considered it absurd. At he same time he also began to contribute to Hebrew literature and was among those who participated in the fight against the old Jewish Haskalah (Enlightenment). Due to a criminal offense around 1873, Lerner fled to Vienna and there published the journal, "Emk shoshanim (Valley of the Roses)." During the Russia-Turkey War he, together with the Russian journalists, went into the Russian military, and during 1878 he issued in Bucharest a daily, "Zapiski grazhdanina (Notes of a Citizen)."

In Bucharest Lerner became acquainted with the Yiddish theatre that Abraham Goldfaden had founded in Romania, and when Lerner returned to Odessa, he decided that he would create a theatre that would also liberate the Jewish intelligentsia, and he took over the Mariinsky Theatre from Grikh Omer [?].

About this, B. Gorin writes: "Lerner did not fall down from heaven to take over the Mariinsky Theatre. He became acquainted with Yiddish theatre from the first hour that it was founded in Bucharest. As it appears from the beginning of his career, he was of a restless nature and threw himself in all directions. It would never have never occurred to Lerner that the time had come for a Yiddish theatre. He was far from that [kind of] Jew who would enjoy such diversions that a Yiddish theatre had been known to give. But when the theatre already was a done thing, the idea occurred to him that this could be a fertile field if it would be cultivated appropriately.

Lerner belonged to another wing of the Jewish intelligentsia. He was not satisfied with Goldlfaden's lowering himself to the people. He considered that the task of a Yiddish theatre is to elevate the people themselves. And as he happened to see in Bucharest the first burlesque of Yiddish theatre, the desire began to develop in him to show what could be done with a Yiddish theatre, and he waited for such an opportunity. This opportunity arose in Odessa. But to give the best plays, of which he dreamed, he demanded writers who should be able to create. At that time we already had good, talented Yiddish writers, but they didn't have any acquaintance with the stage. Lerner answered that difficult question in what he addressed to the writers of the Gentile, non-Jewish world. But he understood that the entire accomplishment, that it would not have Yiddishkeyt in it. So it would be a very difficult trick to take a good drama from the non-Jew and present it to the visitors to the Yiddish theatre. The average theatre-goer would look at such a drama like a rooster on the son of man, and the Jewish intelligentsia will heap all the evil dreams on the director of the theatre ...

" ... Lerner therefore made a compromise. He chose from among the nations such plays in which the action and the characters were Jewish. From the German repertoire he chose Gutzkoff's "Uriel Acosta." From the French he took Scribe's "Di yidin (The Jews)," and they were translated (free adaptations) into a pure Yiddish. The cited plays not only had virtue, their content was Jewish and understandable to the average Yiddish theatre-goer, but also they were in the repertoire of every European stage, and the Yiddish actors knew to go see famous Russian or German actors perform in these plays, and if they then still not known several roles ,they knew how to learn the roles. The main roles in these two plays were performed by Aba Shoengold and Sophia Goldstein (Karp), and they excelled in them."

Lerner's translation of Gutzkoff's "Uriel Acosta" was publlished for the first time in 1885 in Odessa -- Uriel Acosta, a tragedy in five acts by Karl Gutzkoff, for the Yiddish scene translated and arranged by J.J. Lerner ( 16°, 68 pages, 1889), then was published by Y. Lidski Publishers (third edition, Warsaw, 1903, 80 pages, 16°). Since then the play in this translation was performed on all the Yiddish stages.

Lerner's translation of Scribe's "Di yidin" was published in 1889 in Warsaw under the name, "Zhidovska (Jewess)," a tragedy in five acts by J.J. Lerner. In the inside of the introductory page there was printed: "Zhidovska, the Jewess, a work from various sources." The translation was published in many editions that were not found. In 1903 in the Warsaw publishing house of Y. Lidski there was published the third edition. There is also an edition from 1911.

David Kessler wrote in his memoirs that when Lerner put on Yiddish theatre in Odessa, his troupe consisted of: Mogulesko, Finkel, Edelstein, Zilberman, Liza Einhorn et al. The troupe used to play only once a week because the Odessa youth used to take over every large Odessa hall for other simkhas.

Jacob P. Adler relates in his memoirs that when Lerner took over (by himself, and then together with Shomer-Sheikowitz) the Mariinsky Theatre in Odessa, he let him perform in the theatre Shomer's "Der Idisher porits," "Der katorzhnik," "Der bal-teshuvah," and "Der blutiker adye," as well as Marie Lerner's "Di egunah"; then there was staged "Zhidovska" (The Jewess) with Moshe Zilberman as "Aliezer," and after "Uriel Acotsta," under the direction of German stage director Grodsky with Aba Shoengold in the title role.

According to Y. Riminik, based on a review in "Odeski Vestnik," under Lerner's direction there was staged on 11 August 1888 (it should be 1880), Dr. Shlomo Ettinger's "Serkele" (with Shakhar Goldstein as "Serkele"). From the review one can see that Lerner submitted the play as his dramatization of Dr. Ettinger's novel (?). However, it is very likely that Lerner had the comedy performed in his own adaptation.

But the theatre could not come up with a few plays, and Lerner had to turn to Goldfaden, that he should give permission for him to use several of his plays. "It did not take long -- B. Gorin writes -- and Goldfaden continued as director in the theatre in Odessa, but now the kingdom was divided between him, Lerner and Scheikowitz. But here there began a race between them, and Goldfaden managed to push out Lerner from the theatre. Goldfaden returned to Odessa, bringing with him his second historical play, "Bar Kokhba," and with Mogulesko by his side he was quickly done with the music. "Bar Kokhba" was very successful, but before Goldfaden had time to rejoice with the success, the bitter decree was issued that forbade Yiddish theatre in the whole of Russia. This was in September 1883. It is said that the ruling took place from a report. Someone said that "Bar Kokhba" is not a kosher piece, and that the prologue is aimed against the goverment. They also say that the indication came from an author (an instruction from Lerner), which was not as bad as it  turned out to be. He hoped to become a censor and that would give him the upper hand in the theatre."

About the competition between Lerner and Goldfaden, N. Auslander and Au. Finkel also writes: "In 1881 Goldfaden had to endure a competition only in Odessa (with Lerner's troupe). Leaving Odessa, he could freely choose a route, stay in any city as long as he wanted, and generally feel free from any competition. In 1882 and 1883 the situation became different. Goldfaden's competition (the troupe of Lerner and Mogulesko) had already also begun to visit cities besides Odessa (Poltava, Kishinev, et al). In Odessa itself, Goldfaden's competitors had already established themselves. ... A joint troupe of Goldfaden's and Lerner's actos played in Odessa at the end of 1882." (but already in the first days of January 1883 we read a notice in an Odessa newspaper that Goldfaden separated from his partner Lerner and took his productions pver to the Hantverker Club), and further. ... "In that case, when Goldfaden continued with his partners, it meant the begining of a bitter feud, which Lerner with all his means led against Goldfaden. As it was told in several places, the weapons against Goldfaden's theatre in particular apply to the msirh. Not only did Goldfaden's competitors use this to come to this tried-and-tested device."

About Lerner's character, Jacob Gordin writes in a letter to his friend Rosenblum: "Lerner I remember very well. May you forgive me, he is an antipathetic person, and I have never loved him. He had a head, but he didn't have a heart. His only ideal, his only God, was Osip Lerner. A man who has such a small, miserable god -- cannot be great!"

Even more clearly expressing himself (according to R. Granovsky) was Goldfaden's brother-in-law, Mr. Feldberg: "He (Lerner) had a hand in the decline of the Yiddish theatre in Russia. Now the shrewd fellow Lerner writes the "Jewish history," isn't he shameless?"

Lerner translated for his theatre several plays: 1.) Mosental's "Devorah," a drama in four acts and nine scenes" (manuscript in Yiddish with a copy from 1882 that can be found in Theatre Museum of YIVO.) The play later was staged by Keni Lipzin in England and America. 2.) "Muter-libe, oder, Tsvay khasenes in eyn tog (Mother Love, or, Two Weddings in One Day)," a melodrama in five acts, translated by Lerner from the French" (a manuscript that was rewritten by the actor M. Nakhamus, 14 April 1886, can be found in the Yiddish Department of the New York Public Library.)  3.) "Der feter Moshe Mendelssohn (The Father Moses Mendelssohn)," a dramatic scene in one act, from the German, "employed" for the Yiddish stage, Warsaw, 1899; it no longer can be found. (A copy the one-acter in German, which was not permitted by the censor in 1899, can be found in the Theatre Museum of YIVO.)

Lerner also wrote and published the following plays: "Yehudis," a historical drama in four acts and five scenes (published by Y. Alapin, Warsaw 1888, 40 pages), which initially was published in Spektor's "Familienfraynd" (Warsaw, 1888), and "Chanukah," a historical drama in four acts and seven scenes (Warsaw, ..., 54 pages).

In the Theatre Museum of YIVO one can also find Lerner's archive: 1.) A Yiddish manuscript (a censored copy from 1882) of "Menakhem ben-Yisroel," a drama in five acts and nine kartines, after the Russian adaptation of Lerner," the censor in 1906 did not allow it (according to our production, there are both texts of one play). 3.) The German text of a censured copy from 1906, of Lerner's play in four acts, "Sonia Goldhendkhen" (a free adapation of the comedy, "Sherlock Holmes"), 4.) The Yiddish text  of a drama without a name, and without the name of the author (censored in 1895), 5.) German censored copy. from 1906 of Lerner's Yiddish translation of M. Gorki's "Na dnye," under the name, "In der tifl."

In the Theatre Museum of YIVO there is also found the Yiddish censored copy from "Di yidin" (1880), and "Uriel Acosta" (1882).

After Lerner's theater activity was interrupted, he returned to literary work: 1883-84: He visited Germany and France as a correspondent for the Russian newspaper, Russkie vedomosti, and also published many articles in other Russian newspapers. He returned to Odessa, and he joined -- in competition with I.J. Linetzky -- to the translate into Yiddish Heinrich Graetz’s "Yidishe geshikhte (History of the Jews)," of which only one volume (1887) appears.

From Lerner's other works in Yiddish during that period, there especially stands out his essay, "Di Yudishe muze (The Jewish Muse?)" (in Spektor's "Hoyzfraynd," Vol. II, pages 182-196), where he shows a fine sense and an enthusiastic love for Yiddish music (Lerner himself was a good musician and played the violin). In this essay, he comes out sharply against the Hebraist rhetoric and here, as on other occasions, he demonstrates his Yiddish attitude.

Later Lerner converted to Christianity.

According to A. Kaufman in "Yevr. Starina," already in the eighties Lerner wrote sharp, anti-Semitic articles in Ozmidov's black-and-white organ, the "Novorossiysk Telegraph," and stood on guard for Russian chauvinism. Lerner should have fallen into the demoralized environment of the corner lawyer. He once forged the signature of a client in order to seize a large house.

Zalman Reisen writes: "It is difficult for us to postulate how such facts can be connected with Lerner's later activity in the field of Yiddish literature and theatre, in particular, that we have not found in the Yiddish, Hebrew and Russian-Yiddish press any necrology of this well-known and active performer."

On 23 January 1907, Lerner passed away in Odessa.

Lerner's wife, Marie Lerner, was also a playwright.

Lerner's son, Nikolai, a Christian, is known as a Russian literary historian, especially as a Pushkin researcher.

• Z. Reisen -- "Lexicon of Yiddish Literature," Volume II, pages 269-78.

• B. Gorin -- "History of Yiddish Theatre," Volume I, pages 227-236; Volume II, page 269.

• Rbi-Ktzin (Y.H. Rawnitzki) -- Di naye-zhargenishe literatur, "Yidishe Folks-bibliotek," (Editor -- Sholem Aleichem), Kiev, 1888, Volume 1, pages 338-342.

• David Kessler -- Goldfaden, Lener, Scheikovitch, "Der tog," N.Y., 21 January 1917.

• David Kessler -- A klap dem idishn theater, "Der tog," N.Y., 4 February 1917.

• Jacob P. Adler -- 2 "Uriel Akosta," 2 "Zhidovskat," Nor di beste gerikhte kumt ersht, "Di varhayt," N.Y., 27 July 1918.

• Noakh Prilutski -- "Yidish teater," Bialystok, 1921, Volume 1, pages 45-46.
  

• N. Auslander -- O. Finkel -- "A . Goldfaden," Minsk, 1926, pages 50-51, 72.

• S.L. Zitron -- Tipen fun idishe obtrinige, "Moment," Warsaw, November 18, 25, 1927.
  

• Y. Riminik -- Redifes afn idishn teater in rusland in di 80-er un 90-er yorn, "Teater-bukh," Kiev, 1927, page 79.

• R. Granovski -- Yitzhak Yoel Linetsky, "Pinkus," N.Y., 1927-1928, pages 214, 216.
  

• Sholem Perlmutter -- Idishe dramaturgen, "Di idishe velt," Cleveland, 2 December 1928.

• Sh. Borovoi -- A fargesener nihilist "filologishe shriftn," Vilna, 1929, Volume 3, pages 472-484.
  

• Jacob Gordin briv tsu zayn fraynd rozenblum, "Der moment," Warsaw, 28 June 1929.

• Y. Riminik -- Notitsn, "Bibliologisher zamlukh," Soviet Union, 1930, Volume I, pages 518-519.