This Day, December 8, In Jewish History by Mitchell A and Deb Levin Z"L
December 8
65 BCE: Birthday of Quintus Horatius Flaccus, the Roman poet known as
Horace who created “credat Juadaeus Appella” which gave rise to the character
of “Jew Appela.”
https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/1629-apella
1292: John Peckham, the Archbishop of Canterbury, whose insistence that
the closure of “chief synagogues of the Jews of London” was not enough, causing
the few remaining Jewish houses of worships to be suppressed in 1282, passed
away today.
1522:
David Reubeni left Khaibar
today “and went to Nubia in northern Sudan, where he claimed to be a descendant
of Muhammad. When he spoke to audiences of Jews, he told of large Jewish
kingdoms in the east, possibly referring to the Jewish community at Cochin. The
Portuguese had just conquered Goa.”
1596(Kislev, 5357): In Mexico, Luis
de Carvajal el Mozo, his mother, and three sisters were burned at the stake
together with five other Crypto-Jews who were all accused of Judaizing.
1609:
“Biblioteca Ambrosiana” opens its reading room, the second public library of
Europe. Located in Milan, this library
has been cited as a valuable repository for documents about the Jews of Italy
including the Ashkenazic Ambrosian Bible which contains a graphic
depiction of Ezekiel’s heavenly chariot.
1612(14th
of Kislev, 5373): Printer Isaac Prostitz (Isaac ben R. Aaron passed away today.
1655: The Whitehall
Conference which had been called by Cromwell to consider allowing the Jews to
return to England continued the deliberations which had begun on December 4.
1694(30th of
Kislev, 5455): Meir Schiff, the son of Isaac Schiff who is eulogized on his
tombstone as aman of great generosity, famed thought the Jewish world” passed
away today.
1732:
Birthdate of New York native Aaron Franks and the son of Jacob Franks who
passed away when he was five years old.
1740(12th
of Kislev, 5783): Sixty-three-year-old Moses Mikals, the Rhineland born son of
Michael (Jechiel) of Herzfeld, Germany and Rebecca Falk de Paul and the husband
of Catharine Michaels with whom he had five children –Blume, Joahabed, Rachel,
Rebecca and Michael – passed away today in Curacao.
1765(25th
of Kislev, 5526): First Day of Chanukah observed as the United Kingdom prepares
to enforce The Stamp Act, one of the “roads that led to the American
Revolution.”
1771(1st
of Tevet, 5532): 7th Day of Chanukah; Rosh Chodesh Tevet
1779(29th
of Kislev, 5540) Fifth Day of Chanukah observed as the Continental Army remains
in winter quarters at Morristown, NJ.
1780:
George Washington issued General Orders from his headquarters at New Windsor,
NY in which he said he was “pleased to accept and approve” the report of
Enquiry which said “that every part of Major David S. Frank’s conduct was not
only unexceptional but reflects the highest Honor on him as an officer,
distinguishes him as a Zealous friend to the Independence of America and justly
entitles him to the Attention and confidence of his Countrymen” and thus
exonerated him of any role in the treason of General Benedict Arnold.
1783(13th
of Kislev, 5544): Isaac Touro, the native of Amsterdam who served as “hazzan”
for Jesuath Israel, the Sephardic synagogue in Newport, RI. Unlike most
American Jews, Touro was a loyalist.
After the war he moved to Kingston where he passed away. For some his
biggest claim to fame is that he was the father of Judah Touro.
1784(25th
of Kislev, 5545): Chanukah
1785: In
Savanah, GA. Abraham Doughlass, who arrived there on November 1, and his wife
gave birth to Jacob Doughlass
1790(1st of
Tevet, 5551): Seventh Day of Chanukah; Rosh Chodesh Tevet observed on the same
day the President delivered his second annual message to Congress.
1795(26th
of Kislev, 5556): Second Day of Chanukah observed as George Washinton delivered
his Seventh Annual Message to Congress.
1798(30th
of Kislev, 5559: Parashat Miketz; Rosh Chodesh Tevet; Sixth Day of Chanukah
observed as John Adams delivered his Second Annual Message to Congress
1805:
Rachel Cohen and Isaac Lyons who were married in Philadelphia, PA gave birth to
Henry Lyons the husband of Elizabeth Wolff.
1809(1st
of Tevet, 5570): Rosh Chodesh Tevet; Sixth Day of Chanukah
1810:
Deborah Cohen, the daughter of Jacob Raphael Cohen married Israel Moss today.
1812: In
Germany, Jeanette Hirsch and Isaac Weil gave birth to Joseph Weil, the husband
of Hannah Greenbaum and the father of Isaac, Julius, Theresa and Libbie Weil.”
1813:
Birthdate of August Belmont, the German born financier who “immigrated to New
York City in 1837 after becoming the American representative of the Rothschild
family's banking house in Frankfurt.”
Belmont carved a niche in American finance and became a leading member
of the Democrat Party. Prominent socially, he gave his name to the famed New
York racetrack, Belmont Park as well as the third leg of the Triple Crown, “The
Belmont Stakes.”
1816: Birthdate
of Austro-Hungarian writer and political leader Adolf Fischhof.
https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/6153-fischhof-adolf
1816:
Birthdate of Bohemia native and University of Vienna trained physician Bernard
Wofler who was appointed director of the Jewish hospital in Vienna and who in
1872 “a society for the gratuitous care of consumptives, without distinction of
creed.”
1817: John
C. Calhoun, who as Secretary of State would appoint philo-Semite Warder Cresson
(and future convert to Judaism) to serve as U.S. Consul to Jerusalem, began
serving as Secretary of War today.
1818: In
Grodno, Rabbi Binyamin Diskin and his wife gave birth to Moshe Yehoshua Yehuda
Leib Diskin also known as the Maharil Diskin, a leading rabbi, Talmudist, and
Biblical commentator who served as a rabbi in Łomża, Mezritch, Kovno, Shklov,
Brisk, and, finally, Jerusalem, after moving to Eretz Yisrael in 1878.
1822(24th
of Kislev, 5583): In the evening, kindle the first Chanukah light
1822(24th
of Kislev, 5583): Fifty-five-year-old German author, published and bookseller
Saul Ascher, passed away in Berlin.
1828(2nd
of Tevet, 5589) Eighth Day of Chanukah observed for the last time during the
Presidency of John Q. Adams.
1828: Moses
Schoenfeld, the son of Esther and Alexander Schonfeld and his wife Amalie Male
Marcus Schoenfeld gave birth toe Salomon Schoefeld.
1829:
Birthdate of “Abenheim, Germany” native Marcus M. Spiegel, the brother of
“Joseph Spiegel, founder of the Spiegel Catalog, who reached the rank of
Colonel of the 120th Ohio Volunteer infantry whom he commanded
during the Battle of Vicksburg where he was wounded and in the Red River
Campaign where he was mortally wounded in 1864.
1832: In
Bavaria, Solomon Houseman, “a merchant and manufacturer of silk and cotton
goods” gave birth to Julius Houseman, the first Jew to settle permanently in
Grand Rapids, Michigan where he enjoyed a successful business career for thirty
years while pursuing a political career that included being elected Mayor and a
Congressman from the 5th District of Michigan.
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/JHouseman.html
http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=H000820
1839:
Birthdate of Danzig native and University of Berlin trained medical doctor
“Julius Bernstein, the son of Arron Bernstein who gained fame as a German
physiologist and medical writer” (According to some sources he was born on
December 18)
1841(25th
of Kislev, 5602): Chanukah
1845: Irish
political leader Daniel O’Connell, who supported full political rights for the
Jews of the United Kingdom suggested a program to ameliorate the suffering
caused by the Irish Potato Famine.
1847: In
Posen, Israel Baruch Moses and his wife gave birth Isaac B. Moses who served as
the rabbi for congregations in Qunicy, IL, Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Chicago, IL
before being called to lead Congregation Ahawath Chese dShaar Hasomayim in New
York City.
1850:
Seventy-year-old anti-Semite Georg Svedrup, the Norwegian political leader who
“felt that it would be incompatible with Judaism to deal honestly with
Christians, writing that ‘no person of the Jewish faith may come within
Norway's borders, far less reside there’” passed away
1851: An
article published today entitled “Religious Freedom” reported that the U.S.
Department of State has replied to a letter from Rabbi Lilienthal who is the
spiritual leader for three congregations in New York concerning a proposed
treaty with the Swiss Confederacy. The
State Department assured Dr. Lilienthal that the United States would ratify any
treaty with the Swiss Confederacy that discriminated against citizens of the
United States who were Jewish.
1851: In
New York City, Rabbi Raphall delivered a lecture tonight on the history of
Hungary and the Hungarian people. The
talk would cover that nation’s whole history and would not be a recap of its
recent efforts to gain its independence.
1854: Pope
Pius IX proclaims the dogma of Immaculate Conception which holds that the
Virgin Mary was born free of original sin. This is the same Pope Pius IX who
was responsible for the 1858 abduction of a six-year-old Jewish child in what
became known as the infamous Edgardo Mortara Affair.
1855(28th
of Kislev, 5616): Parashat Miketz; Fourth Day of Chanukah as pro-slavery and
free-soilers clashed in what became known as “Bloody Kansas.”
1856: Count
Pawel Strzelecki sent a message from Istanbul to London that the Ottoman
government “was not willing to provide the land for the construction of” a
railroad between Jaffa and Jerusalem which would delay construction for years
to come.
1859(12th
of Kislev, 5620): Eighty-year-old Markus Bär Friedenthal a German banker who
devoted his “free time” to Jewish studies passed away today at Breslau.
1859: Two
days after he had passed away, Barnett Levy, the son of “Joseph Levy” and
“Hannah Isaacs” was buried today at the “Brompton (Fulham Road) Jewish
Cemetery.”
1860(24th
of Kislev, 5621): Parashat Vayeshev; Kindle the first Chanukah Candle
1860:
Birthdate of Edmund H. Hinshaw, the Congressman from Nebraska who in 1906
attended a mass meeting at Belasco’s Theatre in Washington, D.C which a protest
against the atrocities being committed against the Jews of Russia. (Editor’s
note – no explanation for his attendance; certainly not courting the “Jewish
vote” in his home district.)
1861(5th
of Tevet, 5622): Jacob Pinhas, the son of miniaturist and “court painter to the
Elector of Hesse –Cassel, Salomon Pinhas, who became a journalist and publisher
and who was instrumental in the drafting of the law
which gave full citizenship to such Jews as were willing to abandon petty
trading” passed away today in Cassel.
1862: Today
Philadelphian, Milton Sultzbach began serving as a Quartermaster with the 167th
Regiment.
1863(27th
of Kislev, 5624): The third Day of Chanukah is observed on the same that “President
Abraham Lincoln offers his conciliatory plan for reunification of the United
States with his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction.”
1865: In
Versailles, “Amédée Hadamard, of Jewish descent, and Claire Marie Jeanne
Picard, Hadamard” gave birth to Jacques-Salmon Hadamard developer of the Prime
Number Theorem who was Jewish enough to have flee Vichy France.
1866(30th of
Kislev, 5672): Shabbat shel Chanukah; Parashat Miketz; Rosh Chodesh Tevet;
Sixth day of Chanukah
1866: Birthdate of Ida
Espen Guggenheimer who supported Zionism, civil rights, and feminism throughout
her life, from hosting talks on birth control to supporting political
prisoners.
https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/guggenheimer-ida-espen
1869: In Rennes,
France, Emile Worms and his wife gave birth to Rene Worms the academic who was
a member of the “Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques of the Institut de
France” and who “was a devoted adherent of Judaism.”
1869: In New York,
Rabbi Moses Mielziner and Rosette Mielziner gave birth to portrait artist Leo
Mielziner, the husband of Ella M. Friend who served as “first vice-president of
the American Art Association” in Paris while making busts of such notables as
“Dr. I.M. Wise and Israel Zangwill.”
1871(25th of
Kislev, 5632): First Day of Chanukah; light the second candle in the evening.
1871(25th of
Kislev, 5632): Seventy-three-year-old Jacob Ettlinger, the Orthodox Rabbi
“referred to as the Aruch la-Ner” and who “headed the protest of the one
hundred and seventy-three rabbis against the Brunswick Conference of 1844”
passed away today.
1871: On Friday
evening, a Shabbat Chanukah party was held at Concordia Hall on Avenue A in New
York City.
1873: In Lithuania,
Libby Hurwitz and Moses W. Bearman gave birth University of Minnesota graduate
Abraham Nathaniel Bearman, the Preside of the Jewish Welfare Board in Minnesota
and a member of Beth-El Synagogue in Minneapolis.
1874: Birthdate of
Breyell native Johanna Hirsch Levy who went from Westerbork to being murdered
at Auschwitz on October 22, 1942.
1875: Several thousand
people came to the Hebrew Fair at Gilmore’s Garden today. The fair is a fundraiser for Mount Sinai
Hospital and so far has been quite successful in reaching its goal.
1876: Funeral services
were held today for William Meyer, Aaron Dietz and his brother Abram Dietz at
Temple Israel on Greene Avenue in Brooklyn. The three were among the victims of
the Brooklyn Theatre Fire that claimed almost three hundred lives. Following the service, the young men were
buried at Cypress Hills Cemetery.
1876: A deck hand named
Dixon murdered a Jewish peddler named Bachman on board the Fair Play, a
steamboat that was entering the mouth of the Old River as it traveled between
Faisonia and Vicksburg, MS. The packs
belonging to the 45 year-old Bachman had been rifled two nights earlier and
Bachman had accused Dixon of the theft.
1877(2nd of
Tevet, 5638): Eighth and final day of Chanukah observed for the first time
during the Presidency of Rutherford B. Hayes.
1878:
It was reported today that New York City is home to 375 houses of worship, 25
of which are Jewish.
1879: Birthdate of
Hungarian native “Samuel Solomon Eisner” who came to the United States where he
trained as a dentist at NYU and served on the “national committee of the
American Jewish Dentists.”
1880: According to
“Nervous and Mental Pathology,” Dr. Edward Sptizka’s pamphlet that studies “the
comparative pathology of insanity as illustrated by the different races in the
New York City Asylum for the Insane” only 10.29% of the Jews suffer from paralytic
insanity as compared to 13.29% for Anglo-Saxons. Jews, who “values intellectual
culture…enjoys a comparative immunity from paralysis.”
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9B0CE4DC123FEE3ABC4053DFB467838B699FDE
1880: In Wilmington,
NC, Esther Jastrow and Rabbi Samuel Mendelsoh gave birth gave University of
Pennsylvania trained Professor of History and Classical Languages and a Captain
in the Army during WW I whose unit was responsible for breaking German secret
codes.
1881: It was reported
today that discussion at Constantinople concerning plans for Jews to settle in
Syria has brought forth a counter-proposal from the Spanish Ambassador. He offered a plan that would allow Jews to
settle on “Crown lands in Castille” and a promise that “any Jew who goes to
Spain will be treated with the utmost liberality.” (Considering the history of the Jews of
Spain, this is peculiar entry to say the least)
1882(27th of
Kislev, 5643): Third Day of Chanuakh
1882: The
Hebrew Leader a theologically conservative New York weekly newspaper edited
by Jonas Bondy published its last edition today. The paper which first appeared
in May, 1850, was unique in offering a department dedicated to Masonic News.
1884: Rabbi
Gustav Gottheil officiated at the marriage of Belle Glazier, the daughter of
Mr. S.W. Glazier to Jacob S. Bernheimer at the bride’s home on East 67th
Street in Manhattan.
1884:
Adolph Cohn wrote a letter from Harvard University at Cambridge, Massachusetts,
challenging the contention of the New York Times that Ludvoic Halevy is the
first Jew elected to the French Academy.
“Although of Jewish descent of his father’s side” (Leon Halevy and Uncle
Fromental Halevy composer of La Juive) he is no more Jewish than his half
–brother Lucien-Anatole Prévost-Paradol who was also the son of Leon Halevy.
1885:
Birthdate of Joseph Sprinzak who served as Chairman of the Knesset for the
first ten years of its existence (1949-1959)
1885:
Birthdate of Minsk
native Brooklyn Law School trained “lawyer and arbitrator Isaac Seigmeister”
who in 1892 came to the United Sates where he studied engineering at Cooper
Union, married Bertha Seigmeister with whom he had one daughter and for 23
years “arbitrated millinery disputes between the Joint Board of Millinery
Workers Union and the Eastern Women’s Headdress Association.
1886:
Birthdate of Philadelphian Reba Fleisher Block.
1886: The
American Federation of Labor was founded at a convention of union leaders in
Columbus, Ohio. The driving force behind
the AFL was Samuel Gompers who would serve as the group’s long time President.
1887: Perl
Cajesky and another woman to whom her husband is allegedly married are being
held as witnesses at Ward’s Island in an alleged Jewish love triangle.
1888: In
Cincinnati, OH, Rachel Friedman and Abraham Isaacs gave birth to WW I veteran Schachne Issacs, the husband
of Rances Dollinger who did
post-graduate work in psychology at Johns Hopkins where he later served on the
faculty while also “working with the NY State Training School for Boys. (He is
not be confused with the Lithuanian born rabbi of the same name.)
1888: It
was reported today that Ernistine Nolfen wants to be paid five thousand dollars
by Noach Soenfield because, after paying for her passage from Poland and
proposing marriage, he has changed his mind and does not want her for a wife.
1889: “In
Russia’s Holiest City” published today, recounted the traditional myth of how
the ancient ruler of Kiev chose Orthodox Christianity. He heard representatives
from all four major faith groups before making his decision. Judaism was rejected because their
representatives “were forced to confess” that “that they had been…from their
country and were outcasts and wanders on the face of the earth” because of
their sins.
1890:
“Literary Notes” published today described plans to commemorate “the thousandth
anniversary of Saadia” in 1892 by publishing a collection of his works under
the direction of Professor Joseph Derenbourg of the French Academy which will
included a biography of Sasdia by Dr. Abraham Eliyahu Harkavi of St.
Petersburg, Russia.
1890: The
Directors of the Hebrew Orphan Asylum of Brooklyn purchased property at Ralph
and Howard Avenues for $32,000 which will be the future home of a facility that
will replace the current building on Stuyvesant Avenue which is too small to
meet the society’s needs.
1890: It
was reported today that the American Committee planning the millennial
anniversary of the birth of Saadia Gaon include Cyrus Adler of Johns Hopkins,
Richard J.H. Gottheil of Columbia, Morris Jastrow, Jr. of the University of
Pennsylvania and Jacob Schiff who will serve as treasurer.
1891:
Birthdate of Berlin native and refugee from Hitler’s Germany Albert Salomon who
became a Professor of Sociology at the New School for Social Research.
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1966/12/19/90243199.pdf
1891: In
Russian Devorach and Abraham Baer Litsky gave birth to Rose Litsky who became
Rose Pacal when she married Joseph Pascal
1892: In
the province of Kovno, Perez and Ida Tarshish gave birth to Jacob Tarshis, the
graduate of the University of Cincinnati and Hebrew Union College who served as
the rabbi at “congregations in Columbus, OH, Allentown, PA and Miami, FL” while
also gaining from his weekly broadcasts that earned him the title of “The
Lamplighter” and who was the husband of Golda Tarshish with whom he had one son
and two daughters.
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1960/12/24/99832338.pdf
1892: The
trial of Hermann Ahlwardt who is charged with slandering the Jews weapons
manufacturer Ludwig Loewe was adjourned for the day when the anti-Semite’s
doctor provided a certificate saying he was suffering from an attack of catarrh
and could not appear in court.
1892: The
delegates at the convention of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations who
have met with President Harrison were reported today to have decided to hold
their next meeting in New Orleans, LA.
1892: In
Kovno, Perez and Ida Tarshish gave birth Rabbi Jacob Tarshish, the husband
Golda F. Friedman Tarshish who was a radio personality known as “The
Lamplighter.”
1893(29th
of Kislev, 5654): Fifth Day of Chanukah
1893: In
Anniston, Alabama, Congregation Temple Beth El dedicated its sanctuary which is ‘the oldest building
in the state continuously and currently being used for Jewish worship.’
1895: In
New York, Temple Emanu-El was filled this morning “by those who went to hear an
address on “The Debt Humanity Owes to Heinrich Heine,” by Assistant Rabbi
Joseph Silverman.
1895: “The
Great Hebrew Fair” published today described plans for the upcoming city-wide
fund raiser under the leadership of Isidor Straus, President and Vice
Presidents James Hoffman and Joseph B. Bloomingdale.
1895: It
was reported today that “the upcoming “ball of the Young Ladies and Gentlemen’s
League of the Montefiore Home promises to eclipse all former events of the kind
given by this organization.”
1895: In
New York, “an advertisement published today read ‘Wanted – Enlightened men who
deprecate the attempt to raise race prejudice by Hermann Ahlwardt, to welcome
the fanatic with ancient eggs.”
1895: “The
anti-Semitic group in the Reichstag has laid upon the table of the chamber a
proposal to forbid the free immigration of Jews and for the adoption of
regulations under which their expulsion may be accomplished.”
1896: “The
Girl from Paris,” an English musical comedy starring Ada Reeve, the daughter of
Harriet Seaman and Charles Reeves, an actor whose given named had been Samuel
Isaacs, in the role of The Gay Perisienne, opened today at the Herald Square
Theatre in New York.
1896: After
having left his home in Jersey City on June 8 Morris J. Cohen arrived in San
Francisco today after which he went to Kansas where he enlisted in the
Twentieth Kansas Regiment and as Sergeant Cohen served in Philippines where he
was killed in combat in 1899.
1896: Johns Hopkins graduate
and Cornell and University of Maryland trained attorney Eli Frank, the
Baltimore, MD, born son Isabella Cohen and Moses Frank who became a judge of
the Supreme Bench of Baltimore while serving as president of the Y.M.H.A. and
the Association of Federated Jewish Charities married Rena Ambach today,
1897: Three
days after he had passed away, “Zadoc Isaacs” the husband of Julia Garcia, with
whom he had had nine children, was buried today at the “Plashet Jewish
Cemetery” in London.
1898(24th
of Kislev, 5659): In the evening, Kindle the first Chanukah Light
1898:
Albert H. Vitenheimer who had been promoted to the rank of Sergeant in May was
promoted to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant in the 3rd
Regiment of the Connecticut Volunteer Infantry
1899:
Forty-six-year-old Vaiben Louis Solomon completed his service as the Premier of
South Australia,
1900: Herzl
met with Arminius Vámbéry in Budapest where discussed the Turkish loan.
1900:
Birthdate of Columbus, Ohio native Mose Hirsch Solomon, the New York Giants
outfield who was nicknamed the “Rabbi of Swat.”
http://www.jewsinsports.org/profile.asp?sport=baseball&ID=60
1900:
Birthdate of Pittsburgh native J. Marshall Taxay, the graduate of the
University of Cincinnati and Hebrew Union College who served as the Rabbi at
Temple Israel in Bath, OH from 1945 to 1953 and
at Temple B’nai Israel in Pinellas Count from 1960 until his retirement
in 1969.
1900: “Poor
and Rich Jews” published today provides a review The Sons of the Covenant: A
tale of the London Jewry, which is a work of fiction by Samuel Gordon with
illustration by Mark Zangwill published by JPS that presents the lives of two
Jewish mothers – Mrs. Lipcott, a poor widow living in the London Slums and her
neighbor, the well-to-do Mrs. Duveen.
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1900/12/08/106886764.pdf?pdf_redirect=true&ip=0
1900:
Birthdate of Pittsburgh native J. Marshall Taxay, the graduate of the
University of Cincinnati and Hebrew Union College who served as the Rabbi at
Temple Israel in Bath, OH from 1945 to 1953 and
at Temple B’nai Israel in Pinellas Count from 1960 until his retirement
in 1969.
1900(16th
of Kislev, 5661): Eighty-seven-year-old singer, composer and pianist Henry
Russell who was a great-nephew of the British Chief Rabbi Solomon Hirschel and
whose sons were “conductor Sir Landon Ronald Russell and impresario Henry
Russell, passed away today.
http://www.pdmusic.org/russell.html
1901(27th
of Kislev, 5662): Third Day of Chanukah
1901:
Birthdate of Doris Caroline Abrahams who gained fame as Caryl Brahms “an
English critic, novelist, and journalist” who specialized in the theatre and
ballet and who also wrote film, radio and television scripts.”
1901: In
New York City, Goldie and John J. Jonas gave birth to Dr. Joseph Quincy Jonas,
the husband of Irene Jonas.
1901:
Having come to New York City from Lockport, NY, David Goodman, the future
president of Bergdorf-Goodman, opened his first store today, “a small one-story
structure” on lower 5th Avenue.
1902: It
was reported today that at their triennial convention in Baltimore, The Council
of Jewish Women had adopted a resolution expressing appreciation to Secretary
of State Hay expressing appreciation ‘for his efforts in behalf of humanity, as
shown by his recent letter to the powers of Europe regarding the Rumanian
Jews.”
1903(19th of Kislev, 5664): Seventy-eight-year-old
Rabbi Herman Rubin, the husband of Jeanette (Long) Rubin and the father of Joseph Herman Rubin,
the watchmaker and traveling salesman who by 1918 had become a director of
Peoples Trust Company of Philadelphia and president of Members Building and
Loan Association while serving as director of Keneseth Israel and being married
to Clara Kaufman passed away today in Wilkes-Barre, PA.
1903: In
Poland, Jacob Silverman, the son of Shlomo Silverblatt and his wife Rachel
Silverman gave birth to Baltimore resident Harry Issadore Silverman, the
husband of Mae Silverman Eplan.
1903: An
announcement was “made by the Directors of the Jewish Hospital” in Brooklyn
that an anonymous gift of $25,000 thousand has been made to the hospital
through Abraham Abraham “which is dependent on the raising of a like amount
with a year from other sources.”
1904(30th
of Kislev, 5665): Rosh Chodesh Tevet; Sixth Day of Chanukah
1904:
Tonight, in address styled “Zionism and England’s Offer, “Israel Zangwill urged
the Jews of” the United States “to exert themselves in behalf of colonizing and
developing a land which they could call their own” which in this case did not
mean Palestine but a 5,000 square mile part of East Africa that the English
wanted colonized by Europeans, even if meant Jews.
1905: In
London, this morning The Times published “a long letter signed by Lord
Rothschild, Sir Samuel Montague, David L. Alexander, Leonard L. Cohen, Benjamin
L. Cohen and Stuart M. Samuel in which a strong argument is present both
against Zionism and also the scheme of the Jewish Territorial Organization.”
1905: It
was reported today according to sources in Bucharest, that “almost all of the
factories and Jewish homes in Rostoff have been destroyed.”
1905: The
National Committee raising funds for the relief of the Jews being massacred in
Russia is scheduled to meet today in the offices of Jacob H. Schiff where they
will make plans for the next national fund-raising appeal which will be made
easier because the Western Union Telegraph Company is sending the telegrams
containing the appeals at no charge.
1905(10th
of Kislev, 5666): Zadoc Kahn, the Alsatian born Chief Rabbi of France passed
away. A noted scholar, he was active in Jewish communal affairs including
leading the Alliance Israélite Universelle and serving as President of the
Société des Études Juives, an organization that he had helped to found.
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0011_0_10603.html
1906(21st
of Kislev, 5667): Parashat Vayeshev
1906:
Today, The Hochi Schimbun welcomed “the coming appointment of Oscar S. Straus
as Secretary of the Department of Commerce and Labor” because the newspaper
“believes that his political influence and acknowledge fairness will aid the
cause of Japan,”
1907(3rd
of Tevet, 5668): Eighth Day of Chanukah
1907: Three
days after she had passed away, Sarah Solomon, the daughter of “Nathan Marcus
Adler” and “Henrietta Worms” and the wife of “Henry Solomon” with whom she had
had ten children, was buried today at the “Willesden Cemetery.”
1907:
Birthdate of Paul Ross, the husband of Ann Ross, the New York born daughter of
Pauline and Max Margulies
1908:
Violinist Mischa Ellman made his concert debut today at Carnegie Hall.
1908:
President Roosevelt, who as Police Commissioner had shown his support for the
Jews in conflict with a visiting German anti-Semite and who had Jewish soldiers
serving with him in the Rough Riders, delivered his final State of the Union
Address to Congress.
1909(25th
of Kislev, 5670): First Day of Chanukah; Kindle the second light in the
evening.
1909:
Thirty-three-year-old Albany Law School graduate Charles Manny Stern, the son
of Rosa Mann and Lewis Stern married Esther H. Barnet today after which he
continued to pursue his legal career while serving as a director of the Jewish
Community Center in Alband and as a national director of H.I.A.S.
1909: As
Russian society slowly sunk in the chaos that would lead to more anti-Jewish
outbreaks and eventually to the Russian Revolution. To the “director of
Russia’s secret police” was killed by a bomb planted by a Bolshevik
infiltrator.
1910:
“Salome” an opera based on Jewish author Hedwig Lachman’s German translation of
the French play “Salomé” by Oscar Wilde was performed for the first time in
London.
1911: In
New York, Kate (Neilecht) and Benjamin (Benzion) Jacob, a compositor for a
foreign-language newspaper, gave birth to Leo Jacob who gained fame as actor
Lee J. Cobb whose many screen triumphs included roles in “On The Waterfront,”
“Three Faces of Eve” and “The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit.” He passed away in 1976.
1911:
Lionel Abrahams, C.B. of the India Office was “appointed as a member of the
Committee on West African Currency by the Secretary of State for Colonies.
1911: The
Emperor appointed Hungarian scholar József Bánóczi to serve as “Ordinary
Professor of Hungarian Literature and History at the University of Budapest.
1911: Jews
in Palestine organized the Red Magen David society with the purpose of sending
doctors and nurses to Tripoli. Earlier in the week the Anglo-Palestine Company
in Jaffa donated 1,000 Francs for a fund for injured Turkish soldiers in
Tripoli.
1912(28th
of Kislev, 5673): Fourth Day of Chanukah
1912: Tenor
Ralph Errolle is scheduled to be the feature soloist at tonight’s 8th
Sinai Orchestral Concert at Temple Sinai in Chicago.
1912: The
Chicago Home for Jewish Orphans is scheduled to host a Chanukah celebration
this afternoon.
1912: “Over
1,000 people gathered at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York to hear Boston
writer Mary Antin” author of the recently published The Promised Land,
“a memoir of her emigration from Russia to Boston's South End” “make a plea for
more aid to support Jewish immigrant girls arriving alone in the United
States.”
1912:
Founding the Congregation Staff of Aaron Synagogue in Yonkers, NY.
1912:
Funeral services are scheduled to be held today at the Isaiah Temple in Chicago
for sixty-two-year-old Simon Hartman, the husband of the former Emma Able and
the father of Emanuel S., Edward A. and Louis H. Hartmen and Mrs. Edward Mayer.
1912: In
San Francisco, founding of a Chevra Kadisha
1913:
Birthdate of poet Delmore Schwartz. The prolific poet won the Bollingen Prize
in 1960 and was the inspiration of the title figure in Saul Bellow’s Humboldt’s
Gift.
1913: In
France, Louis-Lucien Klotz completed his service as Minister of the
Interior.
1913: Eernesto
Nathan, the London born son “Sara Levi, an Italian from Pesaro, and Mayer Moses
Nathan” who “obtained Italian citizenship in 1888,” the first Jewish Mayor of
Rome completed serving his term as mayor of the “Eternal City.”
1914: Irving Berlin's musical "Watch your Step" premiered in
New York.
1914: In
Bayonne, NJ, Benjamin and Mollie Pinkowitz gave birth to George Pinkowitz, the
husband of “Cecelia Glick Pinowitz.”
1915:
Today, “the American Jewish Relief Committee, of which Louis Marshall is
chairman…launched a campaign to raise another $1,000,000 for relief of Jewish
war sufferers in Europe not only during the” World War “ but also in the lean
days after peace” comes.
1915: In an
attempt to follow Jacob Schiff’s recommendation that Jewish immigrants coming
to the United States after the World War should be settled outside of big
cities, “it was decided to arrange a conference between representatives of the
federation and organizations such as the B’nai B’rith and the Hebrew Sheltering
and Immigrant Aid Society of America” which will arrange a program designed to
develop education in agriculture and general citizenship.
1915: This
evening, in Brooklyn, meetings were held at Congregation Beth Jacob and at the
Willoughby Avenue Synagogue to make plans for a “Tag Day” to raise money for
the Jewish Volunteer Relief Fund “which is aiding war victims in Europe.”
1915: In
New York Gertrude and Paul E. Lehman gave birth to American screenwriter Ernest
Lehman whose credits include the scripts for “The King and I,” “North by
Northwest,” “The Sound of Music,” and “Whose Afraid of Virginia Wolf?” He passed away in 2005. (As reported by
Margalit Fox)
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/06/movies/06LEHMAN.html
1916: In
Brooklyn Essie (née Goldstein) and animator/producer Max Fleischer gave birth
to director Richard Fleisher whose films include the Oscar winning documentary
“Design for Death” as well as the “Boston Strangler” and “Tora! Tora!”
1916(13th
of Kislev, 5677): George Schaffter passed away today in Manchester, England
1917(23rd
of Kislev, 5678): Parshat Vayeshev
1917:
Despite the fact that today is Shabbat, “the captains and the workers” raising
funds for Jewish War Relief and to aid the soldiers and sailors in the military
is scheduled to meet this afternoon including Team 22 led by Mortimer L. Schiff
which has raised the most money and Team 4 headed by William Goldman which is
in second place.
1917:
British troops began to bombard Turkish positions west of Jerusalem marking the
start of the final assault to seize the City of David from the Ottomans.
1917: The
American Jewish Relief Committee (for sufferers from the war) was listed today
as one of the organizations that had submitted “satisfactory audited financial
statements” to the Bureau of Advice and Information of the Charity Organization
Society.
1917: In
the evening, the Ottoman Seventh Army retreated leaving Jerusalem open to the
advancing British and Imperial forces.
1917:
Contributions to the $5,000,000 fund for the Jewish war relief and welfare work
in the army and navy reached a total of $2,400,000 today. The largest
individual contributions received today were $15,000 from Mr. and Mrs. S.R..
Travis, $10,000 from the Altman Foundation and $5,000 from Michael Friedsam,
President of B. Altman & Co.
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=950CE6D9133BEE3ABC4153DFB467838C609EDE
1918: The Philadelphia Inquirer reported today
that Rabbi R. L. Levental, a national leader among Orthodox Jews, Rabbi Riff of
the Sons of Israel Synagogue in Camden, NJ, Philadelphia attorney Max Hertzberg
and William Leaf were among the speakers who addressed mass meeting that marking
the opening of fund drive for the Federation of Jewish Charities in Camden.
1918: Felix
M. Warburg, Chairman of the Joint Distribution Committee of the American Funds
for Jewish War Sufferers, announced that organization's decision to hold its
New York City campaign designed to raise $5,000,000 to aid Jewish war sufferers
during the week starting on December 8 and ending on December 15.
1919: Yitak
Jacov Liss who had been 16 years old when he enlisted completed his service as
a member of the British Jewish Legion 38th Battalion Royal Fusiliers. (The
diary he kept provided an eyewitness account of the service of the Jewish
soldiers serving in Palestine during World War I)
1919:
Birthdate of Mieczysław Weinberg, a native of Warsaw who lost most of his
family in the Holocaust and who became a major Soviet composer after he moved
there in 1939.
1919:
Birthdate of Sidney H. Radner an amateur magician who became the unlikely
steward of a trove of Harry Houdini artifacts, which he built into one of the
world’s largest Houdini collections.
1920(27th
of Kislev, 5681): Third Day of Chanukah
1920: It
was reported today that “The Minister of the Interior of the Georgian
Government has informed the Jewish community that Jews from Russia may through
the territory of the republic on their way to Palestine” but these “emigrants
must not make an extended stay” in Georgia.
1921: Nahum
Sokolow the head of a Zionist delegation continued his visit to the United
States following festivities that included a luncheon at the Hotel Brevoort
“arranged by the publishers of The Jewish
Morning Journal, The Day, The Jewish Daily News and The Zeit.”
1921: “The
Dibbuk,” “which has been running at the Jewish Art Theatre” is scheduled to
open today at the Apollo.
1922: In
Brooklyn, “Ethel (Kornblum) Yaged” and property manager Isidore Yaged, who
bought his son his first clarinet, gave birth to “Jazz Man” Solomon William
Yaged. (As reported by Richard Sandomir)
1922: In
Berlin, Lucie Brasch and Ernst L. Freud gave birth to Lucian Freud, the
German-born British realist painter who was the grandson of Sigmund Freud. (As
reported by William Grimes)
1922: Birthdate of historian
and self-styled left-wing activist Howard Zinn who
wrote A People’s History of United States.
1923(30th
of Kislev, 5684): Shabbat shel Chanukah; Parashat Miketz; Rosh Chodesh Tevet
1923: As Germany
slipped further into the economic and social chaos that made the Weimar
Republic ineffective and brought the Nazis to power, to “The Reichstag passed
another enabling act, giving Chancellor Wilhelm Marx the power to implement
emergency economic and welfare measures.”
1924: It
was reported today that “In the three years since its inception, the Palestine
Foundation Fund, of which Samuel Untermyer is the President, has spent more
than $6,900,000 on the rebuilding of the Holy Land…”
1925:
Birthdate of the multi-talented entertainer Sammy Davis Jr.
http://www.biography.com/people/sammy-davis-jr-9268223#personal-life-and-death
1925: Today
marked the start of the culmination of the Hadassah drive to raise $15,000 “to
provide luncheons for the school children in Palestine.
1926: In
Berlin, “Johannes Fest, a conservative Roman Catholic and staunch anti-Nazi
schoolteacher who was dismissed from his post when the Nazis came to power in
1933” and his wife gave birth to Joachim Fest the German author “best known for his writings and public commentary on Nazi
Germany, including an important biography of Adolf Hitler and books about
Albert Speer and the German Resistance to Nazism.”
1926(3rd
of Tevet, 5687): Ninety-year-old Hannah Conquy Abecassis, the daughter of
Fortunato (Messod) Abecassis and Júlia Conquy Abecassis, the wife of Abraham
Abecassis and the mother of Júlia Abecassis passed away today inLisbon.
1926(3rd
of Tevet, 5687): Fifty-four year old Julius Ephraim Mastbaum, the son of “Fannie (née Ephraim)
and Levi Mastbaum”, whose Stanley Company of American “became the largest movie
theatre chain in the world in 1926” and who was the husband of “Etta Wedell Mastbaum, the daughter of Rachel P. Lit who
founded the original store that became Lit Brothers” and the brother-in-law of
two sons of “Adam Gimbel, the founder of Gimbels department store” passed away
today.
1927: In
Manhattan, the former Sylvia Jaeger and Philip Rechtschaffen, a tailor from
Kalusz gave birth to “Allan Rechtschaffen, an indefatigable sleep researcher at
the University of Chicago who tested the effects of sleep deprivation, studied
dreaming, narcolepsy, napping and insomnia and standardized the measurement of
sleep stages.” (As reported by Richard Sandomir)
1927: “The
Transformation of Dr. Bessel” silent film directed and produced by Richard
Oswald and featuring Otto Wallburg was released in Germany today.
1928(25th
of Kislev, 5689): Chanukah and Parashat Vayeshev
1928: Today
marked the start of the culmination of the Hadassah drive to raise $15,000 “to
provide luncheons for the school children in Palestine.
1929:
“Suppression of Judaism and persecution of Zionists in Russia by the Soviet
Union were vigorously denounced by speakers today at a conference of the
American Jewish Congress in the Hotel Pennsylvania.”
1930: The
Cleveland Rosenblums, a professional basketball team organized and owned by
“Clelveland department store owner Max Rosenblum dropped out of the American
Basketball League today.
1930:
Birthdate of Shepsel Ber Nudelman, the Bronx native who gained fame as Dr.
Sherwin B. Nuland.http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/05/us/sherwin-b-nuland-author-who-challenged-concept-of-dignified-death-dies-at-83.html?hpw&rref=obituaries
1931(28th
of Kislev, 5692): Fourth day of Chanukah
1931:
Birthdate of Robert Arum, the native of Brooklyn’s Crown Heights and graduate
of Harvard Law who founded the professional boxing promotion company known as
Top Rank.
1932:
Political activist and social reformer Belle Moskowitz broke several bones when
she fell down the steps in front of her home in New York today. This accident would lead to a fatal embolism
which would bring about her premature death in January of 1933 at the age of
55.
1933: “High
and Low” a French drama filmed by cinematographer Eugen Schüfftan was released
today.
1933: “Girl
Without a Room” a comedy featuring Mischa Auer as “Walsky” was released today
in the United States.
1933(20th
of Kislev, 5694): Eighty-one-year-old Louis Lehmann Berr, the French born son
Mathilde and Alphonse Henrion Berr, and husband of Henritte Alice Berr with
whom he had two sons – Maurice and Raymond – passed away today in Paris.
1933:
In “John Barrymore in a Pictorial Conception
of Elmer Rice's Play 'Counsellor-at-Law'” published today Mordaunt
Hall provides a description of the successful efforts to move this drama from
Broadway to Hollywood.
1934:
“Babbitt” a cinematic version of the novel of the same name produced by Samuel
Bishcoff was released in the United States today.
1935:
Borough President Samuel Levy, Dr. Israel Goldstein, president of the JNF, Dr.
Bernard Revel, president of Yeshiva College, S.L. (Roxy) Rothafel, Louis J.
Horowitz, Samuel C. Lamport and Harry Hershfield were among the more than 1,500
people who attended a dinner tonight in honor of Maurice Levin the president of
the Hearn Department Store.
1935:
“Anti-Jewish rioting in the heart of Bucharest” which was reportedly observed
by the Chief of Police and “several high officials who took no effect measures
to restore order,” “broke up balloting by the Rumanian Bar Association” five
hundred of whose Jewish members were kept from casting their votes.
1936: “The
German press, led by Chancellor Adolf Hitler’s own Voelkischer Beoabachter, has
started a violent campaign technically directed ‘against world Jewry and
against bolshevism,’ but obviously designed to exert pressure on the judges at
Chur, Switzerland” who are getting to preside at the “trial of David
Frankfurter who is charged with killing Swiss Nazi leader Wilhelm Gustloff at
Davos last February.
1936:
“Hundreds of Nazis” including “many members of the German Legation at Berne”
“and anti-Nazis thronged” into Chur, Switzerland tonight “on the eve of the
trial for murder of David Frankfurter, the “27-year-old Jewish medical student”
charged with killing Wilhelm Gustloff whose status as a Nazi icon was cemented
when Adolf Hitler delivered the funeral oration at his formal.
1936:
Today, “Eliahu Epstein continued his testimony before the British inquiry
commission regarding illicit Arab immigration stressing that this caused an
economic grievance because unskilled Arab immigrants worked for 35 to 50 cents”
but “spent only 15 cents daily and accused the government and government
contractors of “encouraging this influx” because they employed these illegal
immigrants.
1936(24th
of Kislev, 5697): Thirty-eight-year-old David Freedman – “The King of the
Gagwriters” passed away today.
http://www.david-freedman.info/
1936: As
tensions grew over regulations designed to force Jewish businesses to stay open
on Saturday and close on Sunday in Tripoli, “two Jews were flogged in the
market place in the presence of a large crowd” while “a third who had been
condemned to a similar punishment” was sent to prison for three months since
his doctor said his physical condition left him “unequal to a flogging.”
1937:
Falastin, an Arabic newspaper which had gained fame as the leading sports
journal in Ottoman Palestine, is scheduled to print a report tomorrow
describing “a compromised that has been reached between Jewish leaders, led by
Chaim Weizmann, and Arab leaders led by Nuri Pasha as-Said, the former premiere
of Iraq that will put an end to the current wave of violence.
1938: A
campaign to raise funds for the immediate relief for Jews who have suffered
from the anti-Semitic measures in Germany was launched today by the Christian
Committee for the Relief of Jewish Refugees chaired by New York State Attorney
General John J. Bennett, Jr.
1939: Six
Jews and 25 non-Jewish Poles, accused of committing acts of sabotage, are shot
in Occupied Warsaw.
1940: “A
dinner was given for Dr. Bernard Drachman at the Hotel Commodore” in
celebration of his golden jubilee as rabbi of Zichron Ephraim Synagogue” on
what was also the fiftieth anniversary of the synagogue.
1940:
Jewish immigrants who had entered Eretz Israel illegally aboard the Atlantic
were told that those aboard the Patria would stay in the country, but they
would be deported.
1941: The Nazis brought 700 Jews to Chelmo for final experiment of the
new method of killing. In groups of 80, the Jews were driven around the woods
in a special van, gassed to death by the fumes of the exhaust. A thousand Jews
a day for the next four days go through the same test. While this was seen as in improvement over
the other forms of murder used by the Nazis, it was not efficient enough. These mobile vans would give way to the gas
chambers.
1941: Four thousand Jews of Novogrudok, Belorussia, are killed.
1941(18th
of Kislev, 5702): As the Riga Ghetto was being liquidated 81-year-old Jewish
historian Simon Dubnow was murdered in Riga because he was too old and sick to
travel to Rumbula where he would have been massacred with other Jews. There is
no way this blog can do justice to this Jewish Intellectual Giant. The
tragedy is that a mind like this lost its life in the mud of Nazi murder spree.
Even as he faced death, he expressed his faith in the value of history when he
told the Jews of Riga, "Yidn, shreibt un fershreibt"("Jews,
write and record").
http://www.holocaustresearchproject.org/ghettos/dubnow.html
http://digifindingaids.cjh.org/?pID=1413626
https://www.commentarymagazine.com/articles/simon-dubnow-a-revaluation/
http://www.yivoencyclopedia.org/article.aspx/Dubnow_Simon
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Dubnow.html
1941(18th
of Kislev, 5702): Second day of the Rumbula Massacre during which 25,000 Jews
were murdered
http://www.rumbula.org/remembering_rumbula.shtml\
1941: The
Imperial Japanese Army took control of the rest of Shanghai, including the
British and American controlled sections of the city which meant that “monetary
aid and all communications from American Jews to the Jews of Shanghai ceased
due to the Anglo-American Trading with the Enemy Act and that Baghdadi Jews
living in Shanghai, many of whom were British subjects, were interned as enemy
nationals.”
1941(18th
of Kislev, 5702): Rabbi Moses Parzen passed away today in New York City.
1941: FDR
called for a declaration of war against Japan on the same day Germany was
entering into the most horrific stage of the Final Solution.
1941: The
Screen Writers Guild responded to yesterday’s attack on Pearl Harbor by forming
the Hollywood Writers Mobilization Against the War, a body to organize writers
for the war effort chaired by Robert Rossen.
1941:
Williams College undergraduate Bruce Sundlun who would become the second Jewish
Governor of Rhode Island volunteer to serve in the U.S. Army Air Forces
Aviation Cadet Program.
1941:
Robert “Rosie” Rosenthal enlisted in the United States. His request for combat training led to him
becoming a much-decorated B-17 pilot who flew more than twice the required
missions over German.
1941:
Today, Freiberg, Germany native Frederick Mayer, the son of a German Army
veteran and recipient of the Iron Cross, who came to the United States at the
age of 16 enlisted in the Army where he eventually he would be dropped behind
enemy lines as part of operation Greenup in 1945.
1942(29th of
Kislev, 5703) Fifth Day of Chanukah
1942(29th of
Kislev, 5703): Albert Kahn, the Prussian born son of German Rabbi who became
America’s leading industrial architect passed away today.
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/b/bhlead/umich-bhl-0420?rgn=main;view=text
1942(29th of
Kislev, 5703): Sixty-five-year-old Anna Mehrbach, the wife of Albert I.
Mehrbach and the mother of Elliot and Albert M. Mehrbach passed away today.
1942: Rabbi Stephen S. Wise, president of the World Jewish
Congress, met with other Jewish leaders and U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt
to discuss the recently revealed plight of European Jews. “In the Abandonment
of the Jews author David S. Wyman points out that this gathering the Oval
Office was ‘the only one concerning the Holocaust that FDR ever granted to a
group of Jewish leaders’ Estimates of two million Jewish dead were given to
him. Roosevelt responded by saying that
official U.S. sources …’have given us proof that confirms the horrors discussed
by you.’” Based on this meeting, FDR knew but did nothing except allow his
previous made comments about ‘doing all in our power to be of service to your
people in this tragic moment.’”
1942: The
German SS organized the last deportation of Ternopil Jews to death camp in
Belzec, when 1,400 Jews were sent there. The chief of the Gestapo,
SS-Sturmbannführer Hermann Müller, bore overall responsibility for the mass
murder of the Jews of Ternopil and Berezhany which were located in the western
Ukraine.
1943:
“Speaking before the Council of Christians and Jews” in London today, “the Most
Reverend William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury declared that it was of
‘utmost importance’ that the sufferings of the Jews ‘be kept in full view’ of
all people so that the spirit of indignation and compassion in them will
not die out.”
1944:
“Guest in the House” a film noir which Lewis Milestone began directing but
could not finished due to appendicitis was released in the United States.
1945: In
Berkley, CA, Julius Heldman, the 1936 National Tennis Junior Champion and
“Gladys Heldman the founder, editor, and publisher of World Tennis magazine and
the founder of the women's pro tour in 1970” gave birth to Stanford grad and
UCLA trained attorney Julie Heldman, the American tennis player “who won 22
women’s singles titles as well as “three gold medals at the 1969 Maccabiah
Games and was the author of “a memoir, Driven, A Daughter’s Odyssey.”
1945(4th
of Tevet, 5706): Parashat Miketz
1945(4th
of Tevet, 5706): Random, Poland born Yiddish writer David Goldblatt who lived
in South Africa before coming to the United States in 1916 where he was an
editor of “The General Illustrated Encyclopedia passed away today.
1945:
Birthdate of Russian volleyball player Valdimir Patkin, who competed for the
Soviet Union in the 1972 Summer Olympics and 1976 Summer Olympics” before
becoming “the Secretary General of the Russian Volleyball
Federation.”
1946: In Los Angeles, California, Aniela Młynarska who was Roman Catholic
and Polish-born Jewish concert pianist Arthur Rubinstein gave birth to actor and
composer of John Rubinstein.
1946: Dan Keinan photographed “a typical ship carrying illegal immigrants
to Mandatory Palestine.”
http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/jewish-world-news/1.540099
1947(25th
of Kislev, 5708): First Day of Chanukah; in the evening, kindle the second
light.
1947: Birthdate of Chava Alberstein an Israeli singer,
lyricist, composer, musical arranger and an actress who is one of the most
important Israeli singers, with a career spanning more than forty years. In 2007, she released her latest work “Shvil
HeChalav” or “Milky Way.”
1947: As
the Arabs tighten the noose around the Jewish community in Jerusalem, trucks
arrived carrying 60,000 eggs.
1947(25th
of Kislev, 5708): Tragedy struck when Yehoshua GLoberman, a senior Haganah
official was gunned down when his car was stopped at Latrun. This is the same Latrun that was the fortress
held by the Jordanian Arab Legion cutting off the city of David from Tel Aviv.
1947: Egypt
and Lebanon asked to be heard during the UN debates.
1947: The
UN rejects the request by the Jewish Agency to address the Security Council
since the organization did not want to set a precedent that allowed an entity
other than a country to participate in UN debates.
1948:
During the War for Independence, Uri Avnery, age 25, who would describe his
view of the war sixty years later in 1948: A Soldier's Tale, the Bloody Road
to Jerusalem is wounded while serving as a private soldier
1948: Jordan annexes “Arabic Palestine.”
The Kingdom of Trans-Jordan (Across the Jordan) will drop the “Trans”
prefix in recognition of its holdings on both sides of the Jordan River. Obviously, there was no thought to creating a
state of Palestine on the part of the Arabs since the only thing that changed
this illegal land holding was the war in 1967.
1948: Britain demands that the Security Council’s Negev
subcommittee implement sanctions against Israel because Israel continues to
surround an Egyptian force in the Negev.
The British did not seem to be bothered by the fact that the Egyptian
force was part of an act of aggression taken to contravene a resolution of the
United Nations.
1948: At
Kibbutz Ein HaHoresh, Ya'akov Morris, an Israeli diplomat, historian, and poet
and Sadie Morris, a journalist gave birth to historian Benny Morris.
http://www.meforum.org/2769/benny-morris-1948-islamic-holy-war
1948: Isaac
Don Levine “provided testimony to the House Un-American Activities Committee
today” during which, according to Karl Mundt, the Republican from South Dakota,
Levine named Laurence Duggan as being communist spy.
1948: At
kibbutz Ein HaHoresh, Israeli diplomat, historian, and poet Ya’akov Morris and
journalist Sadie Morris, Jewish immigrants from Great Britain gave birth to
historian Benny Morris.
1948: King Abdullah denounces Arab League-sponsored Palestine
Army regime in Gaza.
1948: Egypt announces dissolution of Moslem Brotherhood, a
fanatical national religious organization. [I guess they didn’t do such a good
job since the Brotherhood came out on top in the elections of 2011.]
1949: Birthdate of Raymond “Ray” Shulman, “a British musician and
the youngest of three brothers that were in the innovative British progressive
rock band, Gentle Giant.”
1949:
In Philadelphia, “Irving Meyers, an executive at a voting machines
manufacturer, and Patricia Meyers (née Lemisch), an interior designer who also
worked as a volunteer with the Head Start Program and the Home for the Blind”
gave birth to Nancy Jane Meyers “an American film
director, producer and screenwriter” who “is the writer, producer and director
of several big-screen successes, including The Parent Trap (1998), Something's
Gotta Give (2003), The Holiday (2006), and It's Complicated (2009). Her second
solo venture, What Women Want (2000), was at one point the most successful film
ever directed by a woman, taking in $183 million in the United States.
1949: Burma recognizes the state of Israel.
1949: “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” a Jule Styne musical with a book
by Joseph Fields opened on Broadway today at the Ziegfeld Theatre.
1949: Red Buttons (Aaron Chwatt) married Helayne McNorton
1949: In a ground-breaking precedent, the United Nations
established UN Relief and Works
Agency for Palestine Refugees with a budget of $54,900,000. Thus the UN played a key role in creating
Palestine Refugee Problem. No comparable
UN organization was established when Jews were forced to flee from a variety of
Moslem and/or Arab nations.
1949: U.S. premiere of
“On the Town” a cinematic adaptation of the Leonard Bernstein Broadway musical
of the same named with a screenplay by Adolph Green and Betty Comden,
co-directed by Stanley Donen, co-produced by Arthur Freed co-starring Jules
Munshin as “Ossie” and featuring Hans Conried as” Francois, the head waiter.”
1950: In Nevada, Gus
Greenbaum “lobbied the Clark County Commission to create the unincoported
township of Paradise” today
1951(9th of
Kislev, 5712): Parashat Veyetzei
1951(9th of
Kislev, 5712): Fifty-eight-year-old Springfield, MA native Edward Adaskin the
president of the Adaskin Furniture Company which he had founded with is brother
Herman in 1911 and who was a member of board of fellows of Brandeis University
and a past president of Temple Beth-El passed away today.
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1951/12/10/96226027.pdf?pdf_redirect=true&ip=0
1952: Yitzchak ben Zvi was elected the second President
of Israel succeeding Chaim Weitzman, who had died in office.
1953: Maryla Husyt, who “grew up in Warsaw, survived the Warsaw
Ghetto, the Majdanek concentration camp, and two slave labor camps” and
“Zacharias Finkelstein, active in Hashomer Hatzair, and a survivor of both the
Warsaw Ghetto and the Auschwitz concentration camp” gave birth to Dr. Norman
Finkelstein, the holder of a Ph.D from Princeton and college professor whose
unconventional views as can be seen by
his book The Holocaust Industry:
Reflections on the Exploitation of Jewish Suffering in which he “argues
that Elie Wiesel and others exploit the memory of the Holocaust as an
"ideological weapon".
1954(13th
of Kislev, 5715): Sixty-year old Claude Chaun, the “French surrealist
photographer, sculptor and writer whose real name was Lucy Renee Mathilde
Schwarb and who avoided being executed by the Germans for her role in the
resistance in WW II passed away today.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/19/obituaries/claude-cahun-overlooked.html
1955: Mister
Kelly’s was owned and operated by brothers Oscar and George Marienthal, was destroyed today “when a fire started in a grease chute
and spread through a ventilator into the club.”
1955: “The Ladykillers” produced by Michael
Balcon, filmed by cinematographer Otto Heller and starring Peter Sellers who
was, on his mother’s side, a descendant of prizefighter Daniel Mendoza, was
released in the United Kingdom today.
1956: The 1956 Summer
Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, which were
boycotted by Egypt, Iraq and Lebanon “in response to the Suez Crisis” that had
been precipitated by the Egyptian nationalization of the Suez Canal, came to a
close today.
1958: Russian born
American violinist Mischa Elman appeared in Carnegie Hall to play a recital
marking his golden jubilee of performing at the renowned concert venue.
1958:
“Everybody’s Broker” published today described the powerful role played by
67-year-old Sidney J. Weinberg the partner at Goldman, Sachs & Co who is
modern day version of Bernard Baruch.
http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,864550,00.html
1959: NBC
broadcast “My Three Angels” the tenth episode in the Startime series for which
Music Corporation of America under the leadership of Lew Wasserman got
performers who did not usually do television to perform on the small screen.
1960: U.S.
premiere of “The Sundowners” directed by Fred Zinnemann, with a score by
Dimitri Tiomkin.
1960: A
special television version of “Peter Pan” with music by Jule Styne, Mark
Chartap and Trude Rittman and lyrics by Betty Comden, Adolph Green and Carolyn
Leigh was broadcast today.
1962(11th
of Kislev, 5723): Parashat Vayetzei
1962:
Birthdate of Martin Adam “Marty” Friedman, “the lead guitarist for the heavy
metal band Megadeath.”
1962(11th
of Kislev, 5723): Fifty-six-year-old “Romanian-born French producer” Émile
Natan,” the brother of Bernard Natan, the head of Pathé-Natan” passed away
today in Paris.
1963: “The
Girl Who Came to Dinner” a musical with a book by Harry Kurnitz and “directed
and choreographed by Joe Layton” opened on Broadway today at The Broadway
Theatre.
1963:
Funeral services are scheduled to be held this afternoon for Senator and
Governor Herbert Lehman at Temple Emanu-El in New York
1963: Rabbi
Richard Sternberger officiated at the wedding of Gail Emelie Kanner and Thomas
L. Lazarus at the Sherry-Netherland Hotel.
1964(3rd
of Tevet, 5725): Seventy-six-year-old Simon Marks, 1st Baron Marks
of Broughton, the Leeds born son of Michael Marks who in 1907 inherited a
number of "penny bazaars" from his father, which had been established
with Thomas Spencer and with “the help of Israel Sieff, built Marks &
Spencer into an icon of British business. Passed away today in London.
1965: Abe Burrows' "Cactus Flower" premiered in New York.
(Would there be theatre in America without the Jews?)
1966(25th
of Kislev, 5727): Chanukah
1966:
Birthdate of Georgian born Israeli director and screenwriter Dover Koshasili.
1967: “For
Our Charitable Organization Urgent Appeal” published today called on “all
Rabbis and immigrants who suffered in the concentration camps and didn’t get
compensation” should contact an organization in Williamsburg led by Rabbi Aron
Ringer.
1967: In
Queens, NY, Peter Madoff, the brother of Bernie Madoff, and his wife gave birth
to attorney Shana Diane Madoff who became Shana Madoff Skoller Swanson when she
married Eric Swanson whom she had met while he was investigating her uncle and
who had played no part in what may be the biggest Ponzi scheme ever pulled off
in the United States.
1968(16th
of Kislev, 5729): Parashat Vayishlach
1968(16th
of Kislev, 5729): Sixty-year-old Ft. Worth Texas native Philip Jacob “Phil’
Handler the TCU guard who went on to a professional career with the Chicago
Cardinals and the Chicago Bears passed away today.
https://www.profootballarchives.com/coach/hand00800coach.html
1969: NBC
broadcast the 13th episode of “My World and Welcome to It” a droll
sitcom created by Melville Shavelson.
1969:
Three days after having been cited for contempt of court and sent to the Mateo
Jail, Dr. Joseph Lifschutz who had “refused a court or testify about one of his
patients” in a landmark case involving the issue of “Dr. – Patient
Confidentiality” was “released pending resolution of the case.”
1972(3rd
of Tevet, 5733): 8th Day of Chanukah
1972:
Mahmoud Hamshari, the PLO representative in France, believed to be the leader
of Black September in France was mortally wounded today in Paris.
1973: After
296 performances, the curtain came down on the original Broadway production of
“Seesaw” a musical with lyrics by Dorothy Field and music by Cy Coleman
1974(24th
of Kislev, 5735): Kindle the first Chanukah light in the evening
1974(24th
of Kislev, 5735): Eighty-eight-year-old Joseph Pearl, the Polish born holder of
Ph.D. from NYU who was the “chairman of the classical languages department at
Brooklyn College” passed away today, just eight days before his next birthday.
1974:
Anti-Zionist trials begin in Moscow today.
1976:
“Deputy Minister of Culture Popov warned organizers of the symposium on Jewish
culture” of “the unacceptability of the” event.
1976: U.S.
premiere of “A Star is Born” starring Barbra Streisand who also co-produced the
film.
1976(16th
of Kislev, 5737): Ninety-five-year-old Rabbi Julian Morgenstern passed away
today in Macon, GA.
http://collections.americanjewisharchives.org/ms/ms0030/ms0030.html
1976:
“Silver Streak,” a comedy directed by Arthur Hiller and starring Gene Wilder
was released today in the United States.
1977: Sir
Zelman Cowen was sworn in as Governor-General of Australia.
1977:
Rosalyn Yalow became the first American-born and
American-trained woman to receive a Nobel Prize in science when she accepted the Prize in Physiology or Medicine for
her work in the development of radioimmunoassay, a technique that allows
scientists to measure minute amounts of hormones and other substances in human
blood. (As reported by the Jewish Women’s Archives)
http://jwa.org/thisweek/dec/08/1977/rosalyn-s-yalow
1978(8th of
Kislev, 5739): Eighty-year-old Golda Meir, passed away. A Russian immigrant to
the United States, this former Milwaukee school teacher would make aliyah in
the 1920’s. She would become one of the most influential leaders of the Zionist
movement whose career included raising the funds that made it possible for
Israel to purchase arms at the time of its creation, clandestine negotiations
with the King of Jordan designed to avert war in 1948 to serving as Israel’s
Foreign Minister and Prime Minister. One
of her most memorable quotes came when Sadat made his visit to Jerusalem. In this one statement she showed a depth of
understanding rare in world leaders.
“Long after we have forgiven you for killing our children, we will still
be trying to forgive you for turning our children into killers.” As a socialist and an idealist she believed
in and sought peace. As a pragmatist,
she understood the necessity of self-defense even if it meant war.
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0503.html
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/meir.html
1978: “Force 10 from Navarone,” the movie version of the novel by
the same name with a story created by Carl Foreman was released today in the
United States.
1979(18th
of Kislev, 5740): Parashat Vayishlach
1979(18th
of Kislev, 5740): Sixty-nine-year-old “Joseph Wohl, founder and president of
the Jewish Theological Seminary of America’s Universal Brotherhood Movement”
passed away today.
1979: Aaron
Jean-Marie Lustiger, the Parisian born Jew who converted to Catholicism in 1940
at the age of 13 “received episcopal consecration …from Cardinal François
Marty.”
1980: While
on assignment for Rolling Stone, Annie Leibovitz took the last photos of John
Lennon who was shot and killed five hours after she finished.
1980: Today
“during a Monday Night Football game between the Miami Dolphins and the New
England Patriots, Howard Cosell shocked the television audience by interrupting
his regular commentary duties to deliver a news bulletin of the murder of John
Lennon in the midst of a live broadcast
1981:
Birthdate of Dov Yosef Tiefenbach, the native of Toronto whose first big acting
break came in 1994 “playing the role of 'Josh Avery' in the television series
RoboCop”
1982(22nd
of Kislev, 5743): Sixty-three-year-old General Haim Laskov, former Chief of
Staff of the IDF, passed away.
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Laskov.html
1982: “The
Verdict” the movie version of the play by the same name directed by Sidney
Lumet who also wrote the screenplay and starring Paul Newman was released in
the United States today.
1982:
“Sophie’s Choice,” an adaption of the novel with the same name Directed ,
Produced and written by Alan J. Pakula, starring Kevin Kline whose father
Robert was Jewish and featuring an Academy Award nominated score by Marvin
Hamlisch was released today in the United States.
1983(2nd
of Tevet, 5744): 8th Day of Chanukah
1984:
“Biloxi Blues, a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon premiered at the
Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles.”
1984(14th of Kislev, 5745): Eighty-four-year Luther Adler, a stage and
screen actor who starred in ''Fiddler on the Roof'' on Broadway, died today at
his home in Kutztown, Pa., after a long illness (As reported by Wolfgang Saxon)
1985(25th of Kislev, 5746): Chanukah
1985: The
Abandonment of the Jews: America and the Holocaust, 1941-1945 by David
S. Wyman and The Periodic Table by Primo Levi; translated by Raymond
Rosenthal are among the twelve books chosen by the New York Times Book Review as the best books published in the
country during the preceding year
1986: The
second and final segment of “Anastasia” produced and directed by Marvin J.
Chomsky, written by James Goldman and with music by Laurence Rosenthal was
broadcast today.
1987:
Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territories began an intifada, or
uprising.
1987: Sir
Joshua Abraham Hassan completed his second term as Chief Minister of Gibraltar.
1988: The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, a comedic adventure
film featuring music by Michael Kamen was released today in the West Germany.
1988:
“Yasir Arafat said today that the Palestine Liberation Organization accepted
the existence of the state of Israel. His statement, which he presented as a
milestone, was immediately dismissed in Israel and greeted coldly by the United
States
1989(10th
of Kislev, 5750): Sixty-nine-year-old St. John’s University trained lawyer, WW
II navy veteran and former Speaker of the New York State Assembly Stanley
Steingut, the Crown Heights born son of Kae Kaufmann Steingut and Irwin
Steingutt who had also served as Speaker of the New York State Assembly and
husband of Madeline “Madi” Fellerman with whom he had three children –
investment banker Robert, attorney Theodore and architect Ilene passed away
today.
https://www.nytimes.com/1989/12/09/obituaries/
1990(21st
of Kislev, 5751): Director and playwright Martin Ritt passed away.
1991: “Nick
& Nora” a musical written by Arthur Laurents with music by Charles Strouse
based on character from The Thin Man opened on Broadway.
1992(13th
of Kislev, 5753): Journalist William
Shawn passed away. Born William Chon in 1907, the Chicago native was the editor
of the New Yorker Magazine from 1952 to 1987.
1993: Upon
being named today as budget director by New York’s incoming Mayor, Abraham
Lackman said “he hoped to bring some new approaches to budget balancing…so the
city can avoid tax increases.”
1994(5th of Tevet, 5755): Israel
Aaron Maisels, popularly known as “Isie” Maisels, passed away at the age of 89.
He was fondly remembered as a leading member of the bar and a respected leader
of the Jewish Community in South Africa.
1994:
Secretary of State Warren Christopher met with Yasser Arafat to express the
Clinton Administration’s displeasure with the failure of the Palestinian
Authority to provide the level of security that will make possible the transfer
of territory to PA control.
1996(27th
of Kislev, 5757): Third Day of Chanukah
1996(27th
of Kislev, 5757): Ninety-four-year-old Jon Langeloth Loeb, Sr. the sone of
Adeline Moses and Carol Loeb who were wed at St. Louis in 1896 and the husband
of Frances Lehman whom he married in 1926 and with whom he had five children –
Judith, John, Arthur, Ann and Deborah – passed away today.
1996:
“Ragtime” a musical based on E.L. Doctorow’s novel of the same name “had its
world premiere in Toronto, where it opened at the Ford Centre for the
Performing Arts (later renamed the Toronto Centre for the Arts) today, the
brainchild of Canadian impresario Garth Drabinsky and his Livent Inc., the
Toronto-production company he headed
1996: Michael and Susan Dell attend the
groundbreaking for the Dell Jewish Community Campus.
1996:
In “Symbol on a Hill” Serge Schmemann reviews a series of recent books about
Jerusalem including “City of Stone:The Hidden History of Jerusalem” by Meron
Benvenisti, “Jerusalem: One City, Three Faiths” by Karen Armstrong, “ City of
the Great King: Jerusalem From David to the Present” edited by Nitza Rosovsky,
“Jerusalem In 3000 Years” by Nachum Tim Gidal and “Jerusalem in the Twentieth
Century” by Martin Gilbert
1997(9th
of Kislev, 5758): Eighty-nine-year-old Sarah Abrams passed away today in
Pittsburgh, PA.
1997(9th
of Kislev, 5758): Eighty-seven-year-old Leon Poliakov, a historian of
anti-Semitism who testified at major war crimes trials, died today in France.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/obituary-leon-poliakov-1288107.html
1997:
A Broadway revival of Neil Simon’s “Sunshine Boys” starring Jack Klugman as
Willie Clark and Tony Randall as Al Lewis opened at the Lyceum Theatre.
2000(11th
of Kislev, 5761): Seventy-six-year-old documentary filmmaker Lionel Rogosin,
the son of textile mogul and philanthropist Israel Rogosin and the grandson of
Samuel Eliezer Rogosin who had come to the United States to raise funds for a
Yeshiva in Eastern Europe passed away today.
https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/18/movies/lionel-rogosin-76-documentary-filmmaker.html
https://www.theguardian.com/news/2000/dec/15/guardianobituaries.filmnews
https://www.lionelrogosin.org/AboutLR.html
2000:
“Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” a film nominated for 10 Oscars with a script
co-authored by James Schamus was released today in the United States.
2001(23rd
of Kislev, 5762): Parashat Vayeshev
2001:
In the fight against Arab terrorism, Israeli “helicopter gunships attacked
Palestinian security buildings in Rafah, Gaza.
2001:
“Black Hawk Down” a cinematic version of the book by the same name produced by
Jerry Bruckheimer with music by Hans Zimmer was first shown in the United
States today.
2002: The New York Times
list of the Best Books of 2002 contains the following works about Jewish
related subjects or by Jewish authors including White Christmas': Irving Berlin's Dream by Barry Gwen.
2002: Final performance of Jewish
playwright Clifford Odets’ masterpiece Awake
and Sing at the Timleline Theatre in Chicago, Ill.
2003: A special two-day lighting tribute began marking the 110th
anniversary of the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) with illumination of
the Empire State Building with the organization's colors of blue and green. (As
reported by the Jewish Women’s Archives)
2004(25th of Kislev, 5765): First Day of Chanukah; kindle the
second light in the evening.
2004(25th of Kislev, 5765): David Brudnoy, Boston radio talk show
host, passed away. Born in Minnesota, Brudony was living proof that one could
be a popular radio personality, discussing controversial subjects while
maintaining a basic level of civility.
2004: U.S. premiere of “Blade: Trinity” directed and written by
David S. Goyer based on a character created by Marv Wolfman.
2005: Delegates to an international conference have accepted a new
Red Cross emblem, paving the way for Israel to join the humanitarian movement
after nearly six decades of exclusion, officials said.
2005: Avi Saig a member of the IDF who died when his APC rolled
over during a training exercise was laid to rest in Holon’s Military Cemetery.
2005(7th of Kislev, 5766): Sixty-nine year old Kalman
Ruttenstein,” the fashion director for Bloomingdale’s” passed away today. (As
reported by Eric Wilson)
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/09/fashion/09ruttenstein.html?_r=0
2005: Rick Moranis’ ‘The Agoraphobic Cowboy was announced as a
nominee for the 2006 Grammy for Best Comedy Album.’
2005: Israeli mathematician Robert Auman shared the Nobel Prize in
Economics with Thomas Schelling. Auman
was recognized for his research into game theory.
2005: “Leonard Woolf’s Quiet Complexity” published today provides
a review Victoria Glenddinning’s biography of the man some know only as the
Jewish husband of Virginia Woolf.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/08/arts/08iht-IDSIDE9.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
2006: “The Holiday,” a “romantic comedy written, produced and
directed by Nancy Meyers” and starring Jack Black and Eli Wallach and with
music by Hans Zimmer was released today In the United States and the United
Kingdom
2006: On her 39th birthdate, Shana Madoff became
engaged to Eric Swanson whom she might while he was investigating her Uncle
Bernie’s financial activities.
2006: “Blood Diamond,” “co-produced and directed by Edward Zwick
was released today in the United States.
2006: Macmillan Reference USA and Israel’s Keter Publishing unveil
the new edition of the Encyclopedia Judaica with 22 volumes containing
more than 21,000 entries about Jewish life.
2007(28th of Kislev, 5768): Amy Elizabeth Rosenblatt Solomon, the
wife of Dr. Harrison Solomon, mother of Jessica, Sammy and James, and daughter
of Ginny and Roger Rosenblatt passed away.
2007: In Jerusalem, a screening of “Children of the Sun” a
documentary about the first generation of sabras born on kibbutzim to the
parents of parents who immigrated to Eretz Israel with the hope of creating a
new society.
2007: In the Chicago Tribune
a Jewish literary double-header: E.L.
Doctorow reviews a memoir by Studs Terkel entitled Touch and Go.
2008: Amy Goodman was named as a recipient of the 2008 Right
Livelihood Award, often referred to as the "Alternative Nobel Prize"
— the first journalist to be so honored.
2008:
Prof. Aliza Lavie of Bar-Ilan University discusses
her compilation of traditional prayers for women, A Jewish Woman's Prayer Book at the Ivry Lounge in the
Schottenstein Cultural Center in New York City.
2008: At the 92nd Street Y Congresswoman Debbie
Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) and Hillel president Wayne Firestone discuss the
complications facing Jewish life on campus today, from anti-Israel activity and
Holocaust denial to outright anti-Semitism in a presentation moderated by Thane
Rosenbaum, professor of law at Columbia University.
2008: Today “Web series release” of “Children’s Hospital
co-developed by David Wain and co-starring Henry Winkler.
2008: “Rabbi Professor Daniel Hershkovitz, a mathematician from
the Technion, was chosen to head” the newly formed Jewish Home Party.
2008: Time magazine includes reviews of “Defiance, “a film
based on Defiance: The Bielski Partisans which chronicles the
exploits of the largest of all Jewish partisans fighting against the Nazis and Milk, “a biopic” that chronicles the
exploits of Harvey Milk as he “organized gay society…into a politcally
effective community as well as a laudatory obituary of Irving Brecher which
like so many articles about the famed comedy writer, fails to mention the fact
that he is Jewish and was part of a whole generation of Jewish comedy writers
who fueled the funny bones of America during the 20th century.
2009: A public memorial service is held in honor of Abe Pollin at
the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.
2009: The 20th Washington Jewish Film Festival presents
a screening of “In Search of the Bene Israel” which documents “the filmmaker
travels to India to reconnect with her grandmother's Bene Israel community” and
“From Swastika to Jim Crow,” a film that includes “the lost
stories of the ‘refugee scholars,’ Jewish academics who fled Nazism to the
United States and found employment at historically Black colleges.”
2009: The 24th Annual New York Israeli Film Festival includes a
screening of “Israeli Cinema, Part 2.”
2009(21st of Kislev, 5770): Yosef Haim
Yerushalmi, a groundbreaking and wide-ranging scholar of Jewish history whose
meditation on the tension between collective memory of a people and the more
prosaic factual record of the past influenced a generation of thinkers, passed
away today at the age of 77. (As reported by Joseph Berger)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/11/nyregion/11yerushalmi.html?_r=0
2009:
Mr. Matthew Gould MBE has been appointed Her
Majesty's Ambassador to the State of Israel in succession to Mr Tom Phillips
CMG. He is the first Jewish person to
hold this post
2010: “Celebrating the First Lights of Women Rabbis” by Elizabeth
Imber published today.
http://jwa.org/blog/celebrating-the-first-lights-of-women-rabbis
2010: Yael Perlov is scheduled to present a program entitled David
Perlov: Pioneer of Israeli Cinema at the 21st Washington Jewish Film
Festival. The scheduled presentation will include the U.S. premier of “In
Jerusalem” and “Diary: Chapter 1 (1973-1977)”
2010: Keshet Eilon students and teachers are scheduled to perform
works by Schumann on WQXR’s Young Artists Showcase at 9 pm in New York City.
2010(1st of Tevet, 5771): Rosh Chodesh Tevet
2010: Funeral services were held today for Rose Becker, of blessed
memory, in Cedar Rapids, IA.
2010: Four to five mortar shells were fired from the Gaza Strip
into the Eshkol regional council tonight night hitting an area resident.
2011. The government must realize that this will be an active line
of conflict for the foreseeable future.
2011: The Booklover’s Luncheon, a part of Jewish Cultural Arts
Month, is scheduled to be held at the Upton JCC in New Orleans, LA.
2011:
The second weekend of Hamshoushalayim is scheduled to begin today.
2011:
“Eichmann’s End: Love, Betrayal, Death” is scheduled to be shown at the 22nd
Jewish Film Festival in Washington, D.C.
2011:
An Israeli air strike in central Gaza killed a Palestinian militant planning a
terrorist attack on the Egypt border, the IDF Spokesperson said today.
2011(12th
of Kislev, 5772): Ninety-two year Sir Zelmann Cowen who was the 19th
Governor-General of Australia passed away.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/02/sir-zelman-cowen
2011:
David Stern asserted his power as Commissioner of the NBA by vetoing a
three-team trade that he thought would have undermined the integrity of the
game.
2012:
An outdoor menorah lighting ceremony is scheduled to take place the Virginia
Gateway Town Center in Gainesville, VA.
2012:
Parshat Vayeshev – this is the same Torah portion that was read on December 13,
1941, the first Saturday after Pearl Harbor.
You have to wonder how the Rabbis of the day tied the story of Joseph to
the events of the day. Maybe they
related the darkness of Joseph’s pit to the darkness that America was facing at
the start of WW II.
2012:
A second Broadway revival of David Mamet’s “Glengarry Glen Ross” opened today
at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre
2012(24th
of Kislev, 5773): In the evening, Kindle the first light of Chanukah.
2012:
The Sephardic Music Festival is scheduled to open with performances by Copal,
Cannibal Animal Machine and The Sway Machinery at the Knitting Factory in
Brooklyn
2012:
Tonight, President Obama “congratulated Jews around the world on the first
night Chanukah.” (As reported by the Times of Israel)
2012:
In Westport, CT, the Jews are scheduled to find two uses for potatoes at
“Vodkas and Latkes.”
2012:
Yesterday, the United Nations on Friday approved an Israel-initiated resolution
in which the international body affirmed for the first time that
entrepreneurship was a critical development tool.
2012:
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal, making his first ever visit to the Gaza Strip,
vowed today never to recognize Israel and said his Islamist group would never
abandon its claim to all Israeli territory.
2013:
The New York Times features reviews
of books by Jewish authors and/or of special interest to Jewish readers
including Collision Low Crossers: A Year Inside the Turbulent World of NFL
Football by Nicholas Dawidoff, The Most of Nora Ephron by Nora
Ephron and Wonders of Wonders: A Cultural History of “Fiddler on the Roof”
by Alisa Solomon
2013:
Out-of-town tryouts for “If/Then” starring Idina Menzel came to an end at the
National Theatre in Washington, DC.
2013:
The Yiddish film “American Matchmaker” is scheduled to be shown at the Westside
Neighborhood School.
2013:
In Springfield, VA, Congregation Adat Reyim is scheduled to host a service
rededicating its 200 year old Holocaust Torah that had belong to a congregation
in Sedlacany, Czechoslovakia that was destroyed by the Nazis.
2013:
“Voices of the Vigil,” an exhibition that “tells the story of the Washington
Jewish Community’s “role in the struggle for Soviet Jewry” is scheduled to open
at Washington Hebrew Congregation.
2013:
The Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education is scheduled to host a screening
of “Mrs. Miniver” followed by a discussion of this Oscar winning account of
English bravery during the Battle of Britain that buttressed the cause of those
believing America should enter the war to fight the Nazis.
2013:
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu addressed the attack on Greek Orthodx Priest
Garbriel Nadaf’s son at today’s cabinet meeting, saying that Israel will not
tolerate threats of physical attacks against Christians, Muslims and Druse who
“want to link their fate even more to the State of Israel and want to serve in
the IDF (As reported by Ariel Ben Solomon and Herb Keinon)
2013
A right-wing political group accused former Knesset speaker and Jewish Agency
head Avrum Burg of treason today in a letter to law enforcement officials for
statements Burg made last week that appeared to confirm that Israel possessed
nuclear and chemical weapons. (As reported by Gavriel Fiske)
2013:
The American Zionist Movement, the World Zionist Organization and Consulate
General of Israel in New York City is scheduled to host a conference on
Anti-Zionism and Ant-Semitism
http://www.azm.org/the-devil-that-never-dies-antisemitism-program/
2013:
“The London Review of Books published an online article by Seymour Hersh
alleging that President Obama had "omitted important intelligence, and in
others he presented assumptions as facts" in his assertion during his
televised speech of 10 September that Bashar Al-Assad regime had been
responsible for the use of sarin in the Ghouta chemical attack of 21 August
2013 against a rebel-held district of Damascus.
2014:
Willa Schneberg is scheduled “to read from her recent collection Rending the
Garment at the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education.
2014(16th
of Kislev, 5775): Ninety-five-year-old Sylvia Padzensky passed away today at
Cottage Grove Place in Cedar Rapids.
http://www.cedarmemorial.com/Obituary/2014/Dec/Sylvia-Padensky/
2014:
The second and final episode of “The Red Tent” is scheduled to be broadcast on
Lifetime.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/the-red-tent-hits-the-small-screen-in-new-steamy-setting/
2014:
“The Rothschild egg which “Béatrice Ephrussi de Rothschild presented this egg
to Germaine Halphen upon her engagement to Béatrice's younger brother, Édouard
Alphonse James de Rothschild” was given to the Hermitage Museum in Saint
Petersburg during the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the
museum.
2014:
“Arabic media reported today that two alleged Israeli airstrikes the day before
had targeted advanced Russian-made air-defense missiles bound for Hezbollah.
2014:
“Irritability and Sever Temper Outbursts” Helping Parents Help Their Children”
was the topic of today’s Dr. Samuel Kahn Memorial Lecture presented by the
Westchester Jewish Community Services organization and NewYork-Presbyterian,
Westchester Division.
2014:
A new HBO documentary, “Regarding Susan Sontag” airing tonight charts the way
Sontag’s approach to the issues of her day allowed her to become a new kind of
American public intellectual.
2014:
The 19th Knesset’s final day began today with a meeting of the
Finance Committee where the agenda “consisted of the long-planned funneling of
some NIS 3.6 billion ($902 million) to the Defense Ministry. “
2015:
“Shmattes” an exhibition that “surveys the numerous ways in which hip, secular,
young American Jews wear their Jewishness on their sleeves, literally” and that
features a display of “contemporary,
funny, edgy Jewish-themed t-shirts” is scheduled to open at the Center for
Jewish History.
2015:
In what was later described as “just a joke,” Rick Kriseman, “The Jewish mayor
of St. Petersburg, Florida made it known today that Republican presidential
candidate Donald Trump was unwelcome in his city, following Trump’s suggestion
the same day that the United States prevent all Muslims from entering the
country.” (As reported by Renee Ghert-Zand)
2015:
“Young (Mostly), Hip (Mostly), Adrift in 2 Worlds” published today provides a
review of New York 1, Tel Aviv 0 by Shelly Oria.
2015:
Chef Michael Solomonov, the chef/owner of the popular Zahav restaurant in
Philadelphia is scheduled to teach the “Master Chef Class” at the Skirball
Center.
2015:
“A Carved Stone Block Upends Assumptions About Ancient Judaism” published today
described the impact that the discovery of “The Magdala Stone” has had on views
of life during the final decades of the Second Temple.
2016:
The YIVO Institute for Jewish research is scheduled to present “Yiddish Open
MIC” hosted by Shane Baker for an evening filled with the sounds of a language
that at one time had been written off as dead as the proverbial dodo bird.
2016:
The New York premiere of “Personal Affairs” is scheduled to be shown on the
last night of the 10th Annual Other Israel Film Festival.
2016:
Singer Yael Naim, the daughter of Sephardic Jews from Tunisia born in Paris and
raised in Israel is scheduled to perform at the Highline Ballroom.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhE7QMXRE1g
2016:
The Center for Jewish History is scheduled to present a tutorial in which
senior reference librarian Moriah Amit provides the lay person with guidance on
how to use a searchable online map of New York’s historical synagogues synagoguemap.cjh.org recently established by the Ackman and Ziff Family
Genealogy Institute.
2017(20th
of Kislev, 5778): Observance of the second day of the Rosh HaShanah of
Chassidus.
2017:
“Dozens of letters from Jews to Oskar Schindler’s wife Emilie thank her for her
role in their liberation are scheduled to actioned in south-west England”
today.
2017:
Today’s session of the URJ Biennial in Boston is scheduled to include a Shabbat
Dinner followed by Kabbalat Shabat and Song Session.
2017:
Sixty-seven-year-old United States Court of Appeals Judge Alex Kozinski was
accused of “sexual misconduct” today.
2017:
Jewish Book Month, an annual event that provides us with a chance to
contemplate Jewish books and the lives of authors such as Rabbi Leo Trepp whose
works included The Complete Book of Jewish Observance continues today.
2018:
In London, the “Conference of Aegyptiaca, the Journal of the History of the
Reception of Ancient Egypt” hosted by the Warburg Institute is scheduled to
come to an end today.
2018:
At the Lumberyard in Catskill, NY, “The Day” is scheduled to be performed by
Wendy Whelan and “world renowned Israeli-American cellist Maya Beiser.”
2018:
“The Mlotek family and The National Yiddish Theatre - Folksbiene honored the
memory of Chana Mlotek z"l as people from all walks of life from the YIVO
Institute to multiple personalities of the Entertainment Industry shared their
stories in celebrating the life & accomplishments of the beloved author,
archivist, lifelong activist for the preservation Yiddish music and culture.
2018(30th
of Kislev, 5779): Triple Header Shabbat; Parashat Miketz; Rosh Chodesh Tevet;
Sixth Day of Chanukah
2019:
The Leo Baeck Institute is scheduled to present Yale Professor David Sorkin
speaking on “Emancipation, Then and Now” which examines “the ongoing story of
how Jews have gained, kept, lost, and recovered rights in Europe, North Africa,
the Middle East, the United States, and Israel.”
2019:
In San Jose, CA, Temple Emanu-El is scheduled to host “Latkes and Laughs”
during which “comedians Jeff Applebaum, Rachael Berman and Scott Blakeman serve
up the jokes to go with freshly made potato pancakes.”
2019:
In Atlanta, GA, the Breman Museum is scheduled to host Murray Lynn as he
describes being a 14 year old “when he, his mother and three brothers, who were
later murdered were shipped in cattle cars to Auschwitz.
2019:
In San Francisco, Congregation Beth Shalom is scheduled to host Ephraim
Margolin as he talks about “The Education of One Israeli—1936 to 1945.”
2019:
The Shoshana S. Cardin Leadership Awards for 2019 are scheduled to be present
today at the USCJ-RA Convention in Boston.
2019:
In Albany, CA, Local Jewish artist, author and poet Marcia Falk is scheduled to
discuss and reads from her latest book, Inner East: Illuminated Poems and
Blessings.
2019:
The Illinois Holocaust Museum is scheduled to Elizabeth Rosner as she talks
about her latest book Survivor Café: The Legacy of Trauma and the Labyrinth
of Memory.
2019: As Israelis awaken this morning, they will be
looking to the skies to see if last night’s rocket barrage from Gaza was an apparition
or the start of a new wave of terror.
2020:
In act of Tikun Olam, Temple Judea, whose leadership includes Rabbi Feivel
Strauss and Cantorial Soloist Abbie Strauss, is scheduled to participate in the
“Help Feed the Hungry” where congregants make homemade sandwiches for St.
George’s Kitchen which “distributes 300 sandwiches a day.”
2020:
The ASF Institute of Jewish Experience
is scheduled to present “A Virtual Tour of the Bukharian Jewish Heritage
Museum “
2020: The Jewish Council
for Public Affairs is scheduled to present its first virtual benefit from 7 to
8 p.m. during which U.S. Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., and community advocate Harvey
Reiter of Washington, D.C., will be honored with JCPA’s 2020 Tikkun Olam Award.
2020: “JewishColumbus” is
scheduled to host “We Shine Together,” a free 20 minute virtual community
celebration that will feature stories of impact, showing how JewishColumbus’
work affects many people within the community.
2020: Israelis are
awakening to positive news on the Pandemic front –
the first shipment of
Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine will arrive in Israel on Thursday, while a larger
shipment is also slated to arrive on Friday with some 4 million doses of the
vaccine expected to arrive in Israel by the end of the month.(As reported by
Adir Yanko and Itay Blumenthal)
2020: Chabad is scheduled
the first session of “And Then There Were eleven,” a course in which
participants “will dive beyond the text and learn about the truth behind Yosef
and his brothers and discover that there is much more to this story of betrayal
than meets the eye.”
2020: Congregation Or
Atid is scheduled to present on line “Exploring Black and Jewish Experience: A
Conversation About “Convergence”
2020: The FIDF is
scheduled to host Lt. Colonel Jonathan Conricus speaking on “Fighting Media
Bias against Israel.”
2020: In Manhattan, the
Other Israel Film Festival is scheduled to host a screening of “Ma’abarot”
followed by a Question-and-Answer session.
2021: Park Synagogue is scheduled to present via Zoom “Refugee
Resettlement 101: Welcoming Newcomers to Cleveland.”
2021: Defense Minister Benny Gantz is scheduled
to travel to Washington today for meetings with Secretary of State Antony
Blinken and Secretary of Defense Austin as part of Israel's attempts to sway
the American position, which has thus far been in favor of an agreement with
Tehran. (As reported by Itamar Eichner)
2021: The Center for Jewish History is
scheduled to host Andrew Lawler, the author of Under Jerusalem: The Buried
History of the World’s Most Contested City.
2021: In Cedar Rapids, via zoom and in person,
the Hadassah Book Club is scheduled to discuss The Yellow Bird Sings by
Jennifer Rosner.
2021: Forward is scheduled to host “The Chosen
at 40: A conversation with Jeremy Kagan who wrote and directed the film based
on Chaim Potok’s novel of the same name.
2021: The Annual Celebration of the Jewish for
the 2021 Campaign including the installation of Brian Katz as Board Chair is
scheduled to take place at the Audubon Tea Room.
2021: The Hadassah Brandeis is scheduled to
present online Rabbi Haviva Ner-David talking about her inspiring novel, “Hope
Valley,” the story of the unexpected friendship between a Jewish-Israeli woman
and a Palestinian-Israeli woman living in the Galilee at the start of the
Second Intifada in 2000.
2021: Stanford’s Taube Center for Jewish
Studies is scheduled to present Laura Limonic of CUNY as she discusses her book
Kugel and Frijoles: Latino Jews in the United States and issues of
indemnity…”
2021: Hebrew College is scheduled to present
“Seeing Torah,” an Art Exhibit talk with Jamie Kotler.
2022: The Cleveland Jewish News 2022 18 Difference Makers awards
ceremony and reception is scheduled to be held at Park Synagogue East this
evening.
2022: The Center for
Jewish History is scheduled to present “In the Shadow of a Giant” with the
Phoenix Chamber Ensemble performing piano quarters by Beethoven and Brahms.
2022: The American
Sephardi Federation and the Moise Safra Center are scheduled to present:
Sephardi: Cooking the
History with Hélène Jawhara-Piñer
2022: The Illinois
Holocaust Museum in scheduled to author Sarah Rose as she discusses her latest
work, D-Day Girls: The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis,
and Helped Win World War II
2023(25th
of Kislev, 5784): Chanukah
2023:
In Coralville, IA Agudas Achim is scheduled to host a “Resilience and
Light-themed Contemplative Service.”
2023:
The Gateways Chanukah Retreat is scheduled to begin at the Hilton Hotel in
Stamford, CT.
2023:
As December 8 begins in Israel, the threat from Hamas continues as can be seen
from yesterday’s rocket firing from “Gaza safe zones” which is also a
continuation of the terrorist group’ strategy of hiding among the civilian
population and the threat from the north continues as can be seen from
Hezbollah shelling which has now claimed at least one more civilian life and the Hamas held hostages begin day 63 in captivity. (Editor’s note: this situation is too fluid
for this blog to cover so we are just providing a snapshot as of the posting at
midnight Israeli time)
