Broadway Linked With Best of Second Avenue
in 'Zulu and Zayda: Starring Menasha Skulnik
By Philip Slomovitz
NEW YORK, N.Y.—Dan Jacob-
son belongs to the group of liberty-
loving writers who defied the in-
justices of their native land to con-
demn apartheid. He is one of the
group of angered Jewish novelists
who were compelled to leave South
Africa and from their self-imposed
exile—Jacobson now lives in Eng-
land—expose the crime of racial
prejudice.
Jacobson's "The Zulu and the
Zayda" is one of his brilliant nar-
ratives. When the short story first
appeared in one of his collected
narratives, this reviewer hailed it
as a brilliant carrier of the message
of equality among all men.
Now it has been brought to the
stage, and when the play starts its
run in the Court Theater here on
48+1-1 Street next Tuesday it should
prove one of the great sensations
of the year.
* * *
"The Zulu and the Zayda" was
given an enthusiastic reception at
a pre-opening performance Mon-
day night. A packed house cheered
the cast headed by the master
Suit Against Transfer
a,‘ Historical Scty. Ends;
Will Move to Brandeis
WALTHAM, Mass. (J-TA) — A
lengthy internal dispute in the
American Jewish Historical Socie-
'T over moving its headquarters
from New York to the Brandeis
University campus was reported
by the university as ended with
dismissal of a suit against the
transfer filed in federal court.
With transfer obstacles remov-
ed, the Society asked a New York
architectural firm to prepare pre-
liminary designs for a headquar-
ters building for the 73-year-old
research and publication organiza-
4 jr\n. The university made the site
available to the Society.
The building will be named for
the late Lee M. Friedman of Bos-
ton, former president of the Socie-
ty, who left the bulk of his estate
- t the Society. Funds for the
building were provided in his will.
Leon J. Obermayer, Society
president, told the Jewish Tele-
graphic Agency that the will
left the Society about $1,600.-
^a0, of which about $600,000
would be used for the new head-
quarters building.
He said he could not give a date
for the start of construction on
the new structure because a deter-
mination must be made by the
Surrogate Court in Boston on whe-
ther the transfer of the headquar-
ters in any way violates the terms
of the will.
He explained that the will stipu-
'Plied that the bequest was contin-
gent on the Society remaining an
independent organization and that
the Society preferred to obtain a
formal court ruling before pro-
ceeding.
He added that a friendly suit
had been filed in the Surrogate
Court for a determination and that,
since there was no litigation in-
voled. an early ruling was expect-
ed. He stated that the indepen-
rlence of the Society was assured
in . the arrangements with Bran-
deis University.
The decision to relocate the
headquarters was made by the
Society's executive council after
an extended analysis of possible
locations in a number of cities.
The vote confirmed earlier deci-
sions of the executive council and
a referendum of the Society's mem-
bership.
7:1E DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
10—Friday, November 5, 1965
An additional 90,000 were given
disability discharges from the
Armed Forces because of heart
ailments, says the Michigan Heart
Association, a Michigan United
Fund Agency.
comedian, Menasha Skulnik, who, elderly Jew's refusal to accept the
as the Zayda, links to Broadway indignities that go with bigotry.
the best of Second Avenue.
When the Zayda is arrested with
a group of black men because he
has gone to their house contrary
to apartheid regulations, and is
kept separated from them even in
his incarceration, he shouts: "I
belong in their cage." In this one
outcry is enshrined a Jewish ideal
of commiseration with the down-
trodden.
* * *
MENASHA
SK ULNIK
Skulnik is compared to Maurice
Schwartz, the genius of the Yiddish
Art Theater, in a very important
volume that has just made its ap-
pearance — "The Yiddish Theater
in America" by Prof. David S.
Lifson. As the Zayda, Skulnik
proves his skill in depicting pathos,
in delineating the comical, in his
introduction of the most human
elements of the theater.
Those who have known Skul-
nik on the Yiddish stage, will
see him bring back his jests,
his dances, his songs—the hops
that have made him famous—
the walks that caused him to be
called "the Yiddish Charlie
Chaplin," in this unusual per-
formance.
It is a play that commences with
creation of the "Zayda-sitter"
when the Zulu, Paulus, so marvel-
ously portrayed by Louis Gossett,
is brought to Johannesburg to be
the companion of the Zayda who,
during his brief stay with his chil-
dren, is constantly getting lost.
Then begins the hilarity of a pair
that does not speak the same lan-
guage getting to know and to love
each other — the Zayda speaking
Yiddish to the Zulu, the latter
responding in his dialect, soon both
fully understanding one another.
The central theme is the revul-
sion against apartheid, the expose
of the ugliness of race hatred, the
The trilingual factors in the
play add to the fun. The Yiddish-
English-Zulu dialect combinations
are not without their delight.
And the songs — including the
"Oisgezeichent"—truly give to the
performance the producer's sought-
after "out-of-this-world flavor."
* * *
To Dore Schary, the director of
the play, should be given great
credit for another great theatrical
product. It takes much courage to
link Yiddish with
English — and
with tribal gib-
berish — and to
absorb again into
the dignity of
Broadway t h e
folk ideas of the
Yiddish melo-
dramas. It has
been said that
"shund" has
helped to ruin
the Yiddish the-
ater. There may
be an element
of the Yiddish Dore Schary
burlesque in "The Zulu and the
Zayda," but the lesson taught by
this play, the exposing of the South
African identification card as a
symbol of enslavement, the inter-
pretive melodies emphasizing a
love for life, the absorption of Yid-
dish as part of a great social theme
—these turn the new play into
another Broadway sensation.
Ossie Davis as Johannes, Paulus'
brother; Joe Silver as Harry Gross-
man, the Zayda's father: and a
splendid supporting cast, assure a
long success for a good play. And
Menasha Skulnik with Ossie Davis
and Louis Gossett help provide
such assurance.
Churchill Forest
A 300,000-tree forest in memory
of Sir Winston Churchill will be
planted near Nazareth by the Jew-
ish National Fund, with the help of
British Jewry.
Melvin Weisz
C. L. U.
Man of the Month
IT IS A PLEASURE TO ANNOUNCE THAT
MELVIN WEISZ, C. L. U.
HAS received the man-of-the-month award as the most out-
standing Representative of our Detroit-Gold agency for the
month of October.
The award is in recognition of his excellent service to his
policyholders and our Agency during the month of October.
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AMERICAN JEWISH
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1966—World on a String Tours
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ISRAEL & EUROPE — 29 DAYS $995
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Other Itineraries include:
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Special Tour Meeting for Prospective Travelers
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AN HISTORIC COMMUNITY EVENT
HAYIM GREENBERG SCHOOL
GOLDEN JUBILEE DINNER
SUNDAY EVENING= NOVEMBER 14th, 1965 6:00 P.M.
MORRIS L. SCHAVER AUDITORIUM
LABOR ZIONIST INSTITUTE
19161 Schaefer Highway
* * * * * *
DEDICATED TO
HARRY AND ADELE MONDRY
* * * * * *
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GUEST SPEAKER
RABBI MORRIS ADLER
Educator, Author, Orator
Spiritual Leader, Shaarey Zedek Synagogue
GUEST ARTIST
MASHA BENYA
MASHA BENYA
Dramatic Soprano
RABBI MORRIS ADLER
FOR RESERVATIONS CALL SCHOOL OFFICE UN 4-6319
After completing a 12 month run in Israel as the star of
I recently arrived in the United States to do
W HAT'S MY NAME?
"MY FAIR LADY"
THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW
For the answer turn to Page 13