson Wertheimer,
passed away today at the age of 87.
1718(1st
of Iyar, 5478): Tzvi Hirsch ben Yaakov Ashkenazi, known as the Chacham Tzvi,
passed away in Lviv.
http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/112072/jewish/Rabbi-Tzvi-Ashkenazi-Chacham-Tzvi.htm
1729:
Birthdate of Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great, Czarina of
Russia. Regardless of how history views this German princess who replaced
her husband on the throne of Russia, she was responsible for Russia acquiring
most of its Jewish population. Under her reign, Russia acquired much of
Poland and its large Jewish population. Her record of treatment of the
Jews, is mixed to negative. As a follower of Voltaire, she could not help
but be swayed by his low opinions of the Jews. Her policies led to the
creation of what would be called the Pale of Settlement.
1740:
In Philadelphia, “merchant and silversmith” Elias Boudinot III and Mary
Catherine Williams gave birth to Elias Boudinot, the 10th President of the
Continental Congress who was persuaded by James Adair’s History of the American
Indians that the native Americans were descendants of the Ten Lost Tribes and
that the Hebrew was the origin of their language.
1771(18th
of Iyar, 5531): Lag BaOmer
1776:
In Nederland, Jacob Hirsch Pinto and Levia Leonora Liebe Pinto gave birth to
Branca Brendel Bernisse Hartog Kann (Pinto)
1782:
One day after she had passed away, 20 year old “Yetta bat Asher” was buried
today in the “Alderney Road (Globe Rd) Jewish Cemetery.”
1782:
Twenty-five year old Benjamin Abraham Nones, the Bordeaux born son of Rachel
and Abraham Benjamin Nones married Philadelphia native Miriam Marks with whom
he had 13 children 12 of whom were born in Philadelphia and one of whom was
born in the suburb of Germantown.
1782:
Rabbi Ezekiel Landau, “who supported the study of general education including
history, grammar and natural sciences, opened the first Jewish School in Prague
1784:
Birthdate of Alexander Haindorf “a physician, a Jewish reformer, psychologist,
university lecturer, journalist, art collector and co-founder of the
Westphalian Kunstverein.”
1790(18th
of Iyar, 5550): Lag BaOmer
1791:
In Prussia “Daniel Itzig and his family received the first
Naturalisationspatent, which granted them full citizenship. A year later the
solidarische Haftung (collective responsibility and liability of the Jewish
community for non-payment of taxes and crimes of theft) was abolished.”
1801:
Jacob Hirsch Kann, the son of Miriam and Isaac Jacob Kann and his wife Jetta
Kann gave birth to Eduard Jakob Hirsch Kann.
1801:
James Madison, who learned Hebrew while studying at Princeton, and who has
President would deal with his ally turned opponent Mordecai Noah, began serving
as Secretary of State.
1806(14th
of Iyar, 5566): Pesach Sheni
1810:
In London, American born physician, Dr. Joel Hart married Louisa Levien. The Philadelphia native and only son of
Ephriam had gone to England to study at the Royal College of Physicians and
Surgeons.
1813:
Two days after she had passed away, 57 year old Catherine Isaacs, the wife of
Isaac Isaacs, was buried today at the “Brady Street Jewish Cemetery,”
1813:
While fighting with forces opposing Napoleon, “German historian and poet Daniel
Lessman was wounded at the Battle of Lutzen.
1814:
Joel Benjamin married Dina Levy at the Hambro Synagogue.
1815:
In Leiden, Emanuel Levie Goldsmith and Alijda Joseph Joel Goldsmith gave birth
to “Henry/Hartog Emanuel Goldsmith, the husband of Anna Goldsmith and Alija
Joseph Joel Goldsmith, the “teacher, cigarmaker and attorney who settled in New
York City.
https://goldlog.goudsmit.amsterdam/details/ps41/ps41_395.html
1825(14th
of Iyar, 5585): Pesach Sheni
1827(5th
of Iyar,5587): Sixty-five-year old Richmond, VA merchant Isaac Judah, the son
of Hillel Judah, who “was probably the first reader at Congregation Beth Shalom
in Richmond” passed away today.
1832(2nd
of Iyar, 5592): Naphtali (Henry) Hart, the son of iel and Bella Hart and the
husband of Sarah Hart passed away today
1833:
In Philadelphia, PA, Julia Levy and Joseph Lyons Moss who had been married in
1828 gave birth to William Moss, the husband of Mary Nooronha whom he married
in 1863 and the father of Mary, Joseph and William Moss, Jr.
1833:
Birthdate of Abraham (Adolf) Berliner German Jewish theologian and historian
who re-established The Mekitze Nirdamim literally "awakening the
slumbering", a society for the publication of old Hebrew books and
manuscripts that were either never published or long out of print in 1885.
1836:
Three days after he has passed away, John Nathan, the two year old son of
Joseph and Esther Nathan, was buried today at the “Brompton (Fulham Road)
Jewish Cemetery.”
1836(15th
of Iyar, 5596): Eighty one year old Aaron Worms the son of Abraham Aberle, the
chief rabbi of Metz and author of "Meore Or" (Flashes of Light)
passed away today.
1837:
Birthdate of Selah Merrill, the first United States Consul in Jerusalem. He served three terms over the years 1882
through 1907. Merrill opposed Jewish settlement in Palestine, writing,
"Palestine is not ready for the Jews. The Jews are not ready for Palestine."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/books/chap1/fallenpillars.htm
1839(18th
of Iyar, 5599): Lag BaOmer
1839:
Joseph Joseph married Phoebe Barnett today at the Great Synagogue.
1844: Birthdate of Aaron Wise, the Hungarian
born American rabbi was the son of Rabbi Joseph Hirsch Weiss, and father of
Rabbi Stephen Samuel Wise.
1844: Birthdate of Portsmouth, England native
Kate Emanuel who gained games Katie Magnus (Lady Magnus) the wife of Sir
Phillip Magnus, “the treasurer of the Jewish Girls’ Club, and author whose
works included Little Miriam’s Bible Stories and About the Jews Since Bible
Times.
https://www.jta.org/1924/03/03/archive/lady-katie-magnus-dies-at-age-of-eighty-years
1844: Birthdate of Emil Schürer, “the German Protestant theologian who, for
his time had the unusual distinction of studying the history of the Jews at the
time of Jesus which led him to write A History of the Jewish People in the
Time of Jesus Christ
1847: Two days after she had passed away, 77
year old Phoebe Abrahams, the “widow of Abraham Abrahams” was buried today at
the “Brompton (Fulham Road) Jewish Cemetery.”
1853: The Argentine Constitution promised freedom of
religion and immigration. Argentina had already shown itself to be a hospitable
place for Jewish settlement when it abolished the Inquisition in 1813 which
contributed to an influx of Jewish immigrants from Western Europe and North
Africa. The country’s first “Jewish wedding”
would take place in 1860 and the Jewish community of Buenos Aires dates its
start from 1862.
1855(14th of Iyar, 5615): Pesach Sheni
1855: Birthdate of German American violinist and prolific
composer Theodore Moses Tobani whose most famous composition in “Hearts and
Flowers.”
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1933/12/13/90659703.html?pageNumber=23
1856: The
New York Times reported that Lord Derby’s government could not long survive
because it was led by “a dilettante Jew whose only stary is self, and who has
no care either for the national honor or glory…” The “dilettante Jew” had to be a reference to
Disraeli, who not for the first time would be wrongly identified as a Jew. And the references were invariably used as a
slur.
1858(18th
od Iyar, 5618) Lag B’Omer
1859:
Five days after he had passed away, financier and social reformer Sir Isaac
Lyon Goldsmid, the son of Asher Aron and Rachel Goldsmid and the wife of Isabel
Goldsmid with whom he had had eleven children and who was the first Jew to be
honored as a baronet was buried today at the “Balls Pond Road Jewish Cemetery.”
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sir-Isaac-Lyon-Goldsmid-1st-Baronet
1860: Birthdate of
Theodor Herzl.
Born in Hungary, Herzl's family moved to Vienna. He was raised in an
"enlightened Jewish home" and trained as a lawyer. Herzl
pursued a career as a journalist and writer. Although he had encountered
anti-Semitism, his views on the role of the Jews changed radically when he
covered the Dreyfus Trial in 1894. If anti-Semitism could thrive in
enlightened France, then the Jews were not safe any place except in a nation of
their own. He electrified many with his book the Jewish State and he
organized the World Zionist Organization. The six congresses that he
chaired set much of the tone and program for the modern Zionist movement.
Herzl died in 1904 at the age of 44. In 1949, his body was taken to Mt.
Herzl in Jerusalem for its final resting place. Herzl is the embodiment
of Hillel's most famous wisdom statements and proof that one person can make a
difference. “Herzl coined the phrase ‘If you will, it is no fairytale,’ which
became the motto of the Zionist movement.
Although at the time no one could have imagined it, Zionism led, only fifty
years later, to the establishment of the independent State of Israel.”
1861:
Lieutenant Horace Porter returned to the arsenal at Watervliet, NY, with a
letter from Colonel James Ripley rejecting Major Alfred Mordecai’s request for
transfer and ordering him to prepare and ship much needed “artillery equipment”
to Washington.” This brought to an end Mordecai’s attempt to stay in the U.S.
Army without having to fight against family and friends living in the
South.
1861:
In Papa, Hungary, Carl Ellinger and Marie Deutsch gave birth Emil Ellinger,
who, after coming to the United States served as a Rabbi in Mount Vernon, Sioux
City, Iowa and Alexandria, Louisiana home of Congregation Gemilas Hasodim.
1862:
Joseph Wolff passed away today at Isle Brewers. Born at Weilersbach, Germany in
1795, to David Wolff, the town’s Rabbi, he “was baptized in 1812 by the
Benedictine abbot of Emaus, near Prague.” Wolff trained as an Orientalist,
traveled throughout the Middle East where he sought to convert Jewish
populations and later searched for the Ten Lost Tribes in an areas stretching
from modern day Turkey to Afghanistan.
1863:
Birthdate of Russian native Fanny Pruzansky Bellin, the husband of Jacob Bellin
and the mother of Katie, Samuel, Anna and Sadie Bellin.
1863:
At battle of Chancellorsville, Captain Charles Etting marched from the west
bank of the Rappahannock River under fire, crossing at United States Ford,
reaching the front at 1 o'clock A.M.
1863:
During the Battle of Chancellorsville, Sergeant Henry Heller was one of four
soldiers who risked their lives to bring a wounded Confederate officer into the
lines of the Union Army. The officer then “provided valuable information
concerning the position of the enemy."
1863:
During the American Civil War, Confederate General Stonewall Jackson was mortally
wounded by friendly fire while returning to camp after reconnoitering during
the Battle of Chancellorsville. Among the units fighting at
Chancellorsville that tried to stop the
advance of Jackson’s troops was a regiment from Illinois under the command of
Frederick Hecker that included a company made up of (supplied by) Jews from
Chicago.
1864(26th
of Nisan, 5624): Giacomo Meyerbeer passed away.
http://www.meyerbeer.com/whois.htm
1867:
The Weekly Clarion of Jackson reported today: “We are gratified that
measures are in progress for the erection of a place of worship in this city by
our fellow citizens of the Hebrew descent.” The newspaper item referred to the
purchase of property at the corner of South State and South streets on which
the Beth Israel Congregation would soon erect a small, wood-frame building
which they would use as a school and a house of worship. This was the first
building erected in Jackson designed to serve as a house of worship for the
Jews living in around the city that was the capital of the state of
Mississippi.
1869: Stella Rothschild, the Randegg. Germany
born daughter of Sara and Leopold Schott and her husband Wilhelm Benjamin
Rothschild gave birth to Leopoldine
Rothschild.
1870:
Antoine Maurer, who was charged with killing a Jew named Joachim Feurter, went
on trial again in Rockland County, NY.
Maurer had been found guilty and sentenced to death but the conviction
was overturned because the accused had not been present when the Judge
responded to a request from the jury for clarity on a point of law.
1870:
Lothair, the first novel written by Benjamin Disraeli after his first
term as Prime Minister was first published today by Longmans, Green and Company
in 3 volumes
1871:
The second trial of, Antoine Maurer indicted for the murder of Joachim Feurter,
“a German of the Hebrew faith” commenced here today, before the Court of Oyer
and Terminer for Rockland County. Maurer had been found guilty in the first
trial, but the verdict was overturned on a technicality.
1872:
In Minsk, Yehuda Leib Walt and Relie Hamburg gave birth to Abraham Walt who
wrote under the nom de plume “A. Liesin” after he came to the United States.
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0012_0_12518.html
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1938/11/06/99569872.pdf
1873:
The Jewish Messenger issued an appeal for financial support to send poor
Jewish children on summer excursions.
Among those who would benefit from some sea-side recreation are
youngsters under the care of the Hebrew Benevolent Society and Free School
Association. If these two groups cannot
raise sufficient funds, then the paper will organize a Messenger Excursion
Fund.
1874:
“The first ladies’ Hebrew benevolent society was founded” today in Oregon.
1877:
A delegation of the Board of Delegates of the American Israelites, led by
Benjamin F. Peixotto met with President Rutherford B. Hayes to discuss the
persecution of the Jews of Romania. The
delegation presented a written account of “the recent barbarities” inflicted on
the Jews of Glurgevo, Romania. The
President expressed his sympathy and concern over the treatment of the
Jews. He referred the group to Secretary
of State William Evarts whom he requested to take such as this dire situation
may require.
1877:
On the advice of President Hayes, a delegation of the Board of Delegates of the
American Israelites, led by Benjamin F. Peixotto met with U.S. Secretary of
State William Evarts to discuss steps that could be taken to relieve the
suffering of the Jews of Romania. The delegation “urged the Secretary of State
to cable” the U.S. ministers “at Vienna, Constantinople and St. Petersburg
asking them to act in conjunction with the representatives of those powers in
endeavoring to repress further atrocities.
Mr. Evarts took the subject under consideration” [This was part of an
on-going series of attempts to relieve the suffering of the Jews of Romania.
The Great Powers thought they had resolved the matter at the Congress of
Berlin, but Romanian anti-Semitism would trump their efforts. The best hope for Romanian Jews would be
found in leaving for the United States where they became part of the mass of
immigrants who flooded this country in the years leading up to World War
I. This would not be the first or last
time that a U.S. President’s sympathy for the plight of the Jews would not be
translated into a policy bring about their salvation. Most of us do not
recognize the name of Benjamin Peixotto.
In his day, he was one of the most influential Jews in the United
States. He was a successful lawyer and
journalist who was active in the affairs of the Republican Party and the Jewish
community. Sic Transit Gloria.]
1878(29th
of Nisan, 5638): Anglo-Jewish barrister and politician Sir Henry Francis
Goldsmid passed away. Born in 1808, the eldest son of Sir Isaac Lyon Goldsmid,
was educated privately, and was called to the bar in 1833, becoming Queen’s
Counsel in 1858. In 1859 he succeeded to his father's honors, which included a
barony of Portugal. He entered Parliament in 1860 as member for Reading,
through a by-election, and represented that constituency in the Liberal
interest until his death. While still a young man he actively cooperated with
his father to secure to the Jews full emancipation from civil and political
disabilities. In 1839 he wrote "Remarks on the Civil Disabilities of the
Jews," and in 1848 "A Reply to the Arguments Against the Removal of
the Remaining Disabilities of the Jews." He was one of the chief
supporters of University College and gave material aid to University College
Hospital. He was associated with various Jewish religious and charitable
organizations. He was connected with the Reform movement from its commencement
and was elected president of the Council of Founders of the West London
Synagogue. He was vice-president of the Anglo-Jewish Association from its establishment
in 1871 and was president of the Rumanian Committee which originated in the
association. His greatest services to his race were, however, in the direction
of improving the social condition of the Jews in those countries in which they
were oppressed. The condition of the Poles in 1863 moved him to organize
meetings for the purpose of securing some alleviation of their sufferings, and
he also forcibly protested on several occasions in Parliament against the
oppression of the Jews, notably that in Servia and Rumania,.Goldsmid was deputy
lieutenant for Berks and a justice of the peace for Berks and Gloucester.
Having no children, the baronetcy devolved upon his nephew, Julian Goldsmid.
His writings include, besides those already mentioned: "Two Letters in
Answer to the Objections Urged Against Mr. Grant's Bill for the Relief of the
Jews" (1830); "A Few Words Respecting the Enfranchisement of British
Jews Addressed to the New Parliament" (1833); "A Scheme of Peerage
Reform, with Reasons for the Scheme" (1835).
(As
reported by the Jewish Encyclopedia)
1880:
In Columbia, MO, founding today of the Columbia Hebrew Cemetery Association
which has a total of nine members.
1881:
In Pittsburgh, PA, Phillip and Hannah (Schamberg) Silverman gave birth to University
of Pittsburgh and Cornell University trained chemist Alexander Silverman the husband of Elrose
Reizenstein who is head of the University of Pittsburgh Chemistry Department
and a member of Rodef Shalom.
1881:
In Lomza, Poland, Morris and Hanna Rachel Markewich gave birth to NYU trained
attorney Samuel Markewich, the husband of Ida Jackson and partner in the firm
of Kopp, Markewich and Perlman who “as assistant district attorney investigated
and exposed a conspiracy against twenty-eight Jewish labor leadrs.
1884:
Today’s issued\ of Hamelitz, a
Russian newspaper printed in Hebrew, recorded the events that led to members of
the two existing synagogues in Quebec to leave and established what would
become Temple Emanuel, a Reform congregation.
1884:
In Oakland, CA, Aaaron and Jennie (Cahn) Jacobs gave birth to University of
California trained surgeon S. Nicholas Jacobs, the husband of Rita Newman who
in addition to maintain a private practice served as an “assistant lecturer in
Surgery at the Stanford University School of Medicine.
1889(1st
of Iyar, 5649): Rosh Chodesh Iyar
1890:
Mr. Cantor’s bill exempting the New York Sanitarium from local taxation was
passed by the New York State Assembly today.
1891:
Today, twenty-two-year old Joseph Gutman, the German born son of Hirsch and
Jette Gutman who arrived in New York in 1884 founded the Pacific Novelty
Company which became the Pacific Novelty Division of the Du Pont Viscoloid
Company.
1891:
It was reported today that there has been a serious outbreak of anti-Semitic
violence at Corfu growing out of reports that the Jews “had murdered a
Christian girl for the feast of Passover.”
1891:
In Boston, Inspector Cogan arrested Samuel Steinhardt, a Polish Jewish
immigrant who is wanted by the authorities in Newark, NJ.
1891:
“The Union Square Mass Meeting” published today described Jewish participating
in the mass meeting held at Union Square calling for an 8 hour day. The marchers wore red and blue caps that had
been made by striking capmakers. The Jewish protestors were demonstrating for a
more just society as could be seen by one of their banners emblazoned with “We
Want the Children in Schools and Not In Shops.”
(The Union Movement opposed child labor and supported universal public
school eduation)
1891:
“To Build A New Opera House” published today described the plans of Oscar
Hammerstein, the owner of the Harlem Opera House and Columbia Theatre to build
a new venue on 34th Street, just west of Broadway. Hammerstein plans to use the new building
which is estimated to cost $250,000 will for German grand operas for four
months of the year and then use it as a venue for grand theatrical performances
during the balance of the year. This
would keep the building in use for all 12 months which is a departure of normal
business model.
1891:
Religious Riot in Zante” published today described a religious riot in the
capital city of this Greek Island of the same name. During a procession on Good Friday (according
to the Greek Orthodox Calendar) the Christians attacked the Jewish quarter of
the town. Soldiers fired on the mob
which refused to disperse and threatened to burn down all of the homes and
businesses of the Jews. (This stands in stark contrast to what happened during
WW II. Mayor Loukas Career and Bishop Chrysostomos refused to give the Nazis
the names of the Jews living there and instead hid them. All of the Jews
survived the Holocaust.
1892:
Today’s “New Publications” column contained a review of The Early Religion
of Israel, as set forth by Biblical Writers and Modern Critical Historians
by James Robertson which is based on the Baird Lectures for 1889.
1893(16th
of Iyar, 5653): Johann Schnitzler a Hungarian-Austrian Jewish laryngologist who
was a native of Nagy Kanizsa (today part of Hungary) passed away. He was the
father of famed playwright Arthur Schnitzler (1862-1931) and Julius Schnitzler.
In 1860 he earned his medical doctorate at the University of Vienna, where from
1863 to 1867 he worked as an assistant to Johann von Oppolzer (1808-1871). In
1880 he was appointed associate professor of laryngology at the University of
Vienna, and later became director of its policlinic. Schnitzler was a pioneer
of modern laryngology, and author of numerous works on diseases of the throat
and larynx. His best known written work was Klinischer Atlas der Laryngologie
(Clinical Atlas of Laryngology), which was published posthumously in 1895. In
1860 with Philipp Markbreiter (1810-1882), he founded the Wiener Medizinische
Presse, a publication of which he remained as editor until 1886Schnitzler is
credited with coining the term "spastic dysphonia" for a vocal
disorder known today as spasmodic dysphonia
1893:
“Jews Attacked by Anti-Semites” published today described an outbreak of
violence at Trappau, the capital of Austrian Silesia. Forty anti-Semites attacked five Jewish
officers who fired their revolvers in self-defense, wounding 12 of their
attackers.
1894(26th
of Nisan, 5654): Seventy-eight year old Rudolph Carl Hertzog, who founded his
nationally known department store at 1839 in Berlin, passed away today.
1894(26th
of Nisan 5654): Sixty-nine year old Sarah Miriam Carvalho the daughter of Jacob
da Silva Solis and Charity Solis and the wife of Solomon Nunes Carvalho passed
away today in New York.
1894:
The funeral of Jesse Seligman, who passed away on April 23 in California, took
place today at Temple Emanu-El in New York City.
1895: Birthdate
of Lorenz Hart, the son Jewish-German immigrants who was a highly
productive lyricist for Broadway musicals and films. He is the Hart
in the team of Rogers and Hart. Some of the tunes you might recognize are
“Blue Moon,” “The Lady is a Tramp” and “The Most Beautiful Girl in the world.”
He passed away in 1943.
1895:
In Harlem, German
Jewish immigrant Max M. Hart and Frieda (Isenberg), a distant relative of the
poet Heinrich Heine, gave birth to lyrics Lorenz Milton “Larry” Hart, the
partner of Richard Rodgers before Rodgers teamed up with Oscar Hammerstein. One
of the most highly productive lyricist for Broadway musicals and film he is
known for creating such hits “Blue Moon,” “The Lady is a Tramp” and “The Most
Beautiful Girl in the world.” He may
also be best known for the tunes he did not write. Reportedly Hart was supposed to team with
Rogers to create a musical from “Green Grow the Lilacs.” When Hart could not
create the lyrics, Rogers brought in Oscar Hammerstein and together they would
create the musical Oklahoma. In the end these three Jewish men were all
creators of that unique form of entertainment – The Broadway musical.
1895:
In New York, Isidor Bader took a seven year old “deaf and dumb boy” who had
been abandoned by an un-known man and woman to the police station of on Madison
Street.
1895:
Female members of Temple Emanu-El will meet at four o’clock this afternoon to
discuss plans for the fair to be held in December at Madison Square Garden for
the benefit of the Hebrew Technical Institute and Education Alliance.
1895:
Dr. Henry M. Sanders and Professor Albert S. Bickmore delivered an illustrated
lecture describing Jaffa, Hebron and Bethlehem in which they described Jaffa as
“a place of 8,000 inhabitants composed mostly of fugitive from all parts of the
world;” Hebron as now being “believed to be almost as ancient as Damascus;’ and
“Bethlehem as being “noted for its fertility and the beauty of its women.”
1895:
“Thousands In May Day Parade” published today
1896:
Henry Rice, Isaiah Joseph, J.H. Schiff, Simon Borge, Isidor Straus, Louis Stern
and Louis Stern are among those who bought boxes for tonight’s concert at the
Metropolitan Opera House the proceeds of which will go to the United Hebrew
Charities.
1896:
Harold Frederic reports from London on the financial consequences of the recent
demise of Baron Hirsch. Members of the British government are expecting a
windfall to the Exchequer from the death duties that will have to be paid. They are projected to exceed the amount
collected from the estate of another prominent Jew, Sir Julian Goldsmid. On the other hand, the Prince of Wales is
quite concerned over how he shall back the considerable sums that he had
borrowed from the Baron. Rumor has it
that the future King need not worry since there is a clause in the Baron’s will
that absolves the Prince of Wales of his debts.
1897:
Birthdate of Dr. Moses Paulson, the Baltimore born WW I Army veteran who
specialized in research of concerning “digestive diseases.”
1898:
Harry Bernstein said today “that he had no doubt that $10,000 could be raised
by the Jewish residents of the Fifth Ward” in Cleveland, Ohio to purchase a
warship for the fight against Spain.
1898:
“A mass meeting” is scheduled to “be held in the auditorium of the Educational
Alliance at 8 o’clock under the auspices of the Hebrew Volunteer Bureau for the
purpose of encouraging” Jewish citizens to volunteer for service in the fight
against Spain.
1898:
“To Encourage Hebrew Volunteering” published today described the intention of
“a committee of thirty prominent citizens” to “muster and equip at least two
regiments of “Jewish “volunteers from the down-town section” of New York where
several hundred Jews “have already signed the enrollment roster.”
1898:
“Predictions About The War” published today described the ease with which most
American leaders thought the war with Spain would be won including “‘It will be
a war of one encounter,’ cried Mr. Pulitzer of the New York World, that most patriotic of Polish Jews.”
1899:
Martin Sigismund Eduard von Simson whose family converted to Protestantism in
1823 who served as the first President of the Reichstag passed away today.
1900:
Today Columbus, OH native Max R. Hirsch was “prominently associated with the
development of the mineral resources of Seward Peninsula, being the manager of
the biggest ditch enterprise in the Port Clarence country” arrived in Nome
today where he “found employment as cook on an Anvil Creek claim.”
1900:
It was reported today that Hungarian painter Mihali Munkascy, born Leo Lieb, the
son of a German Jew who had come to Hungary as a land agent ad participated in
the uprisings of 1848, was to be buried in Budapest after taking his own life
yesterday.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mihály_Munkácsy#/media/File:Munkácsy_Self-portrait_1870s.jpg
1901:
Today, The Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association made public its program for the
summer which included a lecture on Palestine by Reverend Davenport and a
performance of the Oratorio “Elijahn
1902:
As part of today’s celebration of the 14th Arbor Day, at the
Educational Alliance, “several hundred little immigrant boys and girls” who
“had been instructed to bring with them little blocks of earth, of which,
though it is a scarce article in the East side, each had one had managed to
obtain a small supply” placed the earth in little boxes and planted seeds it
them.
1903(5th
of Iyar, 5663): Parashat Tazria-Metzora; 20th day of the Omer.
1903:
As Jews prepared to count the 21st day of the Omer this evening, the
world was being made richer by the births of Bing Crosby and Dr. Benjamin Spock
1904:
In an act of leniency, the Justice at the Municipal court told Julius Goldman
that he could stay in his apartment through May 5, the day his sister is
scheduled to be married but would have to move on May 6 unless he paid his rent
which was just one of the surprise rulings granted to the poor people living on
the Lower East Side, a disproportionate number of whom were Jewish.
1905(27th
of Nisan, 5665): Fifty-one year old Charity Lyon, the Philadelphia born
daughter of Elvira and David Hays Solis, the wife of Edmund Robert Lyon and the
mother of Eliva, Augusta and Walter Lyon passed away today in her hometown.
1906:
In Riga, Morduch (Mark) Halsman, a dentist, and Ita Grintuch, a grammar school
principal gave birth to “American portrait photographer” Philippe Halsman.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippe_Halsman#/media/File:Philippe_Halsman_self.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippe_Halsman#/media/File:Philippe_Halsman_self.jpg
https://www.magnumphotos.com/photographer/philippe-halsman/
https://npg.si.edu/exh/halsman/intro.htm
1907:
Birthdate of McKees Rock, PA native and expert on the Soviet Union Merle
Fainsod, the holder of Ph.D. from Harvard, Director of the Harvard University
Library and one of seven Harvard professors to sign a letter published in the
Times in 1970 criticizing Sec. of State Rogers’ new Middle East Policy who
raised two daughter with his wife Elizabeth.”
1907(18th
of Iyar, 5667): Lag BaOmer
1907:
Birthdate of St. Paul, MN native Pincus Leff who gained fame as Pinky Lee host
of the 1950’s children’s television program, Pinky Lee Show
https://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/07/obituaries/pinky-lee-85-host-of-children-s-tv-shows-dies.html
1908(1st
of Iyar, 5668): Rosh Chodesh Iyar
1908:
“Take Me out to the Ballgame”, one of the most popular
song’s connected with baseball was copyrighted today. The music for this American classic were
written by a Jew named Albert Von Tilzer.
1909(11th
of Iyar, 5669): Ninety-seven year old David Woolf Marks passed away today.
1910:
“Jerusalem Jews in Danger” published today described the attack made on Mrs.
Herbert Turell in March by “a fanatic Mohammedan” while she was in Jerusalem”
and the fear expressed by Ambassador Straus to her that any demand for justice
made on behalf of her and her companion “would have brought about a demonstration
again the Jewish inhabitants of Jerusalem.”
1911:
Dr. Solomon Schechter, the President of the Jewish Theological Institute
arrived on the Berlin tonight marking his return from an 11 month long
vacations.
1912:
Birthdate of Axel Springer German newspaper magnate. Springer was honored
by numerous organizations included the Weizmann Institute, Hebrew
University, and The New York Leo Baeck Institute for his work to preserve
German Jewish Culture and History and his support of Israel. It
was not just a personal commitment. His editorial policies stated
that the organization was to promote "the reconciliation of Jews and
Germans and support for the vital rights of the State of Israel."
1912:
The British inquiry into the sinking of the Titanic whose survivors included
journalist Edith Rosenbaum and Elizabeth and Martin Rothschild, the aunt and
uncle of Dorothy Parker but claimed the lives of several other prominent Jews
began today in London.
1912:
In the Ottoman Empire Faisal, the future King Faisal I of Iraq, and Huzaima bin
Nasser gave birth to Ghazi bin Faisal who served as King of Iraq from 1933 to
1939 during which time he was “won over by pro-Nazi elements in the government
and military as the tide of public feeling began turning against Iraq’s Jews. C
1913(25th
of Nisan, 5673): Cleveland, Ohio political leaders Ben Windecker passed away
today.
1913:
Cantor Millard conducted services this evening at the Chicago Hebrew Institute
which hosted a “social dance” the following evening.
1913(25th
of Nisan, 5673): Seventy-eight year old “railroad construction pioneer” passed
away today in Los Angeles.
1914:
The trial of those accused of murdering Herman Rosnethal resumed in New York
City.
1915(18th
of Iyar, 5675): Lag B’Omer
1915:
At Columbia University, Louis D. Brandeis delivered “an appeal to the Jews
living in America to support all of the small nations of the world” which he
said was “the best means of obtaining fair treatment for the Jews.”
1915:
The Independent Order of B’nai B’rith which had “40,083 members” held its
“tenth quinquennial convention” today in San Francisco.
1915:
In New York, songwriter Fred Fisher and his wife gave birth to
singer/songwriter Doris Fisher who performed with Eddie Duchin.
1916:
In Chicago, dedication of Kehillath Jacob Synagogue.
1916:
During a luncheon meeting of the Clergy Club of New York, the guest of honor
Sir Herbert Tree challenged the recent attempt of the Eastern Council of Reform
Rabbis to ban the performance of “Merchant of Venice” because of the creation
of Shylock which they view as an archetypically anti-Semitic character.
1916:
While continuing in his efforts to try “to get possession of the offices in the
new Rialto Theatre build which he asserts were set aside for him” which the
remodeling plans were being made told the magistrate in the West Side Court,
that when he went to the theatre on April 29th “he found the room
padlocked” and when he returned on May 1 “he found a guard who had been
employed to keep him out” which led him to take further legal action today in
the West Side Court of Magistrate Barlow.
1917(10th
of Iyar, 5677): During WW I, 28 year old Captain Maixme Berr, an artillery
officer in the French Army, the son of Lehmann Berr and Henrietta Alice Berr
(nee Levy was killed today.
1917:
“A dinner was held” tonight “at the home of Henry Morgenthau, the former
Ambassador to Turkey” where Judge Otto A Rosalsky, Jacob Billikopf and Jacob H.
Schiff discussed that national campaign of the American Jewish Relief Committee
for Jewish War Sufferers and “it was announced that $900,000” had already been
raised in New York to meet the national goal.
1917:
“News of the demolition in Petrograd of the famous monument erected to
Catherine II of Russia and its recasting into shells at the request of the
Committee of Soldiers was cabled The Jewish Daily Forward” today “by its
correspondent in Petrograd” who also reported that funds were being raised to
erect a monument to Nicholas Tshernyshevsky “the Russian patriot and author who
spent nineteen years in exile and hard labor in Siberia.”
1918(20th
of Iyar): Joshua Barzilia Eisenstadt passed away today.
1918:
In London, the War Office issued its official statement describing the
successful assault during Allenby’s campaign by British infantry on the
foothills south and southeast of Es-Salt which made it possible for Australian
mounted troops to enter Es-Salt where they capture 33 Germans and 317 Turkish
troops.
1919:
Birthdate of Chicago native and WW II veteran Edward S. Gordon the holder of an
MBA from the University of Chicago who specialized in Market and served on the
faculty of Roosevelt University in Chicago.
1919(2nd
of Iyar, 5679): Gustav Landauer, German anarchist and pacifist, passed away. He
was the grandfather of Mike Nichols the famous American writer, director and
producer.
1919:
Birthdate of “Jacob Bigeleisen, a chemist who worked on the development of the
atomic bomb as part of the Manhattan Project and helped discover new ways of
analyzing chemical reactions…”
1919:
Mrs. Nathaniel E. Harris, the President of the Council of Jewish Women attended
the opening meeting of the American Academy of Political and Social Science in
Philadelphia.
1920(14th
of Iyar, 5680): Pesach Sheni
1920(14th
of Iyar, 5680): Seventy-year old Odessa born American physician Adolph
Zederbaum who was a friend of Dr. Charles David Spivak both of whom chose to
practice medicine in the United States instead of Palestine passed away today.
1921:
Riots in Jaffa, Palestine causes the deaths of 40 Jews and 200 wounded. Martial
law was put in effect after Jewish stores were looted.
1922:
David Lindo Alexander, the barrister and leader of the Anglo-Jewish community
who opposed Zionism was buried today next to his wife at Wilesden Jewish
Cemetery.
1922:
In Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Harry Shipiatsky, who changed his name to
Rosenthal after emigrating to Canada in the 1890’s and Sarah Dickstein gave
birth to their youngest child , Abraham Rosenthal who as A.M. Rosenthal, rose
to become the executive editor
of the New York Times. He later became a columnist for the New York
Daily News
1922:
In New York City, Samuel Untermyer made a vigorous attack on critics of the
Zionist cause at a meeting tonight sponsored by the Washington Heights
Congregation. Other speakers were Nahum Sokolow, Colonel J.H. Patterson and
Vladimir Jabotinsky, who appealed for contributions to the Palestine Foundation
Fund that needs three million dollars to meet its budgetary goals. Untermyer said the funds were going to aid
those seeking to “escape from the hate, persecutions, pogroms and massacres of
the crazed, bigoted and Jew-baiting peoples of Eastern and Southeastern
Europe.” Furthermore, the funds would
only be used to develop the land including programs to buy land, build houses
and finance public works projects.
1924:
Miriam (née Riegler) and Josef Bikel from Bukovina gave birth to multi-talented
performer, Theodore Bikel. (who is one of my all-time favorites) Born in born in Vienna, Bikel's family
took him to Palestine during the 1930's. Bikel supported himself as a
musician and appeared in several stage productions of Habimah, the Israeli
theatre. He honed his stage acting skills in London. Ironically,
one of his first American film roles was as a German naval officer in
The African Queen. It was one of many times he would play German and
Russian characters. In a linguistic tour de force, he played a southern
sheriff in the Defiant Ones, a part for which he received an Oscar
nomination. Bikel's most famous role on the American stage was the male
lead in the Sounds of Music, playing opposite Mary Martin. Bikel is
multi-lingual and a skilled guitarist. This has made a favorite among
folk music followers. Bikel has been outspoken labor activist in the film
and theatre industries. And, he is an ardent Zionist.
1926(18th
of Iyar, 5686): Lag BaOmer
1927:
Louis Zabar, who created Zabar’s the icon of Manhattan’s Upper West Side,
married Lillian Teitlebaum. The future
Mrs. Zabar had been living in Philadelphia before she moved to New York where
she met Zabar whom she had originally known from the Ukrainian village in which
they had both lived. They had three children – Saul, Stanley and Eli. She passed away in 1995.
1927:
“The Heart Thief” a silent melodrama starring Joseph Schildkraut was released
in the United States today.
1927:
In Birthdate of Amos Levine, the Tel Aviv native who as Amos Kenan became an
Israeli columnist, painter, sculptor, playwright and novelist. He was known as
a critic of Israeli policy.
https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/06/world/middleeast/06kenan.html
1928:
In San Francisco, Sydney Myer, the creation of the Australian department store
that bears his name and Merlyn Myer gave birth to their youngest child Marigold
Merlyn Baillieu Myer.
1929(22nd
of Nisan, 5689): Eighth Day of Pesach
1929:
Tel Aviv celebrated its 20th anniversary today at an afternoon tea
party. One of the highlights of the
event was the congratulatory speech by Major J.F. Campbell, District
Commissioner of Southern Palestine which was delivered entirely in Hebrew. “This was the first time in the history of
the country since the British occupation that a high British official has
delivered a public address entirely in Hebrew.”
The first child born in Tel Aviv, who is now twenty years old, “welcomed
the guests in the name of the city’s young people.”
1930:
In Tel Aviv, Moshe and Sarah Kaniuk gave birth to Israeli author and journalist
and Yoram Kaniuk.
1930:
In Tel Aviv, Moshe Kaniuk, the first curator of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art and
his wife gave birth to Israeli author Yoram Kaniuk
1931:
It was reported today that “General Ludendorff, who attributed his defeat in
the war to the intervention of Jewry” and who wants “to have a Germany racially
purely Germanic, free from Jewish-Marxist-Catholic domination” has now declared
war on his old colleague” Adolph Hitler with whom he stood trial for the 1923
Munich Putsch at which time he declared “himself a violent anti-Semite.”
1932: Jack Benny's first radio show premiered on
the NBC Blue Network, The color coding was to differentiate
the two NBC networks from one another, not a reference to off-color
material. This was one of the milestones in Benny's career
which included vaudeville, films and television
1932:
Birthdate of composer Malcolm Lipkin, the native of Liverpool who was a protégé
composer Mátyás György Seiber, the Hungarian composer who fled Germany after
the rise of the Nazis.
1933:
The United Committee for the Settlement of German Jews is organized to aid
immigrants.
1933:
The polarization between the labor Movement (Histadrut and Mapai) and the
Revisionists intensify and reach their peak after the assassination of Chaim
Arlozoroff.
1934:
Congressman Louis T. McFadden delivers an anti-Semitic speech on the
floor of the United States House of Representatives.
1934:
Funeral services were held this morning for Israel Unterberg in the Unterberg
Memorial Building of JTS followed by interment at the Shearith Israel Cemetery
in Brooklyn
1934:
The defense in the trial of three revisionist Zionists for the murder of Dr.
Chaim Arlosoroff obtained admissions today from men employed by the police to
make plaster casts of the footprints of the accused that some of the casts did
not fit. While cross-examining Inspector
Riggs of the Palestine Police, defense counsel Horace Samuel attempted to
establish the fact that the police had “hushed up the confession of Abdul Megid
and his accomplice, Isa that they had murdered” the Zionist leader.
1935:
Joseph Budko becomes director of the new Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts in
Jerusalem. Born in1888, he left Germany in 1933 and settled in Palestine. He passed away in 1940.
1935:
As Palestine endures a heat wave, temperatures reach 104 degrees “in the
shade.” The average temperature for May is 65 degrees.
1935:
With Canada Dry Ginger Ale as a sponsor, Jack Benny came to radio on The Canada
Dry Program on the NBC Blue Network
1935:
Arguments began before the Supreme Justices including Louis Brandeis and
Benjamin Cardozo in the case of “A.L.A. Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United
States,”
1936:
Sixty-second running of the Kentucky Derby. “The Kentucky Derby was, in effect,
a Jewish "sweep." Bold Venture was the winner, owned by Morton
Schwartz, trained by Max Hirsch and ridden by Ira Hanford. All the human beings
involved in this horse racing victory were Jews. Sometimes we suspect that Bold
Venture was Jewish that day, too”
1936:
“The Appellate Court at Hamm in the Ruhr which has been sentencing alleged
traitors to the regime (Jews, trade unionists and Socialists) “to penal
servitude in batches of 90 to 100 sentenced another back to terms ranging from
8 months one and three quarter years” today on the same day that Chancellor
Hitler was “offering assurances” on the way that the “German people were
leading, ordering and guiding themselves.
1936:
Mrs. Estelle M. Sternberger, executive director of World Peaceways “praised the
work of ORT (a non-profit global Jewish organization that promotes education
and training in communities worldwide) in providing constructive relief for the
Jews of Eastern and Central Europe” saying “saying that “while malicious
propagandists throw dust into the eyes of their fellow-citizens by weird
stories of Jewish plots to dominate this earth, the ORT builds school after
school to rain Jewish workers and artisans to be humble but respected men and
women and youth in the ranks of world industry.
1936:
“The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee announced” today “that on the
basis of reports from offices abroad, all remaining Jewish actors, singers and
concert artists were deprived of employment in German in 1935 and 1,000 of the
6,000 remaining physicians had emigrated” while at the same time medical
licenses were no being issued to Jews.”
1936:
“A report from Jerusalem made public” today “by the United Palestine Appeal
announced the $10,337,000 had been spent in Palestine from October 1, 1932 to
March 31, 1936 by the Palestine /foundation Fund, the Jewish National Fund and
the German Settlement Bureau of the Jewish Agency for Palestine.”
1936:
“Julliard-trained pianist Jeanne Rabin” and violinist George Rabin gave birth
to violinist Michael Rabin who is part of long list of distinguished Jewish
violinists that runs from A to Z; from Joseph Achron and to Paul Zukofsky.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/michael-rabin-mn0001203069
1937:
“Rabbi Stephen S. Wise celebrated his thirtieth anniversary service as head of the
Free Synagogue today by paying tribute to colleagues, leaders of the Christian
church and to world figures whose achievements were sources of inspiration to
him.
1937:
“Mayor La Guardia received the medal of The American Hebrew for promotion of
understanding between Jew and Christian tonight in a ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria
Hotel- in which he was praised for his political and econemric beliefs as well
as his tolerance.
1938(1st
of Iyar, 5698): Rosh Chodesh Iyar
1938(1st
of Iyar, 5698): Sixty-eight year old Philadelphia native Joseph W. Salus, the
“President of the Broad Street Trust company and head of A. Salus and Son who
had previously “represented Atlantic City in the New Jersey Assembly” passed
away tonight.
1938:
“The British partition commission began its tour of inquiry this morning,
driving from Jerusalem to Jaffa and Tel Aviv.” Tel Aviv Mayor Israel Rokach
took the commissioners on a tour of Tel Aviv harbor. The commissioners expressed a great deal of
interest in the harbor facilties in Tel Aviv and nearby Jaffa. They were surprised to learn that the Jews of
Tel Aviv supplied most of that city’s funding for the harbor and that Jewish
taxpayers of Tel Aviv paid to support the educational and health services in
Jaffa. Residents of Jaffa made no such
contribution to Tel Aviv.
1938: The Palestine Post reported that six Arab constables were killed when a
gang of Arab terrorists attacked a police post near Kalkilya. Several
casualties were suffered by the attackers who retreated with horses and rifles
of their victims. Arab terrorists fired at the Jewish quarter of Safad and at
Rosh Pina. They tampered with railway tracks, cut telephone wires and carried
other acts of sabotage.
1939:
Helen Fixler, a native of Sighet and and
Polish born Elias (Elihyahu) Irom gave birth to Barbara Irom
1939:
Kibbutz Dalia and
Kibbutz BaMifne which had been unified by a decision in the secretariat of
Hashomer Hatzair settled in Ramat Menashe today.
1940:
In the morning President Roosevelt met with Secretary Henry J. Morgenthau, Jr.
1940:
This evening actor Melvyn Douglas arrived at the White House as a “houseguest.”
1941:
Release date for “My Favorite Wife,” a comedy directed by Garson Kanin.
1941:
Today after much tension between the Rashid Ali government and the British, the
besieged forces at RAF Habbaniya under Air Vice-Marshal H. G. Smart launched
pre-emptive air strikes against Iraqi forces throughout Iraq which marked the
real beginning of the Anglo-Iraqi War began for real which lead to the Farhud,
an Iraqi Pogrom aimed at that country’s ancient Jewish community in June.
1941:
In Nazi occupied Netherlands Jewish journalists are laid off.
1942(15th
of Iyar, 5702): Parashat Emor
1942(15th
of Iyar, 5702): Fifty year old Abraham Epstein the Russian born son of Leon and
Bessie Levoitz Epstein a pioneer in the field of providing financial support
for the “elderly” which led to what we now know as Social Security who raised
one son, Pierre Leon Epstein, with his wife Henritte, passed away today.
https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/history/historians-miscellaneous-biographies/abraham-epstein
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1942/05/03/170362012.pdf
https://www.nytimes.com/1992/04/29/opinion/l-remembering-a-father-of-social-security-302692.html
https://www.amazon.com/Abraham-Epstein-Forgotten-Father-Security/dp/0826216811
1943(27th
of Nisan, 5703): Four thousand Jews from Miedzyrzec Podlaski, Poland are murdered
at the Treblinka death camp.
1943(27th
of Nisan, 5703): At Luków, Poland, 4000 Jews are killed
1943:
Memorial rallies were held today as part of a campaign to raise awareness of
the plight of European Jewry and gain support for providing aid. “The memorial
rallies …were in many instances jointly led by Reform, Conservative, and
Orthodox rabbis--an uncommon display of unity. Equally significant, the Federal
Council of Churches (whose Foreign Secretary had addressed the students'
inter-seminary conference earlier that year) agreed to organize memorial
assemblies at churches in numerous cities on the same day. Many of the
assemblies featured speeches by rabbis and Christian clergymen, as well as
prominent political figures. The gatherings received significant coverage in
the newspapers and on radio. This important Jewish-Christian alliance helped
raise American public consciousness about the Nazi slaughter of European
Jewry.” (As reported by the David S. Wyman Institute)
http://www.wymaninstitute.org/articles/2003-02-golinkin.php
1944:
Robert Abshagen, was sentenced to death for his work in the anti-Hitler
resistance.
1945:
In Germany, the SS guards at the Neustadt-Glowen, labor camp near Lübeck fail
to report for morning roll call, giving freedom to Jewish women who have been
brought from Ravensbrück and Breslau, Germany, to dig defensive trenches and
anti-tank ditches.
1945:
Members of the U.S. Army’s 522nd Field Artillery Battalion “a Nisei
unit” “discovered the survivors of a death march headed southwards from the
Dachau main camp towards the Austrian border nearest the town of Waakirchen”
today.
1945:
Berlin surrendered to the Soviet Army. Out of a pre-war Jewish population
of 33,000, only 162 survived
1945:
“James Venture, one of those aboard the infamous Train de
Loos, which carried French resistance fighters, Communists and Jews from a
prison in the northern French village of Loos to concentration camps in Germany
in September 1944” was liberated from the camp at Wöbbelin today.
1945:
The Central Board of the Charity Institution for Aged Needy People (at Athens)
attempted to make the elderly Jews comfortable in their last years. In a letter
to the Central Board of Jewish Communities of Greece, they
wrote: "Honorable Sirs, The Central Board of the Charity
Institution for Aged Needy People deeply sympathize with the martyrdom of the
so terribly persecuted Jewish race by the wild and barbaric conqueror."
1945:
“Raising a flag over the Reichstag,” a historic World War II photograph taken
during the Battle of Berlin which depicts several Soviet troops raising the
flag of the Soviet Union atop the German Reichstag building was taken today by
Yevgeny Khaldei in another example of Jewish photographer taking an iconic WW
II photograph such as the Iwo Jima Flag Raising
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Soviet_flag_on_the_Reichstag_roof_Khaldei.jpg
1945:
President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9547 which made possible the
Nuremberg Trials.
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/order9547.html
1946:
In Brooklyn, Leo Goldstein, “the owner of Peter Pan, a children’s swimwear and
underwear manufacturer and Ronny Gore gave birth to Lesley Sue Goldstein who
gained fame and singer, songwriter and actress Lesley Gore, the sister of
composer Michael Gore.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/its-my-party-singer-lesley-gore-dies-aged-68/
1946(1st
of Iyar, 5706): Rosh Chodesh Iyar
1946(1st
of Iyar, 5706): Eighty-three year old Dr. Simon Flexner, the Louisville, KY
born son of “Morris Flexner and Esther Abraham, the pharmacist who went on to
earn his M.D. and became on the nation’s leading pathologists passed away
today.
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbm.1949.0006
https://rockfound.rockarch.org/biographical/-/asset_publisher/6ygcKECNI1nb/content/simon-flexner?
1946(1st
of Iyar, 5706): Forty-six year old Adolphus Leo Weil, Jr, the son of “Cassie
Ritter Weil” and Adolphus Leo Weil passed away today after which he was buried
in the Homewood Cemetery in Pittsburgh, PA.
1946:
A funeral service is held in Kraków, Poland, for seven Jews who were murdered
on April 30 by anti-Semitic thugs at Nowy Targ, Poland.
1947(12th
of Iyar, 5707): Henry Monsky, international president of B'nai B'rith and
chairman of the interim committee of the American Jewish Congress passed away
today in the Hotel Biltmore at the age of 57, while attending a meeting of the
future organization committee of the conference.
1947:
U.S. premiere of the Christmas classic “Miracle on 34th Street”
produced by William Perlberg.
1948:
Rusztem Vambery, the son of orientalist Armin Vambery, completed his service as
Hungary’s ambassador to the United States.
1948:
In response to the illegal attacks by Arab forces that had begun the day after
the Partition vote, the Palmach 3rd Battalion, commanded by Moshe Kelman,
attacked Ein al-Zeitun with a Davidka, two 3-inch mortars and eight 2-inch
mortars
1949:
Arthur Miller won the Pulitzer Prize for "Death of a Salesman."
“Death of a Salesman” went on to be a successful film as well.
Born in 1915, Miller's long career has included plays on a variety of
topics including “The Crucible,” which used the Salem Witch Trials to
challenge the Right Wing reactionaries including the followers of Senator Joe
McCarthy during the 1950's.
1950:
“A United Nations plane flying southward over Israeli territory was forced down
at Lydda Airport today after Israeli Army fighters had fired across its nose.
The plane was permitted to continue on to an Arab field at Kallandia, in Jordan
after an official check.”
1950(15th
of Iyar, 5710): Seventy-one-year-old Meyer Lasker, the New York born son of
Samuel and Hulda and Levi Lasker and the husband of Charlotte Bussin Lasker
whom he married in 1926 passed away today after which he was buried in the
Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, NY.
1950:
Sketches of the Pulitzer Prize Winner in Journalism, Letters and Music for
1950” published today contained a biography of Meyer Berger
1951:
Prime Minister David Ben Gurion left Israel for a private visit in the United
States, accompanied by Chaim Herzog. During the trip he will meet with
President Truman, as well as with young leaders from both political parties.
One of them is Congressman John F. Kennedy. Ben Gurion will also vit Israeli
air force students in California and a company manufacturing aircraft parts.
The plant belongs to Al Schwimmer, a former American volunteer in the War of
Independence.
1951:
Syrian forces took positions in Tel Mutilla, in the demilitarized zone between
Israel and Syria, and Meir Amit was ordered to dislodge them. Leading his
Golani infantry brigade - he had become its commander in 1950 - Amit pressed
the attack for four consecutive days, compelling the Syrians to withdraw. But
with 40 of his soldiers killed in action and many others wounded, he faced
serious criticism from senior officers and was called to defend his actions.
The Battle of Tel Motila took place near Almagor, a Moshav north of the Sea of
Galilee founded in 1961.
1951:
For the only time in major league history, a Jewish batter faced a Jewish
pitcher whose battery mate was also Jewish.
Detroit Tiger Pitcher Saul Rogovin was on the mound. Catcher Joe
Ginsberg was behind the plate. Lou
Limmer, the Philadelphia Athletics’ first baseman was at bat. Limmer hit the first pitch into the stands.
1951:
Contemporary Jewry “an analysis of the position of Jews in every part of
the world which the author, Israel Cohen “has divided in to seven section each
of which delas with an aspect of Jewish life is scheduled to be issued by he
British Book Centre” today
1952: “Belles on Their Toes” the Henry and Phoebe
Ephron sequel to “Cheaper by the Dozen” directed by Henry Levin was released
today in the United States
1952:
“Young Man with Ideas” a romantic comedy co-starring Sheldon Leonard with a
script co-authored by Arthur Sheekman, music by David Rose and filmed
cinematographer Joseph Ruttenberg was released today.
1953:
Faisal II of Iraq’s regency came to an end as he assume rule of his country – a
rule that would come to violent end with his murder that would strengthen the
hand of Pan Arabist Gamal Nasser, the Egyptian leader who failed in his efforts
to destroy Israel.
1954:
Birthdate of Elliot Goldenthal, the native of Brooklyn and “the youngest son of
a Jewish housepainter father and a Catholic seamstress mother” who won “the Academy
Award for Best Original Score in 2002 for his score to the motion picture
Frida.”
1955:
Simpson Gross announced the engagement of his daughter Eleanor Gross to Morse
College graduate Morton Arthur Koppel.
1956:
“The Many Loves of Hilda Crane” a screen adaptation of a Samson Raphaelson play
with music by David Raskin was released today in the United States.
1957(1st
of Iyar, 5717): Rosh Chodesh Iyar
1957(1st
of Iyar, 5717): Sixty-five year old Yale trained ophthalmologist Arthur M.
Yudkin, the husband of Adel Yudkin and father of Marvin and Dr. Gerald Yudkin
passed away today.
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1957/05/04/84722781.pdf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1312661/pdf/taos00044-0025.pdf
1958:
Opening of the Cannes Film Festival where one of the entrants was “The Brothers
Karamazov” directed by Richard Brooks, produced by Pandro S. Berman, with a script
by Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein and Richard Brooks and featuring
William Shatner in his film debut.
1959:
After 808 performances, the curtain came down on “At the Drop of a Hat” which enjoyed
a revival produced by Alexander Cohen in 1967.
1960(5th
of Iyar, 5720): Israel marks its 12th year of independence on Yom
HaAtzma’ut.
1960:
It was announced to that Fred Lazarus 3rd has been appointed
president of Shillito’s Cincinnati Department Store succeeding Jeffrey Lazarus “who
becomes chairman and retains the post of chief executive officer.”
1962:
In Philadelphia, PA, Lillian Jenkins and Manuel Jenkins, a Jewish “car salesman
and nightclub owner” gave birth to actress Tamara Jenkins.
1963:
In London, Lucian Freud and Bernadine Coverley gave birth to British novel
Esther Freud who is the great-granddaughter of Sigmund Freud and a niece of
Clement Freud.
1962(28th
of Nisan, 5722): Seventy-two year old composer and songwriter Irving Bobo who
may have been a descendant of Nathan Bobo, a German Jewish immigrant who helped
to settle New Mexico, passed away today.
1966(12th
of Iyar, 5726): Eighty-eight year old Hyman Pearlstone, the native of Buffalo,
TX who was a businessman in Waco, Palestine and Dallas, TX where he was a
member of the Chamber of Commerce and who was born exactly ten years before his
brother Julius Hart Pearlstone passed away today. (Some sources show May 1 as
the day he passed away.)
1967(22nd
of Nisan, 5727): Eighth Day of Pesach
1968(4th
of Iyar, 5728): Yom HaAtzma'ut
1968:
Israeli television began broadcasting.
1968:
Birthdate of Edward Frenkel, the Russian-born, Harvard educated mathematician
and filmmaker who won the Hermann Weyl Prize in 2002.
1968:
Release date of the cinematic version of Neil Simon’s “The Odd Couple
co-starring Walter Matthau and directed by Gene Saks.
1969(14th
of Iyar, 5729) Pesach Sheni
1969(14th
of Iyar, 5729): Eighty-three-year-old City College graduate “Max Lazarus, an
assistant district attorney of New York County from 1916 to 1919 in charge of
the abandonment bureau and the secretary of the Deputy of Purchase pass away
today in New York City.
1972(18th
of Iyar, 5732): Lag B’Omer
1973(30th
of Nisan, 5733): Rosh Chodesh Iyar
1973(30th
of Nisan, 5733): Eighty-six-year old Solomon M. Eckhouse, the Washington, IN
born son of Sigmund and Lena Sternberger Eckhouse, who married Florence Meyer
Eckhouse in 2913 passed away today in Hollywood, FL after which he was buried
at the Evergreen Cemetery in Hillside, NJ
1973:
“Messiah of Evil’ a horror film co-directed, co-produced and with a script
co-authored by Gloria Katz was released in the United States
1974(10th
of Iyar, 5734): Fifty-six year old, Philadelphia native Abraham Allen
Weintraub, a long-time administrator of St. Vincent Infirmary in Little Rock, a
very dedicated civic worker and an inspiration to all who worked with him” and
who is the namesake of “The A. Allen Weintraub Memorial Award, the highest
honor bestowed upon an individual by the Arkansas Hospital Association” passed
away today.
1975:
Larry Blyden (born Ivan Lawrence Blieden) “reprised his role as “Ensign Pulver”
in a tribute for director Joshua Logan at the Imperial Theatre.
1975:
The American Jewish Committee announced publication of a guidebook by Gladys
Rosen suggesting ways to recognize Jewish contributions to the United States
during the Bicentennial celebrations.
1976(2nd
of Iyar, 5736): Fifty-nine year old Polish born shipping executive Samuel H.
Wang, who had four children – Nathan, Daniel, Hanita and Devorah – with his
wife Gloria passed away today.
1976: Agudath Achim, the Orthodox congregation in
Little Rock, AR, dedicates its newest building.
This is the third home for the congregation; the first one that is not
in the downtown section of the city.
1977(14th
of Iyar, 5737) Pesach sheni
1978:
The Jerusalem Post reported that the
U.S. President, Jimmy Carter, told the visiting Premier, Menachem Begin, that
the U.S. will "never waiver" in its "absolute commitment to the
Israeli security," even though "we may, from time to time, have a
transient difference with the people of Israel". Some 150 American rabbis
participating in the White House reception given to honor the Prime Minister
Menachem Begin, presented the U.S. National Security Adviser, Zbigniew
Brzezinski, with a petition protesting the proposed Middle Eastern arms
embargo, which would directly affect Israel.
1978(25th
of Nisan, 5738): Seventy-five year old New York attorney and executive director
of the National War Labor Board Robert Abelow who was the Editor-In Chief of
the Employee Relations Law Journal passed away today.
1978:
The Jerusalem Post reported that
despite the U.S. State Department's official objections, the Palestine
Liberation Organization opened an information office in Washington, under the
management of Hatem Husseini, a Palestinian citizen of Jordan.
1979(5th
of Iyar, 5739): Yom HaAtzma’ut
1979(5th
of Iyar, 5739): Just a week before his seventieth-eighth birthday Russian born
French Professor of Genetics Boris Ephrussi passed away.
http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.ge.14.120180.002311?journalCode=genet
1979:
Seventy-eight year old “Betty Blanc Glassbury, a poet and collector of Asian
art,” the widow of John Adam Glassbury, whom his grandson Dr. Richard Dombroff
described as “Dr. Welby in real life” and the mother of Eunice Glassbury
Dombroff, passed away today.
1980(16th
of Iyar, 5740): Arab terrorists kill 6 Jews and injure 17 at Hebron. Israeli
military authorities order the deportation of the mayors of Hebron and the
nearby village of Halhoul for incitement to violence. The mayors appeal to
Israeli courts, which affirm the order. In December, they will be deported to
southern Lebanon.
1981:
Rabbi Joseph P. Weinberg officiated at the wedding of Harolyn Sue Landow and
Michael H. Cardozo at Washington Hebrew Congregation. Mr. Cardozo is a cousin
the late Supreme Court Justice Benjamin Nathan Cardozo.
1981(28th
of Nisan, 5741): Eighty-five year old Dr. David Wechsler, a psychologist who
was the author of widely used intelligence tests, passed away today in New York
City. (As reported by Wolfgang Saxon)
http://www.nytimes.com/1981/05/03/obituaries/dr-david-wechsler-85-author-of-intelligence-tests.html
1981(28th
of Nisan, 5741): Eighty-one year old Rabbi Joseph Hager, founder and senior
rabbi of the Wall Street Synagogue, passed away today. A native of Rumania,
Rabbi Hager founded two schools, the Hebrew Institute of Long Island, in Far
Rockaway, and the Yeshiva of Spring Valley, in Rockland County. He was the
founding editor and publisher of Synagogue
Light, a monthly publication. The Wall Street Synagogue was first situated
at Broadway and Duane Street and later move to 47 Beekman Street.
1981:
A police sapper was moderately injured by an explosive charge that had been
placed in a trash can near Cafe Alno in Jerusalem.
1982:
“Talk With George Steiner” published today provides a look at the views of this
Jewish philosopher, author and academic.
http://www.nytimes.com/1982/05/02/books/talk-with-george-steiner.html
1982:
Mayor Ed Koch is expected to be among the 450 guests attending the dinner
tonight celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Hebrew Tabernacle of
Washington Heights which has been led by Rabbi Robert L. Lehman for the past
twenty-five years.
1982:
“Alive And 90 In The Jungles of Brazil” published today provides a detailed
review of The Portage To San Cristobal of A.H., George Steiner’s novel
about Adolph Hitler.
1983(19th
of Iyar, 5743): Seventy year old Brooklyn born Benjamin R Epstein, the
Pennsylvania educated former director of the ADL and author who raised two
children – Ellen and David – with his wife Ethel passed away today.
1983:
Barrick Resources Corporation which had been founded by Peter Munk “became a
publicly traded company today” when it was listed on the Toronto Stock
Exchange.
1984:
The three day suspension of publication of Hadashot
mandated by the military censor for publication of an article about the Kav
300 affair came to an end
1984:
“Sunday in the Park with George,” a music with lyrics and a score by Stephen
Sondheim opened at the Booth Theatre today.
1985:
In Great Neck NY, John Hughes and Amy Pastarnack, a Jewish breast cancer
survivor gave birth to Olympic medal winning figure skater Sarah Elizabeth
Hughts.
1987:
“P.L.O., Reunited But Isolated” published today described the disarray among
those committed to the destruction of Israel.
1989(27th
of Nisan, 5749): Yom HaShoah
1990:
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher addressed the Women’s International
Zionist Organization at its Centenary Lunch
1990(7th
of Iyar, 5750): Thirty-eight year old David Rapport the London native who was
born with achondroplasia and began his acting career in 1979 passed away today.
1991(18th
of Iyar, 5751): Lag B’Omer
1991:
Final broadcast of season six of The Cosby Show, a co-creation of Ed
Weinberger.
1991(18th
of Iyar, 5751): Eighty-two year old Leib Lensky, an actor who appeared in
plays, films and television programs and performed in English, Yiddish and
Hebrew, passed away today
1992(29th
of Nisan, 5752): Dr. Lee Salk passed away. Born in 1926, Salk gained
famed as a “baby doctor" and author on family matters. He died of
cardiac arrest at the age of 65.
1993(11th
of Iyar, 5753): Eighty-six year old Polish born Arthur B. Belfer, “the founder
of Belco Corporation who married his wife Diane after the death of his first
wife “the former Rochelle Anisfeld” passed away today.
1995(2nd
of Iyar, 5755): Eighty-nine year old screen writer passed away today.
http://www.nytimes.com/1995/05/06/obituaries/edwin-blum-89-writer-for-stage-and-the-screen.html
1997:
In the U.K. Peter Benjamin Mandelson, began serving as Minister without
Portfolio.
1997:
Malcolm Rifkind completed his service as Secretary of State for Foreign and
Commonwealth Affairs
1999:
Daniel Goldfein’s F-16 was shot down today over western Serbia while serving as
commander of the 555th Fighter Squadron and successfully ejected so
that he could be rescued “by NATO helicopters.
1999: The New York Times featured
reviews of books by Jewish authors and/or of special interest to Jewish readers
including “Israel and Europe: An Appraisal in History” by Howard M.
Sachar and “The Majors: In Pursuit of Golf's Holy Grail” by John Feinstein.
2000(27th of Nisan, 5760): Yom
HaShoah
2000(27th
of Nisan, 5760): Ninety-year old All-American quarterback for the University of
Michigan Harry Lawrence Newman whose
skills were honed by fellow Wolverine Benny Friedman and went on to lead the
New York Giants to an NFL title passed away today.
2000:
Israeli jet fighters turn back an Egyptian civilian aircraft from the Gaza
airport
2001:
“Israel Arrests an ex-general as a spy for spilling old secrets” published
today described action taken against seventy-five year old Itzhak Yaakov, a retired IDF general.
2001:
A meeting between Secretary of State Colin Powell and Foreign Minister Shimon
Peres to discuss the Egyptian-Jordanian peace initiative ends with little
advancement.
2001:
In “Anti-Semitism: An All-American Attribute” published today Jonathan
Zimmerman reminded us that Jew-hating is common currency of culture regardless
of century, gender or race.
2002:
Today, during Operation Defensive of Shield the siege of the Mukataa, the
official headquarters of Arafat and the PA was lifted “after 6 men wanted by
Israel – 4 of them convicted of involvement in the October 2001 assassination
of the Israeli tourism minister Rehavam Zeevi – were moved to a prison in
Jericho to be guarded by U.S. and British wardens
2003(30th
of Nisan, 5763): Rosh Chodesh Iyar
2003:
Today, in Israel the government identified the suicide bombers who killed three
people in an attack on a Tel Aviv nightclub on April 30 as “British citizens Asif
Hanif, 21, who died in the suicide attack, and Omar Khan Sharif, 27, an
accomplice who reportedly escaped after failing to detonate his bomb making
them “the first Britons known to be prepared to kill themselves in the militant
Islamic cause.”
2004:
On the PGA tour, Bruce Fleisher won Bruno’s Memorial Classic.
2004: The New York Times featured reviews of
books by Jewish authors and/or of special interest to Jewish readers including
the recently released paperback edition of Gulag: A History by Anne
Applebaum, a Pulitzer Prize-winning study that maintains that the Soviet
concentration-camp system was equal to the Nazi killing machine, and supports
Solzhenitsyn's assertion that the gulag was not a Stalinist aberration but an
integral part of Lenin's Socialist dream.
2004(11th
of Iyar, 5764) A pregnant mother and her four daughters are shot dead by
terrorists as they drive on the Kissufim road in the Gaza Strip.
2004(11th
of Iyar, 5764): Eighty-year old Hyam Maccoby, the grandson and “namesake of
Rabbi Hyam Maccoby known as the ‘Kamenitzer Maggid’” and British scholar whose
academic work successfully challenged the image of Jesus and the Pharisees
painted in the Gospels passed away today.
http://www.theguardian.com/news/2004/jul/31/guardianobituaries.religion
2004: Vowing to fight for coexistence and
mutual respect among mankind around the world, California Governor Arnold
Schwarzenegger lays the cornerstone of Jerusalem's Museum of Tolerance and pays
tribute to the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust. The Governor
concludes his speech with the Hebrew saying, "Am Yisrael hai" – (the
nation of Israel lives) – gives the crowd a thumbs-up sign, and adds his
signature movie line, "I'll be back."
2004:
Sixty-five per cent of those participating in an internal Likud referendum
voted against Ariel Sharon’s plan to disengage from Gaza.
2004:
Natan Sharansky, the Minister for Jerusalem and Diaspora Affairs, and the World
Zionist Organization, launch the new "Combating Anti-Semitism" Kit.
2005(23rd
of Nisan, 5765): Seventy-eight year old NYU trained physician William Kohlmann
Rashbaum, “the chief of family planning services at Manhattan’s Beth Israel
Medical Center” passed away today.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2005-05-06-0505060176-story.html
2005:
Neiman Marcus Group was the subject of a leveraged buyout (LBO), selling itself
to two private equity firms, Texas Pacific Group and Warburg Pincus
2005:
Publication today of Nicole Krauss’ award winning novel The History of Love.
2006(4th
of Iyar, 5766): Yom Hazikaron – Israel
Remembrance Day. On the day before celebrating its independence, Israel
remembers the human cost. In the past
year, 138 members of the security forces have been killed in the line of duty,
bringing the total of men and women killed defending the state since 1860 to
22,123. This does not count the
thousands of innocent bystanders who died in everything from terrorist attacks
on Jerusalem pizza parlors to the sinking of ships filled with immigrants bound
for Palestine in defiance of the infamous British White Paper.
2006:
The Peter Jay Sharp Building of the Brooklyn Academy of Music which Harvey Lichtenstein
led for 32 years starting in 1967 was added to the NRHP today
2006:
Random House published Absurdistan, a 2006 novel by Gary Shteyngart”
that “chronicles the adventures of Misha Vainberg, the 325-pound son of the
1,238th-richest man in Russia, as he struggles to return to his true love in
the South Bronx.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absurdistan_(novel)#/media/File:Absurdistan.jpg
2007:
The Jewish Center for History and the Leo Baeck Institute in New York presented
“Hannah Arendt Rediscovered” a program “featuring the distinguished philosopher
Richard Bernstein and author Jerome Kohn.”
2007
:( 14th of Iyar) Pesach Sheini
2008:
As part of the PEN World Voices, Israeli author Yael Hedaya participates in a
panel discussion entitled Writing Sex and Sexuality. Yael Hedaya was born in
Jerusalem in 1964.
2008:
In Cedar Rapids, Iowa Friday evening services Temple Judah are dedicated to
bidding Muriel and Fred Rogers a fond farewell
2008(27th
of Nisan, 5768): Seventy-two year old Uzbekistani musician and poet Ilyas
Malayev who fell victim to anti-Semitism in his homeland lost his battle with
pancreatic cancer and passed away today in Queens, NY.
2008:
“Imaginary Coordinates” featuring the Spertus Institute’s collection of Holy
Land maps, which date back to the 16th century as well as
contemporary Israeli and Palestinian women artists’ works that take up the
question of regional borders opens at the Spertus in Chicago, Il.
2009:
The Lincoln Center presents Orient- Occident: A Dialogue of Cultures as part of
the Jordi Savall Jerusalem Series.
2009(8th
of Iyar, 5769): Alfred Appel Jr., a scholarly expert on Vladimir Nabokov, whose
lecture course he attended at Cornell, and the author of wide-ranging
interpretive books on modern art and jazz, died today in Wilmette, Illinois at
the age of 75. (As reported by William Grimes)
2009: Wayne L. Horvitz, a longtime labor
relations mediator and the son of David Lyon Hurwitz, discusses and signs What's the Beef?: Sixty Years
of Hard-won Lessons for Today's Leaders in Labor, Management, and Government
at Politics and Prose Bookstore in Washington, D.C.
2010(18th
of Iyar, 5770): Lag B'Omer
2010(18th
of Iyar, 5770): Inna Hecker Grade, the widow and a translator of the great
Yiddish novelist and poet Chaim Grade, who earned her own literary niche for
her zealous guardianship of her husband’s legacy, died today at the age of 85
in the Bronx, New York City. (As reported by Joseph Berger)
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/13/nyregion/13grade.html?pagewanted=print
2010:
Silvia Planas and Manuel Forcano are scheduled to discuss A History of
Jewish Catalonia their book that traces the rich and fertile history of the
Jews in Catalonia from the earliest references, that is, from the time of the
late Roman Empire and the Early Middle Ages, until the drastic decree of
expulsion by the Catholic Monarchs in a program sponsored by The American
Sephardi Federation
2010:
As part of the third annual program in memory of Dr. Mordkhe Schaechter, Prof.
Eugene Orenstein of McGill University is scheduled to speak on the topic,
"Ber Borokhov: A Revolutionary of Yiddish Philology" followed by
Prof. Joshua (Shikl) Fishman who is scheduled to speak about Dr. Schaechter.
2010(18th
Iyar, 5770): Eighty-six year old Rabbi Moshe Hirsch, a leader of an
ultra-Orthodox Jewish sect that opposes the existence of the Israeli state and
a longtime adviser to the Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat, died today at his
home in Jerusalem. (As reported by Dennis Hevesi)
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/05/world/middleeast/05hirsch.html?pagewanted=print
2011:
Today, “the Board of Trustees of the City University of New York (CUNY), at
their monthly public meeting, voted to remove (by tabling to avoid debate) Tony
Kushner's name from the list of people invited to receive honorary degrees, based
on a statement by trustee Jeffrey S. Wiesenfeld about Kushner's purported
statements and beliefs about Zionism and Israel” after which “the CUNY Graduate
Center Advocate began a live blog on the "Kushner Crisis" situation,
including news coverage and statements of support from faculty and academics.”
2011:
As reported by Tom Tugend in “Auschwitz bar mitzvah for 78-year-old
Oscar-winner Branko Lustig”: Branko Lustig, 78, two-time Oscar winner for
“Schindler’s List” and “Gladiator,” is scheduled to celebrate his bar mitzvah
today at Auschwitz, in front of barrack No. 24.
2011:
The ITV network broadcast the first episode of “Case Sensitive” which based on
The Point of Rescue by British poet and novelist Sophie Hannah.
2011:
The Consultation on Conscience, Reform Judaism's flagship social justice
conference is scheduled to continue with a reception featuring guest host
Richard Dreyfus at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.
2011:
The 17th Annual Rocky Mountain Jewish Historical Society Heritage Award Dinner
is scheduled to take place in Denver. The 2011 Heritage Award Dinner will
salute early Colorado Jews in the Arts and will feature the premiere of a film
called "Civilizing the West: Early Colorado Jews in the Arts."
2011:
This morning at 10 a.m., sirens will wail throughout the country as people
observe a moment of silence in memory of the victims of the Nazi persecution.
2011:
In the wake of the killing of Osama Bin Laden, Chicago police are taking
additional measures to guard against possible retaliatory terrorist
attacks. Police were paying closer
attention to many buildings including synagogues, particularly in the Rogers
Park and West Rogers Park neighborhoods, areas that have large Jewish
communities
2011:
The Supreme Court delayed the start of former President Moshe Katsav's jail
sentence until a ruling is reached on an appeal filed by his lawyers. Katsav,
who was convicted on two counts of rape for indecent assault and sexual
harassment of female employees, appealed the ruling against him this week.
2011(28th
of Nisan, 5771): Yom HaShoah
2011:
Today, “More than a year after his death, Michael T. Kaufman was included in
the byline for the New York Times obituary of Osama bin Laden
2011:
The trustees of the City University of New York voted to shelve plans to award
an honorary degree to Tony Kushner because he “had disparaged the State of
Israel in past comments.
2011:
The Palestinian Islamist group Hamas condemned the killing by U.S. forces of
Osama bin Laden and mourned him as an "Arab holy warrior." (As
reported by Jack Khoury)
2012:
A limited run of 'Welcome to America' by H. Leivick (the penname of Leivick
Haplern) is scheduled to begin in New York.
2012:
Dr. Jonathan Sarna is scheduled to discuss his marvelous new book, When
General Grant Expelled the Jews at the National Museum of American Jewish
History in Philadelphia, PA.
2012:
Dr. Edna Nahshon, Professor of Hebrew and Theater at the Jewish Theological
Seminary, and editor of Jews and Theater in an Intercultural Context, is
scheduled to discuss this new book of essays, including her own research on
passion plays in America at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC.
2012:
The Westchester Jewish Film Festival is scheduled to come to an end.
2012:
The International Workshop on Holocaust Testimonies: Truth and Witness being
held at the Wiener Library in the UK is scheduled to come to an end.
2012:
The Center for Jewish History is scheduled to present “Jews in Early Modern Europe:
A Day-to-Day Perspective.”
2012(10th
of Iyar, 5773): Ninety year old violinist Zvi Zeitlin passed away today. (As
reported by Margalit Fox)
2013:
In Chicago, the Spertus Institute is scheduled to present “Ballot, Babies and
Banners of Peace,:” a lecture in which Dr. Melissa R. Klpaaher
“will discuss how the activism of American Jewish women was grounded in
their gender, religious, cultural, and ethnic identities…”
2013:
“The key witness in the breach of trust trial against former foreign minister Avigdor
Liberman, his former deputy Danny Ayalon took the stand today and gave
incriminating testimony, confirming that while serving in the Foreign Ministry,
Liberman had acted to promote a man who had done him a favor.” (As reported by
Stuart Winer)
2013:
The Maccabeats and Sarah Aroeste and Daniel Kahn & the Painted Bird are
scheduled to perform at the Washington Jewish Music Festival.
2013:
A terrorist opened fire at two people this evening in Wadi Kelt, near Mitzpeh
Yericho. The two were attacked as they sat in a car
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/167667
2013:
Terrorists in Gaza fired two rockets at southern Israel tonight. The rockets
hit the Eshkol region.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/167668
2014:
Coralville, Iowa, The House of David Softball Team, sponsored by Agudas Achim is
scheduled to take the field.
2014(2nd
of Iyar, 5774): Eighty-two year old director and playwright Charles Marowitz
passed away today. (As reported by Bruce Weber)
2014:
In Cedar Rapids, Temple Judah is scheduled to host its final Musical Shabbat of
the season.
2014:
Annalisa Capristo the librarian at the Centro Studi Americani, Rome, Italy
whose work focuses on anti-Jewish persecution in Italy under Fascist rule,
particularly against Jewish scholars is scheduled to deliver a lecture on “An
Overview of the Italian Jewish Immigration in South America” at the Third
Regional New Conference sponsored by the Latin American Jewish Studies
Association (LAJSA)
2014:
Day Two of Jewish American Heritage Month
2014:
“Palestinian gunmen fired at an IDF force on the Gaza border tonight, near the
Kissufim border crossing in the central Gaza Strip.”
2014:
“The patriarch of the Maronite church will travel to Jerusalem next month to
greet Pope Francis, the first head of his Lebanon-based denomination to visit
since Israel’s creation in 1948, he said today.”
2015: “Firing Line,” the three year old colt owned by
Arnold Zechter, the former CEO of Talbots, is scheduled to run in today’s
Kentucky Derby.
2015: Fred Spiegel, the Shoah Survivor who wrote Once
the Acacias Bloomed: Memories of a Childhood Lost is scheduled to speak at the
US Holocaust Memorial Museum.
2015: The Eden-Tamir Music Center is scheduled to
host “Folk Songs in Artistic Arrangement/”
2015: The Samaritan community is scheduled to hold
its annual sacrifice of the lamb marking the Exodus from Egypt on Mount Gerizim
today. (As reported by Amanda Borschel-Dan)
2015(13th
of Iyar, 5775): Parashat Achrei Mot - Kedoshim
2015: In Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Mother’s Day Shabbat –
“All Women Are Mothers In the House of Israel” -- includes flowers for
everybody and a Kiddush prepared by the male members of the minyan.
2015(13th
of Iyar, 5775): Eight-nine year old ballerina and choreographer Maya
Mikhailovna Plisetskaya passed away today in Munich
http://www.timesofisrael.com/russia-mourns-jewish-ballet-rebel-maya-plisetskaya/
2016:
Professor Richard Schwartz is scheduled to deliver a lecture on “Advancing
Veganism in Israel” at Ginger, 8 Balfour Street, Jerusalem.
2016(24th
of Nisan, 5776): Eighty-eight year old stamp collector Irwin Weinberg passed
away today. (As reported by James Barron)
2016:
The Historic Sixth and I Synagogue is scheduled to host Café Nite where
attendees can “explore several learning options with MesorahDC.
2017:
Yom Ha’Atzmaut - Israel Independence Day;
2017:
Sagiv Lugasi, a
student at the Ort school in Ma’alot-Tarshiha, took first prize in the annual
competition in Jerusalem Independence Day making him “the first secular student
to win the International Bible Quiz in over 30 years.” (As reported by TOI)
2017:
The Iowa Jewish History Symposium is scheduled to begin in Iowa City.
2017:
GiveNOLA Day scheduled for today provides an opportunity to make donations to
JCRS, a Jewish charity that has delivered a multiplicity of services to Jews
throughout the region.
2017:
“Beneath the Helmet,” a film about five Israeli high school graduates is
scheduled to be shown at East Bay Jewish Film Festival.
2017:
The LA Jewish
Film Festival and Yiddishkayt are scheduled to co-host the West Coast of
“Menashe.”
2018: In Memphis, TN, Temple Israel is scheduled to
host a discussion on Great Jewish Renegades led by Rabbi Feivel Strauss that
will focus on the life of Leonard Cohen.
2018:
The Center for Jewish History is scheduled to present the Phoenix Chamber
Ensemble and Telsa String Quartet “Serenading Mozart.”
2018:
The Washington Jewish Film Festival is scheduled to open with “Sammy Davis Jr.:
I’ve Gotta Be Me.”
2018:
As part of Jewish American Heritage Month, the William G. McGowan Theatre will
host historian talking about his latest work The Eddie Cantor Story: A
Jewish Life in Performance and Politics.
2019:
In New York, the Fort Gansevoort Gallery is scheduled to host the hoping of the
exhibit “Soviet Childhood’ featuring the works of Zoya Cerkassky
2019:
“Claude Lanzmann’s ‘Shoah: Four Sisters’” is scheduled to be shown at Temple
Emanu-El’s Streicker Center.
https://www.emanuelnyc.org/event/claude-lanzmanns-shoah-four-sisters-part-2/
2019:
In San Francisco, Congregation Emanu-El is scheduled to host “Iran Talks: Next
Steps After the Collapse of the Deal and Iran’s Role in the Region” featuring
Abraham D. Sofaer and Dr. Michael Ledeen.
2019(27th
of Nisan, 5779: In the wake of the latest synagogue shooting and the revelation
that Labour Party leader has endorsed and written a forward for “a book
containing overtly anti-Semitic tropes” observance of Yom HaShoah
2020:
As the number of Coronavirus deaths continues to rise, Israelis await to see
which schools will and will not open tomorrow following yesterday’s vote by the
cabinet “to return some of Israel’s students to school” tomorrow. (As reported
by Jacob Magid
2020:
The UK Jewish Film is scheduled to provide on-line a screening of “An Act of
Defiance.”
2020(8th
of Iyar, 5780): On the Jewish calendar
Yarhzeit of the Jews of Speyer who massacred today during the First Crusade
(1096) and the Jews of Lemberg who massacred (1667)
2020(8th
of Iyar, 5780): Parashat Acharay Mot and Kedoshim; Pirke Avot Chapter 3.
2021:
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Month County is scheduled to present “Kreplach
and Dim Sum: Yes, There are Jews in China” led by Robyn Helzner “who shares
stores, photos, videos, and music to explore the extraordinary history of the
Jewish communities in Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Kaifeng; ad traces
their emergence as the fastest growing Jewish region in the world today.”
2021:
The New York Times features reviews of books by Jewish authors and/or of
special interest to Jewish readers including Names of New York: Discovering
the City’s Past, Present, and Future Through Its Place-Names by Joshua
Jelly-Schapiro whose father’s family are Jews from Eastern Europe and the
recently released paperback edition of Nobody Will Tell You This But Me: A
True (as Told to Me) Story by Bess Kalb
2021:
Jookender Community Initiatives, Inc is scheduled to present “Lag Ba’Omer for
Russian-Speaking Jewish Community.”
2021:
Temple Isaiah is scheduled to present online “Jews & Blacks in the Civil
Rights Era & Now: Midrash & Fact.
2021:
“The Jewish Psychedelic Summit” is scheduled to begin today online.
2021:
The ASF Institute of Jewish Experience is scheduled to present “The Jewish
Effendiya: Between Jewishness and Middle-Classness in Modern Egypt” with Dr.
Alon Tam.
2021:
While many of those injured in the Mt. Meron still remain in the hospital,
Israel continues to cope
with
the aftermath of what some have described as the worst civilian catastrophe in
the state’s history.
2022:
The National Library of Israel is scheduled to host Dr. Dorit Shiloh lecturing
on “In the Service of the Nation - Israeli Women Authors Writing for Children:
The Historical Novels of Devorah Omer,” who “was one of the most well respected
authors in Israeli history, being awarded the prestigious Israel Prize as well
as the Hans Christian Andersen Award.”
2022:
In NYC is scheduled to host a screening of “Africa,” the winner of three Haifa
International Film Festival Awards.
2022:
The Baltimore Jewish Film Festival is scheduled to host a screening of “Rose”
and “Kiss Me Kosher.”
2022:
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is scheduled to “What You Do
Matters,” a virtual event during which “The Museum will confer its highest
honor, the Elie Wiesel Award, on the Ritchie Boys, a little-known special World
War II US military intelligence unit that included many Jewish refugees from
Nazism and was instrumental to the Allied victory.
2022(29th
of Nisan, 5782): Rosh Chodesh Iyar
2023:
The Jewish Women’s Archive is scheduled to host “Women in the Communist
Resistance Movement: The Story of Dorka Goldkorn and Anna Duracz, with Matylda
Jonas-Kowalik.”
2023:
The Streicker Center is scheduled to host the third session of Naomi Miller’s
“Beginner’s Yiddish: Shopping, Cooking, Inviting and Eating For the Jewish
Holidays.”
2023:
The Museum at Eldridge Street is scheduled to “celebrate June Hersh‘s delicious
new book Iconic New York Jewish Food (The History Press, 2023), in a
conversation with foodies Niki Russ Federman (co-owner of Russ & Daughters)
and Rozanne Gold (four-time James Beard award-winning chef and author). You'll
also have an opportunity to enjoy some tasty nosh from Zaro's Family Bakery and
Brooklyn Seltzer Boys.
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