OBITUARIES
OF BLESSED MEMORY

c. 1980

RICHARD 
BERK, 72, of 
Ann Arbor, died 
March 5, 2023. 
He is survived 
by his son, Ian 
Berk; brother 
and sister-in-
law, Chuck and Debbie Berk 
of California; sister and 
brother-in-law, Shelley and 
Mickey Eizelman of Oak 
Park; many other family 
members and friends.
Contributions may be 
made to Jewish Hospice 
& Chaplaincy Network, 
6555 W. Maple Road, West 
Bloomfield, MI 48322; or to 
a charity of one’s choice. A 
graveside service was held 
at Beth Moses Cemetery in 
Roseville. Arrangements by 
Hebrew Memorial Chapel.

EVELYN 
CANTOR, 105, 
of West 
Bloomfield, died 
March 3, 2023. 
She is survived 
by her son, Michael Cantor; 
daughter-in-law, Sherry 
Cantor; grandchildren, 
Jaime (Michael) Ben, 
Joshua Cantor, Amy Cantor; 
great-grandchildren, 
Caryn Ben, Matthew Ben 
and Hannah Ben; brother, 
Joseph Grossman; many 
nieces, nephews, other 
loving family members and 
friends. 
Mrs. Cantor was the wife 
of the late Harold Cantor; 
mother of the late George 
Cantor; mother-in-law of 
the late Joyce Cantor; sister 
of the late Samuel (the late 
Charlotte) Grossman, the 
late Daniel (the late Sandra) 
Grossman, the late Rose 

(the late Lou) Rosenfeld and 
the late Zella (the late Paul) 
Daugherty; grandmother of 
the late Courtney Cantor; 
sister-in-law of the late 
Gertrude Grossman. 
Contributions may be 
made to the Courtney Lisa 
Cantor Travel Scholarship 
Fund at Temple Israel. 
Interment took place 
at Clover Hill Park 
Cemetery in Birmingham. 
Arrangements by Dorfman 
Chapel.

CARL 
FRIEDLANDER, 
81, of Southfield, 
died March 6, 
2023. 
He is survived 
by his sisters and brother, 
Linda Schwarz, Allen 
Friedlander and Rabbi 
Elaine Pollack; Linda’s 
children, Julie and Reisz, 
and Ken; Rabbi Elaine’s 
children, Beth, Matthew 
and Lisa; special friends, 
Tom Totzke, Jerry Appel 
and Tom Crown; Tom and 
Stacey’s children, Jack, 
Blair and Julian Totzke; his 
beloved cousins, Bruce and 
Carol Goldsmith; his great-
nieces and great-nephews. 
The family would like to 
thank Carl’s caregivers, 
Davanee and Dena, and all 
those in the past for their 
devotion and support.
Mr. Friedlander was the 
devoted son of the late 
Frieda Friedlander and 
the late Jack Friedlander; 
special uncle of the late 
Marc. 
Interment was at Clover 
Hill Park Cemetery. 
Contributions may be 
made to Ronald McDonald 

(JTA) 
C

haim Topol won a Golden 
Globe for his portrayal of 
an immigrant to Israel, 
stepped off the stage in London to 
fight for his country and had his 
sketches of Israeli presidents turned 
into postage stamps.
But the actor was, by far, best 
known for his embodiment of Tevye 
the Dairyman in Fiddler on the Roof, 
first in the Israeli and London stag-
ings and then in the 1971 movie 
that brought the musical about poor 
shtetl Jews to the masses.
Topol died Thursday, March 9, in 
Tel Aviv at 87, a day after his family 
announced that he was near death. 
He had suffered from Alzheimer’s 
disease for some time.
Born in 1935 in Tel Aviv, Topol 
served in the Israel Defense Forces 
entertainment unit before embark-
ing on a career on stage and screen 
that took him around the world. In 
1967, he appeared as the lead char-
acter in London’s staging of Fiddler 
on the Roof, which had been a break-
out hit on Broadway three years 
before. In his early 30s at the time, 
he wowed audiences and critics with 
his portrayal of an older character.
But it was when he turned his 
character over to an understudy 
that his profile truly exploded. It 
was June 1967 and Israel was locked 
in a war with several Arab states; 
Topol was called up as a soldier and 
returned to Israel to serve in what 
would ultimately be known as the 
Six-Day War. Israel’s swift defeat of 
an alliance of enemies caused the 
world to notice the young country 
and the actor who took part in its 
victory.

“He had left London as a star; he 
returned as a hero,
” Alisa Solomon 
wrote in her 2013 book Wonder of 
Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler 
on the Roof. “Fiddler became a site 
for celebration, drawing Jews as well 
as gentiles to the theater — some for 
repeat viewings — to bask in Jewish 
perseverance and to pay homage 
to Jewish survival. The show didn’t 
change, but the atmosphere around 
it did.
”
In one sign of Topol’s breakout 
moment, his recording of “If I Were 
a Rich Man” hit No. 9 on the British 
charts — besting Aretha Franklin’s 
“Respect” in July 1967.
From there, Topol was cast in 
the film production of the musical, 
beating out Zero Mostel — who 
put an indelible stamp on Tevye as 
the star of the original Broadway 
production — as well as a host of 
Jewish and non-Jewish movie stars. 
Using only his last name — pur-
portedly because his first name was 
easily mispronounced by non-He-
brew speakers — he ultimately 
starred in more than 30 films in 
both English and Hebrew, published 
two books and released multiple 
albums.
Topol won Israel’s most presti-
gious award, the Israel Prize, for his 
lifetime of achievement in 2013.
He is survived by his wife, 
Galia, an actor whom he married 
in 1956; three children and their 
children. 

56 | MARCH 16 • 2023 

Israeli 
Actor Who 
Played 
Tevye in 
‘Fiddler’ 
Dies At 87

Chaim Topol, Israeli actor who played 
Tevye in 1971 ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ film, 
dies at 87.

