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Saul
Yosef Yanovsky
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Y. was born in April 1864 in
Pinsk, Poland. His father was a cantor. Until age
thirteen he learned in a cheder and Talmud Torah. He
excelled in "goyishe studies", and under the
influence of his brother, Yakov Tsvi, a Hebrew teacher
and writer, he deserted the Gemorah and became an
extern, learning with a useless teacher and by himself
[gave hours=gegeben shtundn].
In 1885 he went away to
America, where he for the first time became a dark
writer; he washed dishes, gegeyt zek, for two years
was a hat maker, then he joined the Workers' Movement,
became one of the first agitators in Yiddish and an
anarchist of the movement until 1917.
Y. was literary active at
the beginning only in Russia in "Ned'lya", and over in
America he became the fact editor of the first Yiddish
anarchist newspaper "Di varhayt", then he became an
agent of Singer's new machines.
In 1890 he traveled to
London, where he became a speaker and editor of
the "Arbeter-fraynd", and for a certain time also
worked as a stick maker.
In 1894 he returned to New
York, where he took over the redaction of the anarchist
"Fraye arbeter shtime", and when the newspaper went
under, he took on various jobs, including acting as an
agent for an insurance business. |
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In 1899 he became editor of
the revamped "Fraye arbeter shtime", where he was
active as an article writer, critic and translator.
Especially attentive, Y. gift to the Yiddish theatre was
his almost weekly reviews under the pseudonym "D. B." In
his memoirs he writes that his work as a critic was on
course, and he developed from the Yiddish theatre in
America.
In the "Fraye arbeter shtime" (11 November 1905
to 20 January 1906), Y. published his translation of
Bernard Shaw's "Mrs. Warren's Profession", the
translation of which was listed under his name, was
performed on 25 September 1918 (under the direction of
Maurice Schwartz with Anna Appel as "Mrs. Warren) in a
free adaptation in the Irving Place Theatre. Among his
many published translations in book form, one also finds
translations of Henryk Ibsen's "Der folks-feynd" [issued
form the brochure group of the Progressive Library, New
York, 1906].
Y. also in book form
translated from the Yiddish Brie's "Farbrakirte skhurh",
"Drey shvester" and Bernard Shaw's "Candide", "Der man
in di vofn" and "Der mentsh un der ibermentsh" (not
completed).
Sh. E.
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Zalmen Reyzen --
"Lexicon of the Yiddish Literature", Vol. I, pp.
1219-1224.
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Y. Zalot --
Ibsen's "Folks feynd" in idish, "Der arbeter",
N. Y., 22 June 1907.
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D. B. [Sh.
Yanovsky] -- In theater "Fraye arbeter
shtime", N. Y., 5
October 1918.
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Yakov Magidov --
"Der shpigel fun der ist seyd", "Fraye
arbeter shtime", N. Y.,
26 January, 1 February 1929.
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