Der Tunkeler
(Yosef
Tunkel)
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Born in 1881 in Bobruisk,
White Russia. His father was a religious teacher. He
received a Jewish education, and T. had in his youth
manifested a talent in painting, and at the age of
sixteen enrolled in the Vilna Drawing School. After
completing the school in 1899, he went away to Odessa,
where he began to write Yiddish. In 1901 he debuted with
a series of songs in "Der yud", and since then has
published songs, feuilletons and humoresques in the
Yiddish periodical press.
In 1906, he went away to
America, and here in 1908 founded the illustrated joke
page "Der kibetzer (The Kibbutzer)", and then "Der
groyser kunds", where he published caricature drawings
and humorous reviews across the Yiddish theatre.
Being in America, T.
published in "Der arbeter", New York, (12 January--16
February 1907), his "judaicized" play "Der farloyrener
zon (The Lost Son)", under the name "Shvere tseyten, a
scene of life in two acts by Joseph Tunkel and N.
Cherniak.
In 1910 he returned to
Poland and began to contribute to the Warsaw Yiddish
press, and since 1911, he has been a steady contributor
to "Der moment", where he writes under the pseudonym "Khuskh"
and "Der tunkeler". In 1931 he visited Western Europe
and Eretz Yisrael, and in 1932 America.
S. dedicated many of his
feuilletons to the Yiddish theatre and to the Yiddish
actor. Many of his parodies and humoresques
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were often read by
"amateurs" and professional performers during
literary-dramatic evenings.
T. wrote the
following one-acters:
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"Der khasen" (a
shpat in one act);
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"Der humorist"
(a shpat in one act);
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"Neystike
geshprekhn" (a grotesque);
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"Der
tseytung-farkoyfer" (sharzh);
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"A mitl kreygn
ale krenk" (sketch);
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"Meyn veyb makht
krank a doktor" (dialogue);
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"Veyber kenen
shveygn" (a scene in one act);
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"Briliantn" (a
shpat in one act);
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"Di bank in
krashinskis gortn" (a shpasike
sketch);
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""Zi kon nisht
reydn" (monologue);
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"Eretz-yisrael
erd, oder, di neye mskhrim" (a scene);
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"Tsurus fun
yidishkeyt" ( a scene);
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"A shtikl radio
nokh hbdlh" (a scene);
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"Di 'freeyerlekhe'
zitsung oyfn tsuzamenfor fun di shegers" (a
grotesque);
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"Der khinezisher
bogdikhan tsip-tse-drip, or, dos pintele yid,
a folkshtik in four acts and seven
scenes with singing, scene and mershe"
(parody).
All of the dramatic
scenes were previously published in "Moment",
several of them were then put out in separate
editions, and in T.'s work, later all together
in T.'s book, "Dos freylekhe teater" (publisher
"Bikher", Warsaw, 1931).
T. also wrote "Der
purim-ber, a children's play in three acts". He
built on the fable of "Royt hitele", illustrated
by Z. Nkhmkin (publisher "Blimelekh", Odessa,
1919, 22 pp., -- second edition under the title
"A teater-shtik in three acts", publisher
Levin-Epstein, Warsaw 1919, 28 pp.), and "Tseynveytog",
a shpat in one act" (in his book "Mitn
kop arop"). In the same book there also was
reprinted parodies of A. Veyters, Yitzhak
Katsenelson and Peretz Hirshbein's plays, whih
were already previously printed in T.'s other
book.
Almost all of T.'s
one-acters were performed.
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Zalmen Reyzen
-- "Lexicon of Yiddish Literature", Vol. I,
pp. 1163-70.
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Kh. Sh.
Kazhdan -- Lern-un kinder-bikher, "Bikher-velt",
Kiev, 3-4, 1919.
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