R. was born on 5 January 1886 in Warsaw, Poland. His parents were fish merchants.

As a youngster he sang as a choir boy with various cantors and acted in the Yiddish theatre with "amateurs". In 1906 he came to America and performed in the dramatic school of Caesar Greenberg, and he participated in their production of "Khkhmt nshim" ("Leybele bronfn"), "Ben yakov" ("Foter benoni") and in "Dovid's fidele" (Noakh skkhur").

In 1907 he went to act in Cleveland under the direction of Harry Bernstein, later in Chicago where he was a chorus singer in the local "Metropolitan" theatre (Frida Zibel, Bessie Weissman, Matilda Finkelstein, Mrs. Shenholtz, David Baratz, Joseph Shoengold, Jaocb Hochstein, David Shenholtz, Boris Rosenthal, Leyzer Goldstein, Joseph Schwartzberg and David Hirsh), and with the guest stars: Morris Moskovitsh, Jacob P. Adler, Diana Feinman and Kenny Lipzin. Due to an actor's illness, he was given a greater role, and since then has emerged from the chorus and become an actor.

In 1916 he returned to New York where he became a member of the Yiddish Actor's Union and acted for several years in Bronx's McKinley Square Theatre, and after ten years he crossed the country.