Freylikhe kabtsonim
(The Jolly Paupers)
Directed by Leon Jeannot and
Zygmunt Turkow
Written by Moshe Broderzon (story & screenplay);
Jecheskiel Mosze Neuman (literary direction)
Music by Henoch Kon
1937
62 minutes, B & W
Released in the United States in 1938.
Jolly Paupers combines the rare talents
of the Warsaw Art Players under the leadership of Zygmunt
Turkow. In this musical comedy, the famous comic duo Dzigan
and Shumacher play two small town "entrepreneurs" who
believe they have struck oil in a local field. The whole
town finds out and thus begins a comedy of errors, including
millionaire investors, Amercian schemers, and insane asylums
(not to mention a little matchmaking on the side). Yet in
the face of setbacks, these two simpletons are relentless in
their efforts to escape their misery and achieve fame and
fortune and refuse to give in to despair. During the last
years preceding the outbreak of World War II, the Dzigan and
Shumacher comedy revue theatre gained immense popularity.
Their satirical monologues and skits provided Jewish
audiences with an escape and a rare opportunity to laugh.