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In all
of these
roles he
was
highly
praised
by the
press
for his
sincerity
and for
his
excellent
portrayal
of the
characters
he
portrayed.
After
Michael
Mintz’s
suicide,
Cone
became
Kenny Lipzin
(Mintz’s
wife’s)
personal
business
manager.
In 1929
and
1930,
Cone was the
stage
director
and
general
director
of
Philadelphia’s
Arch
Street
Theatre
troupe
(Manager
Y.
Gruber). He
was also
hired as
Celia
Adler’s
business
manager
while
she was
appearing
in
Philadelphia
as a
guest
performer. He
married
her in
1931,
and they
traveled
together
for a
two-year
tour
throughout
South
America.
Afterwards,
they
went to
France,
Romania
and some
other
countries. Later
he
played
for
several
years
with his
wife
throughout
America. In
1943, he
organized
a
cooperative
“star troupe”
(Celia
Adler,
Bertha
Gerstin, Misha
and Lucy
German,
Menachem
Rubin,
Max Bozyk,
and
Itzik
Roytblum). After
that he
devoted
himself
to
managing
his
wife’s
performances
and
concerts.
At that
time he
permanently
withdrew
from
acting.
In his
final
years,
Cone
became
ill and
had to
be
frequently
hospitalized
and
under
constant
medical
care. He
died on
May 26,
1956, in
Beth
Israel
Hospital
in New
York
City and
was
buried
in the
“Yiddish
Theatrical
Alliance”’
cemetery
plot.
Cone
was one
of the
founders
of the
Yiddish
Actors
Union
and in
his
final
years he
became a
member
of its
Executive
Committee.
Cone
had two
sons
from his
first
marriage. For
many
years,
his son
Irving
was
treasurer
in
various
Yiddish
theatres
and
later
became a
theatrical
producer
on
Broadway.
In her
memoirs,
his
wife,
Celia
Adler,
said: “.
. . Cone
was
almost
never
involved
with
what I
call
'the
second
golden
period
of
Yiddish
theatre'.
But
Cone
had
theatre
in his
blood.
Cone
lived
and
breathed
Yiddish
theatre. Cone
believed
that
Yiddish
theatre
had to
satisfy
the
great
wide
Jewish
world
because
Yiddish
theatre
was an
integral
part of
their
lives.
In his
career
on the
stage,
he
played
important
leading
roles
with the
finest
Yiddish
female
stars
such as
Bertha
Kalich,
Kenny Lipzin,
Sara
Adler
and
others. He
constantly
exhibited
integrity
and
possessed
a great
measure
of
graciousness
as he
served
the
women
stars
with
whom he
acted. He
felt
gratitude
towards
them
because
they
brought
to the
theatre
their
special
talents
and
their
vast
array of
theatrical
know-how. It
was
almost
as
though
he felt
that
they had
served
and
assisted
in his
theatre. Throughout
his many
years on
the
stage he
received
high
praise.
At times
he was
acclaimed
for his
highly
ethical
practices,
for his
leadership
on the
stage
and for
his
business
acumen”.
Sh. E.
from
Celia
Adler.
-
Obituary
in
“Forward”,
N. Y.,
May 29,
1956.
-
Celia
Adler:
Celia
Adler
Tells”,
March
21, May
4, 1958.
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