Menasha Skulnik (1890-1970) was a star of both known for his Yiddish comedy performances, as well as his work on the Broadway stage.

Skulnik was "a sad-eyed, undersize comic who was acclaimed as a Jewish version of Charlie Chaplain in the 35 years he played in Yiddish musicals on the Lower East Side. The actor, who was an accomplished mime, had a genius for convulsing an audience and moving it to sorrow simultaneously. A shift of facial expression or a movement of his hands was enough to convey the emotion he sought to express."

"On the Yiddish stage, Mr. Skulnik wore a distinctive hat, which accentuated his character as a baffled clown. It was a tight-brimmed affair, several sizes too small, which he perched atop his head. Over the years, it became a trademark."