“please tell him that I am the American Sholem Aleichem.”

February 29, 2016 9:15 PM

The Worlds of Sholem Aleichem, The Jewish Mark Twain.

Sholem Aleichem, the pen name of Shalom Rabinovich, is probably most famous for his short stories about life in the shtetls of Eastern Europe, the basis for Fiddler on the Roof.

posted by the man of twists and turns (2 comments total)

From the Tablet article:

The procession’s first stop was at Ohab Tzedek, the Orthodox synagogue on Harlem’s 116th Street. There, “El malei rakhamim” was chanted again, this time by the synagogue’s world-famous cantor, and Sholem Aleichem’s friend, Yossele Rosenblatt.

Here's a recording of Yossele Rosenblatt singing E-l Malei Rachamim (possibly a fundraiser for victims of the Titanic?). Wikipedia for background on the prayer.
posted by Joe in Australia at 9:43 PM on February 29, 2016 [2 favorites]

So now I have learned that the first translations of Aleichem's work were by Julius and Frances Butwin of St. Paul, Minnesota.

I used to work at a camp with their name, Camp Butwin, run by the JCC of St. Paul.

TRADITION
posted by maxsparber at 12:29 PM on March 1, 2016