He was born in June of 1886 [according to Z. Reisen in 1884]
in Kishinev, Bessarabia. His father had a large
tailoring business. He became
an
orphan when he was very young and was brought up by his
sister. D. received a little Jewish education in the
cheder, and after that he attended Jewish State public
school.
At age fifteen, he became a judge in a haberdashery
business, and three years later went back to school.
During the Kishinev pogrom he was wounded and arrested.
Later he led the revolutionary propaganda in Odessa,
Nikolayev and other cities. He also engaged in
propaganda while serving in the army on the border of
Persia-Afghanistan.
On his return to Kishinev, Dayksel under the pseudonyms
Rivares and Ovod became a regular contributor to the
Russian newspaper “Bessarabaskaya Zhizn” ("Bessarabian
Life").
In 1911 he immigrated to America, where he worked in a
tailoring workshop and became a member of the Russian
newspaper “Novyy Mir” ("New World"). He became familiar
with Jewish literature and began writing in Yiddish,
publishing in the "Fraye arbeter shtime” ("Free working
voice"), then -- in the "Tsukunft" ("Future") and "Frayhayt”
(“Freedom”), and other publications.
In last years Dayksel studied chiropractics and worked
in this profession in New York.
In addition to other fictional works, Dayksel published
"Ten one-act plays" (publisher "Frayhayt" (“Freedom”),
New York 1925): “Oyf a neye veg” ("The new way") (two
scenes), “Nokh tzvelv banakht” ("After midnight") (a
summer fantasy), “Nakete neshumes” ("Naked Souls" )(a
drama), “In a shloflozer nakht” ("In a sleepless night"
) (a scene), “Vemen di geter libn” ("Whom the Gods
Love") (a drama), “Tsvey foters” ("Two Fathers" ) (a
drama), “Dom fayer fun unzere heymn” ("The Fire of our
Homes"), “Vi mir zeynen” ("These We Are") (a relief), “
In zikh” ("In itself") (a psychological study), "Shah
mat" (a drama sketch), “Vays un Shvarts” ("Black and
White”) (a scene).
In “Morgn
frayhayt” (“Tomorrow-Freedom” (8-10 Oct, 1929) was
published Dayksel’s “Der templ fun ale haykigkaytn” (“The
temple of all holiness”) - a satire in one act”.
In 1929 in “Funken” (“Spark”) (N.Y.) was published D’s
“Der tsorn fun der erd” (“Anger from the Earth”) a play
in five acts and nine scenes [95 p., 16°].
Dayksel also wrote a drama in four acts entitled “Tsurik
tsum folk” ("Back to the People").
In 1923 D. was the director at New York's "Kunst-ring"
("Art Circle"), in the summer of 1929 the cultural
director and Director of dilettante productions at Camp
“Unity," and his one-act plays are often performed by
various amateur circles.
M. E. and M. E. from Sarah Kindman
-
Z. Reisen – "Lexicon of the Yiddish LIterature," pp.
687-89.
-
M. Olgin – New drama ‘Der hamer” (“Hammer”) , N.Y.
March 1926.
-
Froyka Shvartsman –
Two Proletarian books, “Frayhayt”,
(“Freedom”), N.Y., November 11, 1929.
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