This Day, October 14, In Jewish History by Mitchell A and Deb Levin Z"L
OCTOBER 14
680:
Wamba, the Visigoth King of
Hispania, abdicated. During his reign,
he issued an order expelling the Jews from Spain. This was part of an on-going policy of abuse,
mistreatment and humiliation the Jews suffered under the Catholic Visigoth
monarchs.
996: Beginning of the reign of the Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim who ordered
Christians to put on half-meter wooden crosses and Jews to wear wooden calves
around their necks
1066: William and his Norman army were victorious at the Battle of Hastings. The Jewish community in England dates from
the Norman conquest of the British Isles. William brought a group of Jews from
Rouen, part of his holdings in Normandy.
That decision probably did not sit well with the Pope. William probably wanted the Jews to settle in
England because of their commercial skills.
The Jews were limited in their activities. For example, William conformed to the Pope’s
decree that Jews were not allowed to keep Christian bondsman or to use
Christians as nurses.
1165 (4th Marcheshvan): Maimonides and his family arrive in
Jerusalem. When the Almohades, a group of Muslim fundamentalists, conquered
Cordoba and threatened the Jewish community, Maimonides’ father decided it was
time to leave Spain. The family settled for a while in Fez, Morocco where the
Rambam wrote his commentary on the Mishnah and then moved on to Eretz Israel
where they lived for a short period before finally settling in Egypt.
1270 (4 Cheshvan 5031): Moses
Ben Nachman – known as Nachmanides or as the Ramban, passed away. Born
in 1194, Gerona, Spain, Nachmanides was trained as a doctor and served King
James of Aragon as court physician. At
the same time the Jews of Spain viewed him as their spiritual leader due to his
prowess as a Talmudic scholar and sage The turning point came in his life came
when he was forced by the King to defend Judaism in a debate with Pablo
Christiani, a heretic Jew, in Aragon 1263.
Nachmanides was so successful that the debate was called off after four
days without the usual claim of Christian victory. Nachmanides was so bold that at one point, in
discussing the concept of Jesus as the “peace of prince” that he declared,
“from the time of Jesus until the present the world has been filled with violence
and injustice and the Christians have shed more blood than all other
peoples.: To make a long story short,
the Dominicans forced Nachmanides to flee.
He moved to Eretz Israel where he first settled in Jerusalem in
1267. After working to refurbish the
community there, he moved to Acre where he worked on his extensive Torah
commentaries until his death in 1270. Nachmanides was one in long series of
great Sephardic teachers, many of whom combined a secular career as physician
with the role as scholars and sages.
Some people confuse the Ramban (Nachmanides) with the Rambam
(Maimonides).
1494: Based
on an edict issued by Grand Duke Alexander Jagellon, “it appears that the
customs duties of Brest and its districts were farmed by Jews of Brest and
Lutzk.”
1617: “On
the death in infancy of his elder brother Henry Willoughby, 4th Lord Willoughby
of Parham, Francis Willoughby, under whose leadership a group of Sephardic Jews migrated
to Suriname in 1652 and “settled in the Jodensavanne area” succeeded to the
title and became the 5th Baron Willoughby of Parham
1633:
Birthdate of King James II of England and VII of Scotland. James reigned during a period when the Jews
were trying to gain re-admittance to England, a cause to which he showed some
partiality. He ordered his Attorney General not to take any action against the
Jews and see to it that they be allowed to practice their religion freely as
long as they obeyed the laws of the realm.
1644:
Birthdate of William Penn founder of Pennsylvania. The Quaker leader founded a colony that
adopted the Great Law, a humanitarian code which became the fundamental basis
of Pennsylvania law and which guaranteed liberty of conscience. This liberal fundamental law made
Pennsylvania an early home to many non-conformists including Jewish settlers.
1663:
An entry in the diary of Samuel Pepys describes his visit to a synagogue on
Simchat Torah. “…after dinner my wife and I, by Mr.
Rawlinson’s conduct, to the Jewish Synagogue: where the men and boys in their
vayles, and the women behind a lattice out of sight; and some things stand up,
which I believe is their Law, in a press to which all coming in do bow; and at
the putting on their vayles do say something, to which others that hear him do
cry Amen, and the party do kiss his vayle. Their service all in a singing way,
and in Hebrew. And anon their Laws that they take out of the press are carried
by several men, four or five several burthens in all, and they do relieve one
another; and whether it is that everyone desires to have the carrying of it, I
cannot tell, thus they carried it round about the room while such a service is
singing. And in the end they had a prayer for the King, which they pronounced
his name in Portugall; but the prayer, like the rest, in Hebrew. But, Lord! to
see the disorder, laughing, sporting, and no attention, but confusion in all
their service, more like brutes than people knowing the true God, would make a
man forswear ever seeing them more and indeed I never did see so much, or could
have imagined there had been any religion in the whole world so absurdly
performed as this.” (Editor’s note: I
have not been able to find any explanation for the visit.)
1700: After leaving Moravia in 1697 with
a group of his followers Judah he-Hasid Segal ha-Levi arrived in Jerusalem
today where his 500 to 1000 followers may have more than double the city’s
Jewish population.
http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/111829/jewish/Rabbi-Judah-HaChassid.htm
1740(23rd of Tishrei, 5501):
Forty-six year old Grace Mears, the native of Spanishtown, Jamaica and the
husband of Moses Raphael Levy passed today in New York City
1740: In Savannah, GA, Abigail and
Abraham Minis gave birth to Samuel Minis.
1753(916th of Tishrei, 5514):
Second Day of Sukkoth
1759(23rd of Tishrei, 5520):
Simchat Torah
1760(4th of Cheshvan,
5521): Eight month old Faybes Myers, the
New York born son of Hester and Naphtali Hart-Myers passed away today.
1764: In Montreal, Lazarus David and
Phebe Samuel gave birth to Canadian fur trader, businessman, and militia
officer David David “the first Jew born in Quebec.”
1767: Dutch born Frances Hart and
Savannah, GA native Mordecai Sheftall gave birth to Benjamin Sheftall.
1778(23rd of Tishrei, 5539):
Simchat Torah observed on the same day that General George Washington wrote to
his generals asking for advice on winter quarters for the American Army.
1778(23rd of Tishrei, 5539):
Simchat Torah observed on the same day that General George Washington wrote to
his generals asking for advice on winter quarters for the American Army.
1783(18th of Tishrei, 5544):
Fourth Day of Sukkoth observed on the day that Tom Paine, the author of Common
Sense, wrote to fellow founding father Robert Morris about the need to delay
their visit because he was running a
fever.
1791(16th of Tishrei,
5552):Second Day of Sukkoth
1789: A deputation of six “German Jews
from Lorraine” including Berr Isaac Err of Turique, a French financer and member
of the city council of Nancy, appeared before the Assembly in Paris to defend
the granting of citizenship to Jews of Lorraine.
1792: Birthdate of August Lewald, the
Konigsberg native who in 1835 founded the periodical Europa which published the first novel written by his cousin Fanny
Lewald.
1794: “Richea Gratz” and Samuel Hays
gave birth to Fannie Hays.
1798: Pennsylvanians Maria and Moses
Nathans gave birth to Nathan Nathans.
1799(15th of Tishrei, 5560):
First Day of Sukkoth celebrated for the
last time in the 18th century
1805(23rd of Tishrei, 5566)
Hoshan Rabba
1808(23rd of Tishrei, 5569):
Simchat Torah
1808: The Republic of Ragusa including
its major city of Dubrovnik, was annexed by France. “The Old Synagogue in
Dubrovnik, is the oldest Sephardic synagogue still in use today in the world
and the second oldest synagogue in Europe. It is said to have been established
in 1352, but gained legal status in the city in 1408.” Jewish merchants living
in Ragusa must have been successful since Christian merchants moved to have
them expelled during the 16th century. There are records of Jewish
merchants and physicians living in Ragusa as far back as the 16th
century. The annexation by the French marked the first time that the Jews of
the region enjoyed the rights of full citizenship. The victory was short lived since when the
French were defeated the Austrians took back what the French had given.
1812: Israel Isaacs married Rachel
Andrade at the Great Synagogue today.
1809: Birthdate of London native
Naphtali Hart, the husband of Elizabeth Solomon and the father of sarah,
Louisa, Jane and Benjamin Hart.
1814(30th of Tishrei, 5575):
Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan
1814(30th of Tishrei, 5575):
London born Rebecca Nunes-Miranda Luria Cohen, the wife of Jacob Raphael Cohen
passed away today after which she was buried at the Mikveh Israel Cemetery in
Philadelphia, PA.
1814: Birthdate of Solomon Klein, the
native of Bishcheim, who served as the “grand rabbi at Comare from 1850 to
1867.
1815(10th of Tishrei, 5576):
Yom Kippur
1815(10th of Tishrei, 5576):
English born Rebecca Luria, the wife of Jacob Raphael Cohen, passed away today
in Philadelphia.
1816(22nd of Tishrei, 5567):
Shmini Atzeret
1824(22nd of Tishrei, 5585):
Shmini Atzeret observed for the last time during the Presidency of James
Monroe.
1824: Frances Cohen and Aaron Joseph
gave birth to Samuel Aron Joseph the husband of Matilda Philippa Levien
1827(23rd of Tishrei, 5588):
Simchat Torah
1829: Birthdate of Eduard Lasker, the
German Jewish political leader who supported the unification that led to the
creation of the modern German state.
1832: Birthdate of Essenhausan, Bavaria
native Isiah Frankel who in 1855 began his business efforts in Indiana before
settling in Iowa where his family became “one of the most foremost Jewish
families in the Hawkeye State.”
1835(21st of Tishrei, 5596): Hoshanah Rabah
1835: Jacob Levy Siexas, the New York
born son of Judith and Moses Benjamin Seixas and his wife Hortensia Seixas, the
Charleston born daughter of Major Myer Moses and Esther Moses gave birth to
Judith Seixas.
1837(15th of Tishrei, 5598):
Sukkoth observed for the first time during the Presidency of Martin Van Buren.
1838: In Bendin, Poland, Dobrish Erlich
and Rabbi Zev Nachum Bornsztain gave birth to their first child Avrohom
Bornsztain, founder and first Rebbe of the Sochatchover Hasidic dynasty” who
was “known as the Avnei Nezer (“Stones of the Crown”) after the title
of his posthumously-published set of Torah responsa, which is widely
acknowledged as a halakhic classic” and whose “only son, Shmuel, author of Shem
Mishmuel, succeeded him as Rebbe.”
1839: Caroline Davis and Levy Jacobs
gave birth to Montague Jacobs.
1840: In Bavaria, Sigismond Adler and his
wife gave birth to New Haven, CT.
resident Max Adler, the husband of
Esther Myers the manufacturer, banker and a partner in the firm of Strouse,
Adler and Company who was “a liberal contributor to Hebrew philanthropies in
New England.
1840: In Randegg, Germany, Leopold
Schott, the German born son of Rachel and Aron Schott and his wife Sara
Randegger gave birth to Stella Rothschild, the wife of Wilhelm Benjamin
Rothschild.
1843: The
Synagogue of Beracha Veshalom Vegmiluth Hasidim (Congregation of Blessing,
Peace and Loving Deeds) in St. Thomas holds the first confirmation ceremony for
Jewish youth ever in the Western Hemisphere. The St. Thomas synagogue has held
a weekly service since it first opened its doors in 1833; reportedly, it’s the
oldest synagogue in continuous use under the American flag and the second
oldest in the Western Hemisphere. Acclaimed Impressionist painter Camille
Pissarro was a member.
1848:
Birthdate of Hungarian and University of Prague educated American rabbi Moritz
Spitz who officiated at Congregation
B’nai Sholom in Chicago, Congregation Emanu-El in Milwaukee and since 1878 at
Congregation B’nai El in St. Louis while publishing articles under the pen name
“Ben Abi.”
https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/13972-spitz-moritz
1849:
Birthdate Budapest native and “Hungarian philologist” Solomon Schill , “a professor
of Latin and Greek at the rabbinical seminary in Budapest” who authored a
number of books on the Greek language and literature as well as translating
several others.
1853(12th
of Tishrei, 5614): Eighteen year old Laura Block, the daughter of Frances
Isaiah Isaacs and Abraham Block who were married in New York in 1811, passed
away today.
1853:
During their Friday meeting, the Assistant Board of Alderman voted to accept an
invitation from the Directors of the Jews Hospital to attend the cornerstone
laying ceremony scheduled to take place on Thanksgiving Day.
1854(22nd
of Tishrei, 5615): Shmini Atzeret
1854(22nd
of Tishrei, 5615): Thirty-nine-year-old London born and University College
educated journalist Samuel Phillips who
“renounced the Jewish faith,” wrote the novel Caleb Stukely and then went on
edit a newspaper call John Bull while “taking an active part in the formation
of the Crystal Palace Company.”
1856(15th
of Tishrei, 5617): First Day of Sukkoth observed for the last time during the
Presidency of Franklin Pierce.
1857: Henry
Lewis Cohen married Priscilla Joseph at the Great Synagogue today.
1859(16th
of Tishrei, 5620): Second Day of Sukkoth
1859:
Birthdate of producer and author Alfred Bock, the son of a cigar manufacturer
from Gieseen and the father of author Wener Bock.
1864(14th
of Tishrei, 5625): Erev Sukkoth observed as General Sherman and his Union Army
which included at least one future Jewish general was marching from Atlanta to
Savannah.
1867(15th of Tishrei, 5628): Sukkoth
1869: In Amsterdam, Karel Abraham Wertheim, the son of
Johannes Wertheim and Maria Rosenik and his wife Henriette van Heukelom gave
birth to Charlotte Maria Werthiem
1869(9th of Cheshvan, 5630): Solomon Daniel
Ghosalker a member of “the 25th regiment of the Bombay native light
infantry” who “served in the Scinde campaign in 1843-45, the Indian mutiny, and
the Abyssinian expedition of 1867-68” and “rose to the highest regimental rank,
that of sirdar bahadur” while being honored with a first-class star of the
Order of British India passed away today.
https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/6657-ghosalker-solomon-daniel
1869: Three days after he “was murdered,” Louis Kyezor
was buried at the “Bancroft Road (Maiden Lane) Jewish Cemetery today.
1869: Birthdate of Sir Joseph Duveen, the London native
who became one of the most influential art dealers of his time.
1871: During his sermon today, Rabbi J.J. Lyons called
upon the members of the West 19th Street Portuguese Synagogue to
contribute to aid the people of Chicago who are suffering from the effect of a
great fire that consumed much of the city. Since money cannot be handled on
Shabbat, a special meeting will be held tomorrow to deal with this.
1871: In Trieste, Italy Michele Levi and Emma Perguia
gave birth to Professor Giusepp Levi “a pioneer of in
vitro studies of cultured cells.”
1871: In Vienna, Alexander Von Zemlinsky, a Catholic and
his wife who converted to Sephardic Judaism gave birth to composer and
conductor Alexander von Zemlinsky.
1872: In Trieste, Emma Perguia and Michele Levi gave
birth Giuseppe Levi an Italian anatomist and histologist, professor of human
anatomy who was a “pioneer in vitro studies on cultured cells” and the tutor of
“three students who later won the Nobel prize.”
1873(23rd of Tishrei, 5634): Simchat Torah
1874: Birthdate of San Francisco native and University of
California insurance executive turned author Joy Lichtenstein.
http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/book/lookupname?key=Lichtenstein%2C%20Joy%2C%201874-
https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/15442248.Joy_Lichtenstein
1875(15th of Tishrei, 5636): Sukkoth
1878(17th of Tishrei, 5639) Third Day of
Sukkoth
1879: In the on-going battle to have the Romanian
government honor its promise to grant full rights to the Jews, it was reported
today that 58 deputies in Bucharest are opposed to the government’s bill
granting emancipation to the Jews. This
has increased fears that the bill will not get the two-thirds majority required
for passage.
1881: John W. Carroll, the actor whose fame rested in
part for his portray of Fagin, the Jew in ‘Oliver Twist,’” passed away today in
New York City at the age of 44.
1881:”Russian Hebrew Exiles” published today described
the activities of the committee formed in New York designed to help the newly
arrived Jewish immigrants from the Czar’s anti-Semitic empire. The most recent
group of arrivals number 120 and plans have already been to send 70 of them to
“various sections of the country” since there is no way to find all of them
employment in New York. Committees have
been formed in Houston, New Orleans, Louisville, St. Louis and Wilmington, NC
to help with the re-settlement plans. (This marked the first year of what prove
to be a tidal wave of immigration that would last until World War I. These well-intentioned plans would soon be
overwhelmed by the unprecedented number of immigrants)
1881: “An assignment for the benefit of creditors by
Hirsch Levy to Isidore Hirsch with $600 preferences was filed in the County
Clerk’s office” today.
1882: It was reported today that “Mordecai Lyons,” a new
play Edward Harrigan that features an array of Jewish characters is scheduled
to open at the Theatre Comique next week.
1882: It was reported today “there is a singular set of
lunatics in England who are devoting all their energies to the rather hopeless
tasks of proving that the so-called Anglo-Saxon race is not Anglo-Saxon but
Jewish. They believe that all Englishman
belong to the tribe of Manasseh and all Americans to the tribe of Ephraim and
that the Irish belong to the rest of the long-lost ten tribes.”1882:
Birthdate of Eamon De Valera, Irish prime minister and president. As Prime Minister during the 1930’s De Valera
modified the Irish Constitution so that it gave recognition to many
non-Catholic religious groups including the Jewish community. “The behavior of
de Valera’s government towards Jewish refugees fleeing the Holocaust is also
controversial. Ireland’s Justice Minister Michael McDowell later described the
Irish government’s treatment of Jewish refugees as ‘antipathetic, hostile
and unfeeling’. Dr Mervyn O’Driscoll of University College Cork reported on
the unofficial and official barriers that prevented Jews from finding refuge in
Ireland: ‘Although overt anti-Semitism was untypical, the Irish were
indifferent to the Nazi persecution of the Jews and those fleeing the third
Reich’.
However, this attitude towards Jewish refugees
differed little from other Western Governments – as exemplified by the abject
failure of the Evian Conference-who were unwilling to admit Jews fleeing
Nazism.”
1882: There was a “serious disturbance” among the Russian
Jewish immigrants on Ward’s Island, the New York entry point for those arriving
from Europe.
1884: “Funeral of Rabbi Huebsch” published today
described the procession for Rabbi Huebsch which began at his home on Lexington
Avenue, then moved to Ahavath Chesed, before finishing on Long Island where he
was interred at Linden Hill Cemetery.
1885:
Birthdate of Prague native and refugee from the Nazis Eric Kahler, the cultural
historian who began his American academic career in 1938 at Princeton.
1886(15th
of Tishrei, 5647): Sukkoth
1886: In
Cincinnati, OH, “Adolph Aria Berman and Mary Agnes Jacobs” gave birth to
Lillian Berman who was, for a while, married to Isidor Schifrin with whom she
had to children, “Elaine and Stuart Schifrin.”
1886: A column styled “Law Reports: Business in the
Surrogates Courts” published today reported that will of the late
Solomon D. Moses is among those that have been admitted for probate during this
past week. Under the terms of Mr. Solomon’s will payments of two hundred
dollars are to be made to the Jews Hospital of New York and the Hebrew Orphan
Asylum
1886: In Philadelphia, Millie Berman and Meyer Rothschild
gave birth to University of Pennsylvania trained architect LeRoy B. Rothschild,
the husband of Millie Greenberg and member of Rodeph Shalom who designed
numerous structures including Haar Zion Synagogue while serving as a director
at Mt. Sinai Hospital
https://www.philadelphiabuildings.org/pab/app/ar_display.cfm/21477
1888: Birthdate of New York native, Yale graduate and
Johns Hopkins trained cardiologist Dr. Robert L. Levy, the husband of Beatrice
Straus with whom he had three children – Gerald, Barbar and Jessic – who as “a
Captain in the Medical Corps during World War I” touring Army camps in France
during the influenza epidemic and who received the Selective Service Medal for
his work as a consultant in cardiology for the Secretary of War during WW II.
1888: “Some
Glances Backward” published today provided a retrospective on the fight in
California to halt Chinese immigration and to ban them from living here
including a speech by A.A. Haight the Democratic Governor of California in
which he said that the “same argument” made “today in this country against the
Chinese were used two centuries ago against the industrious Jews of Europe…. But
it did not take” these bigots “a hundred years before they found out their
mistake because the Jews too industry along with them and enriched the new
countries in which they settled. It will
work with the same with the Chinese, if our laws permit us to drive them from
the State.”
1888: “Old
World News by Cable” published today described events surrounding the recent
death of J.M. Levy whom many mistakenly thought was the founder of the Daily Telegraph. Actually Joseph Moses
Levy bought it from the founder in 1855 three months after its opening for
$4,000. “He and his son” then “made it
one of the half dozen great newspaper properties of the world. “A very good man, charitable, just and simple
manners and tastes, as was the last professing Jew of his fmily, all of whom
now bear the name Lawson.”
1888: “Jews
Leaving Russia” published today relied on dispatches from the London Daily News
to describe the exodus of nearly 2,500 Jews from Odessa (Russia) during the law
three months. The Jews are leaving
because of the Expulsion Law enacted last Spring. The number of Jews leaving is being swollen
by those who are taking advantage of the recent relaxation in the conscription
laws which were designed to have just that effect. Most of them are going to America or England
but lack the capital to open business on their own.
1889(19th
of Tishrei, 5650): Fifth Day of Sukkoth
1889:
Birthdate of cardiologist Aaron Ephraim Parsonnet, the native of Balta Russia
and U.S. resident since 1903 who graduated from Loyola Medical School in 1913
and eventually became the Medical Director for the Daughters of Israel Home for
Aged in Newark, NJ,
http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/history_of_medicine/manuscripts/parsonnet
1890: Birthdate of General of the Army and U.S.
President Dwight David Eisenhower. In a recently published history about three
World War II generals entitled 15 Stars, Stanley Weintraub described a
hither-to little known story about Ike and the Jewish people. While serving in the Philippines in 1938 as a
Lt. Colonel, “Eisenhower got to know some of the 1,200 emigres who had fled Hitler
who could find no sanctuaries in the uncaring West, including his own country.”
At this time “he was made a surprising and hugely remunerative offer. Almost certainly it came from Alex Frieder,
one of three brothers from Cincinnati who had opened a cigar factory in Manila,
and who played bridge and poker with…Ike.
‘I was asked to take a job seeking in China, Southeast Asia…and every
country where they might be acceptable, a haven for Jewish refugees from Nazi
Germany. The proposed pay would be
$60,000 a year with expenses…Te offer was, of course, appealing for several
reasons. But…I had become so committed
to my profession that I declined.’” Given other facts of Ike’s life during this
period and the revulsion he demonstrated when Allied troops liberated the
Concentration Camps, no one should think Ike’s decision was tainted by
antipathy toward Jews and that it was made for the reasons he stated. Given the
political environment of the 1950’s as a Republican President, Ike was only
going to have a limited amount of popularity among Jewish voters. To his credit, he became the first President
to participate in national television show sponsored by a Jewish
organization. In this case it was a
program celebrating the 300th anniversary of the American Jewish
Community. For many Jews living during the 1950’s Ike was the American
President who sided with the Arabs against Israel. During the Suez Crisis of 1956, the
Eisenhower administration threatened Israel with economic ruin if it did not
withdraw from the Sinai. This policy had four effects. It left Gaza as a place from which terrorist
could attack Israel. It gave Nasser a
new lease on life thus setting the stage for another decade of un-rest in the
Middle East that reached its next crescendo in the Six Day War. During the
crisis, the Americans actually sided with the Soviets who threatened the French
and the British with nuclear attack if they did not remove their forces from
Suez. From the French point of view, the
Americans had shown that the nuclear umbrella did not protect France when she
did not agree with the United States, so the French started to build their own
independent nuclear force. This is one
of those times where Jewish history is world history and world history is
Jewish history. As is so often the
question, where does one begin and the other end?
1890: Chaie
X. Hishovitz signed a release in the presence of Mortiz Tolk that stated in
consideration of a payment of $8.00 she release Kopel Harris from their
marriage, promises not to bring any further legal action against and gives him
permission to marry any other person he may so desire.
1891: “The
Indictment of Russia” published today speaks approvingly of Harold Fredric’s
use of “cold, rigid, facts to present the date relating to the” harsh treatment
of the Jews in Russia which some have “transformed into an indictment against
the victims” to justify the acts of the Czar’s government.
1891: “The
Local Tickets” published today analyzed the Republican and Tammany Candidates
in the upcoming New York City elections including Ferdinand Levy one of the Tammany candidates
for Coroner and Meyer S. Isaacs
1892(23rd
of Tishrei, 5653): Simchat Torah observed for the last time during the
Presidency of Benjamin Harrison
1893:
Because it is Shabbat, there will be a pause during the day in the festivities
marking the Golden Anniversary of the B’Nai B’rith.
1893: This
evening in New York five hundred people are scheduled to attend a banquet
celebrating the Golden Anniversary of B’Nai B’rith where the guests of honor
will include President Cleveland, Governor Flower and Mayor Gilroy.
1894(14th
of Tishrei, 5655): Erev Sukkoth
1894: In
Braddock, PA, founding of Congregation Agudath Achim which holds services at 7
pm on Friday and 8 am Saturday and owns a cemetery west of Braddoc,
1894:
Officer Grier of the MacDougal Street Station arrested 15 year old John Shevlin
after he saw him and a group of boys “chasing two old Hebrew men” whose beards
they pulled and then kicked after throwing them to the ground.
1894: Marquis du Paty de Clam, a French General
Staff officer is designated as Officer of Judiciary Police a position from
which he masterminds enquiry against Dreyfus and invents the scenario of
his hostile interrogation and handwriting test. His son will be appointed head of Jewish Bureau under Vichy
government.
1895: “In
Yekaterinoslav (Dnepropetrovsk), Ukraine, then part of the Russian empire,”
Yitzhak Trachtenberg and his wife gave birth Beba Trachtenberg, the Zionist and
organizer of relief work in Russia who gained fame as Beba Idelson after she
married fellow Zionist Israel Idelson.
https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/idelson-beba
1895: Birthdate of Philadelphia native U of
Pennsylvania alum Milton Joseph Greenbaum, the WW I veteran who was “active in
the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies.
1896:
Birthdate of William Shemin, the native of Bayonne, NJ who “was posthumously
awarded the Medal of Honor for bravery in action in Vesle River, near Bazoches,
France.”
1896: The
University of Wisconsin football team led by first year head coach Philip King,
a Jewish native of Washington, DC won its second straight game of the season to
go 2 and 0.
1897(18th
of Tishrei, 5658): Fourth Day of Sukkoth
1897: In
New York City, Felix Mortiz Warburg and Frieda Schiff Warburg gave birth to
Frederick Marcus Warburg
1897: One
day after he had passed away, 52 year old Aaron Cohen was buried today at the
“Plashet Jewish Cemetery in London.”
1898: Jacob
C. Rosenbluth, who had served as assistant surgeon aboard the USS Massachusetts
during the Spanish-American War made “Passed Assistant Surgeon” today.
1900(21st
of Tishrei, 5661): Hoshana Raba observed for the first time in the 20th
century.
1900:
Following the unexpected influx of Jewish immigrants from Roumania, it was
reported today that “the Commissioner of Immigration at New York has made a
request of Assistant Secretary Taylor than an agent be appointed to visit
Roumania to ascertain, if possible, the reasons which were inducing so many of
the Jews to leave their homes and come to” the United States.
1901: First
edition of the Houston Chronicle, which courageously opposed the
anti-Semitic KKK, was published today.
1902: It
was reported today that the object of the Hebrew Charity Fair being held at the Brooklyn Academy of Music
and which had been opened by the Governor and Lt. Governor of New York “is to
raise the balance of the $100,000 needed to build the Hebrew Charity Hospital.”
1903(23rd
of Tishrei, 5664): Simchat Torah
1903: “Dr.
Marcus Jastrow” published today reported that among the survivors of the
recently deceased rabbi were his two sons, “Morris Jastrow, the widely-known
philologist and Joseph Jastrow, the well-known psychologist.”
1904:
“Kaiser Enobles A Jew” published today reported that “Emperor William has
nominated a Jewish millionaire merchant James Simon to be a life member of the
Prussian House of Peers.”
1904: Today
thirteen year old violinist Mischa Elman who had already made his debut in St.
Petersburg performed for the first time in Berlin.
1905(16th
of Tishrei, 5666): Second Day of Sukkot
1906: Today
Dr. Bruno Alfred Döblin, the author of the novel Berlin
Alexanderplats, “took up a position at the Berlin psychiatric clinic in Buch
where he worked as an assistant doctor for nearly two years.
1906:
Birthdate of anti-Nazi German historianPrince Hubertus zu
Loewenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg, co-founder along with Otto Katz of Hollywood
Anti-Nazi League which was unique in that it one of the first organization that
at least, superficially, was not tied to the Jews
1906: Birthdate of author and commentator Hannah Arendt. Many know her for her writings about the
Nazis and the originator of the term “the banality of evil.” Living amidst the political turmoil of Europe greatly
shaped Arendt’s studies and interests. Initially a philosophy and theology
student, Arendt shifted her focus to the rising anti-Semitism permeating the
German polity in the 1930s. In addition to her writing, Arendt became involved
in the German Zionist Organization in 1933 and worked to bring Nazi atrocities
to global attention. Arendt was arrested for investigating anti-Semitic
propaganda, but befriended a Berlin jailer who enabled her escape. Fleeing to
Paris, Arendt worked with Youth Aliyah to help rescue Jewish children from the
Third Reich by bringing them to Palestine. While in Paris, Arendt met her
second husband and both were sent to internment camps in southern France. In
1941, both were able to reach America and reunite with Arendt’s mother. In
America, Arendt published numerous articles in Jewish studies journals, and was
in charge of Jewish Cultural Reconstruction, a program created by historian
Salo W. Baron to recover and restore lost and damaged Jewish archives and
cultural markers. The publication of her book The Origins of Totalitarianism
in 1951, made Arendt an intellectual celebrity as America, searching for answers
to the horrors of World War II, careened into the Cold War. The Origins of
Totalitarianism sought to explain the rise and appeal of both Hitler and
Stalin. Arendt went on to publish several other books including her most
controversial work, Eichmann in
Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil in 1963.Arendt taught at
the University of Chicago and Wesleyan and was the first female full professor
at Princeton. She continued to lecture and teach until her death in 1975.
1907: Letters received in Tangier bring news which, among other
things, show that Mulai Hafid, the “Sultan of the South,” “has effectively put
a stop to the ill-treatment of Jews in Morocco City.”
1908(19th of Tishrei, 5669): Fifth Day of Sukkoth
1908: It was reported today that a crowd of fifty depositors in
the private bank of Polowe, Mogielwesky and Werner, most of whom were Russians
and Jews had “hovered” around the corridors of the United States District Court
because a prankster had posted a notice saying that the depositors would be
given their money.
1909(29th of Tishrei, 5670): Eighty-one year old Amalie
Grinberg, the daughter of Henrietta and Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Kalischer, and the
wife of Moritz Grunberg passed away today.
1910: A Jew, David Effendi Molcho, First Interpreter of Imperial
Divan of the Ottoman Empire is appointed member of the Senate. On this same
day, Samuel Effendi of Salonica is appointed Chief of Police for the coast
districts of Constantinople.
1910: Der unsterbliche Lumpg
(The Immortal Blight), an operetta composed by Edmund Eysler “was performed for
the first time” today” with great success at the Vienna
Bürgertheater
1911: Dr. Alfred Döblin and his girlfriend Friede Kunke gave birth
to their son Bodo.
1911: The New York Sun received a cablegram that read: “Fifteen
thousand Turkish troops sent to Palestine” during the Turco-Italian War.
1911(22nd of Tishrei, 5672): Shabbat and Shmini Atzeret
1911(22nd of Tishrei, 5672): Holiday services,
including Yizkor, began at 9:30 a.m. at the South Side Hebrew Congregation on
Indiana Avenue.
1911: In an editorial published in the Outlook, former President
Theodore Roosevelt proposed submitting the Treaty of 1832 which was an anathema
to Jews to the Hague Tribunal for interpretation
1911: “As a result of the” Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire which
claimed so many Jewish lives, “the American Society of Safety Engineers was
founded in New York City” today.
1912: Constantin C. Arion, who as the Rumanian Minister of Foreign
Affairs would say that his “Government would grant rights to the Jews in
accordance with the peace treat” and that the Government “would completely
abolish Article 7 of the Rumanian Constitution” which states that “Jews in
Rumania are aliens and that naturalization is only possible for them
individually” completed his service as Minister of Administration and Interior
of Romania.
1912: It was reported that a veritable “who’s who” of American
Jewry including Judge Julian W. Make, Justice Samuel Greenbaum, Henry
Morgenthau, Cyrus Sulzberger, Louis Marshal and Professor Solomon Schechter,
attended the lecture at the Astor Hotel delivered by Israel Abrahams. The British academic is a firm believer in
the need to maintain a strong Jewish identity as the Chosen People develop
national identities in the various home-countries.
1913: “At the continuation to-day of the trial of Mendel Beiliss,
accused of the murder of the boy, Andrew Yushinsky, the prosecution
concentrated its efforts on an endeavor to prove that the Jews practice
“ritual murder” on Christians by the testimony of the Archimandrite
Autonomius.”
1913: Northwestern University Medical School trained physician
Isadore Michael Trace, the Vilna born son of Hanna Etta Smith and Alexander
Trace married Miriam Gertrude Hacker today after which he served as the
physician at the Chicago Municipal Tuberculosis
Dispensary of Medicine and professor of clinical medicine at Loyola.
1914: Columbia
graduate and Stassburg University trained surgeon Percy Henry Perez Fridenberg, the New York born son Bertha Przylubska and Henry
Perez Fridenberg who was an associate professor of ophthalmology at NYU and
visiting surgeon at Jewish Memorial Hospital and Mt. Sinai Hospital married
Louise T. Fletcher today.
1914: Sir Alfred Knox, the British military attaché described the
condition of the Jews on the Eastern front when he wrote today, “It is said
that a Jew was caught carrying a German officer in a sack across the bridge at
Ivangorod. Both were hung. (Jewish
misery would only increase as can be seen by the 20 Jews who were killed by
Coassacks at pogrom in Lemberg during November or the 64 Jews in Warsaw were
arrested and detained as alleged members of a conspiracy to raise prices
through speculation. As was all too
common their property was confiscated by the authorities) p 393 Max Hastings.
1914: In Manila, Philippines, Leopold Kauffmann Kahn, French born
Manila businessman, the “son of Julieta and Moise Wolf Kahn” and Anacoreta
Cortes Villarosa gave birth to Raoul Evaristo (Raoul) Villarosa Kahn
1914: “To Aid Jewish Sufferers” published today described the work
of Leon Sanders, the President of the Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Society
to form a special committee that will provide assistance to the Jews trapped on
the battlefields of eastern Europe whose members include Jacob H. Schiff,
Chairman; Louis Marshal, Cyrus L. Sulzberger, Dr. J. L. Magnus, Samuel Dorp,
Dr. Cyrus Adler of Philadelphia and Judge J.W. Mack of Chicago.
1914(24th of Tishrei, 5675): In New York, “Hyman
Goldfarb, a manufacturer of women’s hats who had to the United States from
Russia 30 years ago passed away today “in his 56th year.”
1914: Louis Marshall wrote a letter to Albert Lucas, the secretary
of the Central Committee for the Relief of Jews Suffering Through the War
(CRC) expressing his opposition to the formation of the CRC because it undercut
the efforts of the American Jewish Committee to organize “a general committee,
composed of Jewish national organizations for the purposed of dealing
effectively with the tremendous problem which confronts the Jews of American in
respect to granting relief to the sufferers from the European War. (Editor’s
Note – With all due respect to Louis Marshall, there are those who would say
this was really about a conflict between the old established Jewish community
and the newcomers many of whom were immigrants or the children of immigrants
1915: The Kingdom of Bulgaria declared war on Serbia today meaning
that it was now one of the Central Powers – a decisions that would lead to 211
Jewish soldiers being recorded as fatalities in WW I.
1915: According to the Maccabean,
“a large number of Jewish privates as well as officers have been killed and
wounded… at the Battle of Loos” – a three week long British offensive that
failed to dislodge the Germans — which ended today.
1915: In New York, at the 86th Street Temple, Rabbi
Maurice Harris officiated at the marriage Charlotte Glendyle Harris whose only
attendant was Mrs. Ruth Schram-Rosenfeld and Rabbi Goodman Lipkind whose best
man was “Dr. Jacques Zipser and whose ushers were Joseph Kann, Abraham Tobias,
and Samuel S. Kogan.”
1916: “The Young Men’s Hebrew Association of Williamsburg
announced its plans for the upcoming season today which will include a Jewish
Congress to be held on the fourth Wednesday of the month, monthly dances,
lectures, games and athletic exhibitions.
1916: Birthdate of Vienna native Walter Bukbiner, who escaped from
Czechoslovakia before the Anschluss and gained famed British architect and town
planner Walter George Bor.
https://www.theguardian.com/news/1999/oct/12/guardianobituaries.jonathanglancey
1916: Felix M. Warburg, the Chairman of the Joint Distribution
Committee announced today that Nathan Straus has donated $50,000 to the “new fund
for the relief of the thousands of Jewish sufferers in the war stricken
countries of Europe.”
1916: According to the “military critic of the Overseas News
Agency” “British and French divisions with a total of more than 1,000,000 men
had been virtually annihilated in the Battle of the Somme while the Russians
have lost “about 1,000,000 men from June 1 to October 2.” (These losses, especially on the part of the
French and British, help to explain the oft criticized reluctance of these two
nations to fight a war 20 years later.)
1917 (28th of Tishrei, 5678): Over 250 people, including students,
faculty and alumni attended exercises marking the formal opening of the Jewish
Theological Seminary of America. Dr.
Cyrus Adler, acting President of the Seminary gave the keynote address in which
he urged everyone “to get behind the Government in the successful prosecution
of the war.” Additional addresses were
given by two of the most prominent leaders of the Jewish community – Louis
Marshall, Chairman of the Board and Professor Louis Ginzberg.
1917: In Vilna, Dr. Arthur Hantke, the president of the Zionist
Federation of Germany addressed “a mass meeting of Zionist on the present state
of the Jewish national movement
1917: In a sign of the divisions among the leaders of the American
Jewish community, the Executive Committee of the American Jewish Congress held
a meeting this afternoon in the Metropolitan Building where it was “decided by
a vote of 73 to 31 to refrain from calling the Jewish Congress until peace negotiations
were actually under way” saying “that nothing should be done to hold back the
unification of the country during the war.”
1917: Princeton
and Cornell educated horticulturist Drue Nunez Allman, the Philadelphia born
son of Mildred C. Nunez and Hebert and “breeder of commercial varieties of
snapdragons who was a member of Keneseth Israel and the Federation of Jewish
Charities in Philadelphia married Blanche Adelaide Oppenheimer today in
Philadelphia.
1917: U.S. premiere of “Cleopatra” starring Theda Bara (Theodosia
Burr Goodman) in the title role.
1918: “An ‘inter-communal’ Jewish
congress was organized in Vienna.” As World War I was coming to an end, it
became apparent that the Austro-Hungarian or Habsburg Empire would dissolve
into a group of small nations based around national constituencies. “Arriving
from the principal Habsburg cities, the delegates elected a Jewish National
Council and issued a policy statement that was intended as a message to the
Allied Powers. Whatever the empire’s
fate, they declared, the Jews expected to be awarded the identical civil and
collective recognition, and the identical protection, extended to any other
nationality.
1918: Accompanied by another officer, Major Julius O. Adler was
supervising the work of clearing the enemy from St. Juvin where they suddenly
came upon a party of the enemy numbering 150. Firing on the enemy with his
pistol, Major Adler ran toward the party, calling on them to surrender. His
bravery and good marksmanship resulted in the capture of 50 Germans, and the
remainder fled (For this he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross)
1919(20th of Tishrei, 5680): Sixth Day of Sukkoth
1919: In Virginia, Governor Westmorland Davis urged “citizens,
irrespective of race or creed, to contribute liberally” to the Jewish relief
campaign beginning today.
1920: The
Bazaar and Fair sponsored by the Kane Street Temple in Brooklyn continued for a
third day.
1920: “A
Munich dispatch today contradicts the recent report from Berlin of the death of
Professor Magnus Hirschfeld, the noted German physiologist, who was said to
have in a Munich hospital as the result of a beating given by some anti-Semites
because he was a Jew” but who in fact “has sufficiently recovered to have left
the hospital.”
1920:
“Tributes to the philanthropic work of the late Jacob H. Schiff” were read
today at “the first meeting of the Business Men’s Council and Women’s Division
of the Federation for Support of Jewish Philanthropic Societies” which took
place at the “5th Avenue home of Adolph Lewisohn.”
1921: “The Black Panther,” a German silent moved staring Eugen
Burg was released in Germany today.
1921: Birthdate of Manchester, UK native Joseph “Joe” Hyman.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-joe-hyman-1105921.html
1921: In Philadelphia, Morris Sokoloff, an immigrant tailor and
his wife, “the former Goldie Levy” gave birth to Dr. Louis Sokoloff, “the
Pioneer of Pet Scams.” (As reported by Sam Roberts)
1922(22nd of Tishrei, 5683): Shmini Atzeret
1922: Those responsible for the assassination of Walther Rathenau,
including Ernst WernerTechow, were sentenced today.
1922: Wake Forest, coached by George Levene, tied Davidson.
1923: The American Jewish Congress will meet today in New
York. The congress was originally to
meet in Boston. The meeting was moved to
accommodate the schedule of Israel Zangwill whose schedule only had an opening
for him to meet in New York.
1923:
Tonight, at Carnegie Hall Israel Zangwill, Jewish
scholar, author and publicist, in an address which he referred to earlier in
the day as “the greatest labor of my life” declared that the Jews
must forego their political hopes in Palestine “rather than kindle a
conflagration which may ravage the whole world.”
1923: Today, in Philadelphia, twenty-three year old Norma, NJ,
native Helen Rovine married Benjamin Grossman with whom she had three children.
1924: Birthdate of Leipzig native Leo Sachs, the British educated,
prize winning Israel “molecular and cancer researcher.
http://www.nasonline.org/member-directory/deceased-members/67764.html
http://www.pnas.org/content/111/5/1664
1924: “Clubs Are Trumps” a three-act play produced by Walter Hast
opened at the Bijou Theatre.
1925: “Another temple beneath the temple of Ashtaroth” which dates
back to the time of Ramses II, “has been discovered by the Philadelphia Museum
Expedition at Beit She’an Palestine.
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1925/10/15/104190923.pdf?pdf_redirect=true&ip=0
1926: It was reported today that plans for a campaign for
additional membership were discussed at a meeting of the New York branch of the
United Synagogue of America because, as Dr. Jacob Kahn said, “if we American
Jews expect our children to remain Jews and not to wander off into Christian
Science or some shadowland cult we must organize that they may realize there is
a real driving force behind American Judaism.”
1927(18th of Tishrei, 5688): Fourth Day of Sukkoth
1927: “American Jews contributed $459,816.2 to the JNF during the
year that ended on September 30th according to figures made public
today by I.N. Rubin, Secretary of the fund, which is a land-buying agency whose
purchases automatically became the property of the Jewish state.
1928(30th of Tishrei, 5689) Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan
1928: “A campaign to interest Jewish parents in the education of
their children was started” tonight “at a testimonial dinner given to Dr.
Israel Goldstein, President of Young Judea” at the Hotel Astor which was
attended by four hundred people included Herbert H. Lehman and Rabbi Jonah B.
Wise.
1928: H.J. Levine, the Resident Manager of the Jewish Agricultural
Society welcomed the visitors to “an event in the history of the Jewish farm
movement in New York which was celebrated at Ellenville, NY at the seventh
annual Harvest Festival.
1929(10th of Tishrei, 5690): Jews observe the first Yom Kippur of
what would become the Great Depression
1929: The scheduling of “collectivization day” today in the Soviet
Union is seen as a way for Jewish communists to compel “Jewish colonists to
work in the fields on” the Day of Atonment.
1929: “Louis Fleisher, Harry Fleisher, and Henry Shorr, three
members of the Purple Gang attended services at Orthodox Congregation B’nai
David in Northwest Detroit.” (As reported by Robert Rockaway)
1930(22nd of Tishrei, 5691): Shmini Atzeret
1930: “Girl
Crazy” with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin opened at the
Alvin Theatre.
1931:
Publication today of “The Human Voice; Its Care and Development” by Leon
Felderman.
1932: “The
Big Broadcast,” a comedy produced by Benjamin Glazer and featuring George Burns
playing himself was released today in the United States.
1933(24th
of Tishrei, 5694) Parashat Bereshit
1933: Led
by team captain Sid Gillman Ohio State defeated Vanderbilt today.
1933:
Germany withdrew from the League of Nations. This was the first of Hitler’s
moves to overturn the Treaty of Versailles, which was in turn part of his plan
to create his Jew free Third Reich.
1933: Formation of the
6th Airlift Squadron in which author James Salter would serve
following WW II.
1934: Plans
will be announced this afternoon at the opening session 20th annual
convention being held in Washington, DC “for Palestine’s first medical center
and graduate school of medicine to be built in Jerusalem by Hadassah and the
American Jewish Physicians Committee.”
1935: ‘
Barbary Coast,’ a Thumping Melodrama of the Gold Rush Days — ‘Charlie Chan in
Shanghai’ published today provides a positive review of the Ben Hecht written
melodrama produced by Samuel Goldwyn.
1936: “For
the second time this week the Montreal riot squad was called out” tonight “to
disperse mobs of French-Canadian youths were breaking the windows of Jewish
businessmen”
1936:
Today, “two years after becoming the rabbi of the Jewish community at St.
Anne’s where he was also the shochet, Rabbi Leslie Henry Hardman who in 1945
would be the first Jewish chaplain to enter Bergen-Belsen married his wife Josi
today.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/oct/13/secondworldwar-judaism
1936: Sir
Oswald Mosely the British fascist leader who supports Hitler and Mussolini
addressed “immense crowds from the top of a loud-speaker truck at Bethnal Green
and Lime-house without interruption.
1937: The Palestine Post reported from Warsaw that a new Polish
Labor Party resolved to oppose totalitarianism, but to stimulate Jewish
emigration.
1937:
Seventy-two year old German banker,
liberal politician and Vice Chancellor Bernhard Dernburg, the son of Friedrich
and Luise Dernberg who had converted to Christianity and husband of Emma
Dernberg passed away today in Berlin
1937: The
Palestine Post reported that court proceedings were taken in Romania
against Jews guilty of having Jewish National Fund blue boxes in their houses. Yes, the little blue box that we use to this
day was part of a criminal activity in Romania.
Anti-Jewish measures like this provide further proof that the Holocaust
was possible, in part, because of pre-existing conditions throughout Europe.
1938(19th
of Tishrei, 5699): Fifth Day of Sukkoth
1938: The
Jewish-Americans living in Palestine of which there are eight to nine thousand
made “plans today for a conference” for all of their number who have made
investments in Eretz Israel to let the British and American governments know
about their opposition to any move to restrict Jewish immigration into
Palestine. The Jewish-Americans intend
to use the conference as a way to remind the British that their investments had
been predicated on the pledges made in the Balfour Declaration which were
incorporated in the League of Nations Mandate that provides the basis for
British rule over Palestine. These
investments have totaled more than forty million dollars.
1938: “A
Man to Remember,” a dramatic film direct by Garson Kanin was released today by
RKO Pictures.
1938: “L’Osservatore Romano, official newspaper
of the Vatican, publishes a story accusing the Nazi Party of being behind the
attacks on the Vienna palace of Cardinal Theodor Innitzer, Archbishop of
Vienna.”
1938:
Herman Goering, Hitler’s second in command, announced plans for ghettoizing
Jews in all big cities.
1938:
“There Goes My Heart,” produced by Milton Bren and Hal Roach and featuring
Irving Pichel was released today in the United States.
1939(1st
of Cheshvan, 5700): Parashat Noach; Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan
1939: Led
by team captain Sidney “Spike” Alter Penn St. University played and won its
second game defeating Leigh University at New Beaver Field.
1939: Birthdate of Ralph Lauren. Born Ralph Lifschitz in the Bronx, the
famous fashion designer began by working with Brooks Brothers before striking
out on his and riding his “polo pony” to fame and fortune.
1939: Dr.
Ludwig Halberstädter of Tel Aviv, a Professor of Medicine at the Hebrew
University in Jerusalem left the United States today aboard the American export
liner Excalibur after having attended the International Cancer Congress at
Atlantic City, New Jersey. Ludwig Halberstädter obtained
his doctorate in 1901 in Breslau (now Wroclaw, Poland). From 1901 to 1907 he
worked at the surgical clinic in Königsberg (now Kaliningrad, Russia) under
Carl Garré (1857-1928) and then dermatology with Albert Neisser (1855-1916) in
Breslau. He was habilitated for dermatology and radiation therapy in Berlin in
1922 and in 1926 became “nicht beamtlicher ausserordentlicher
Professor”. His interest in irradiation resulted in studies on its effects
on lower forms of life and on tissues and cells. He became director of the
Radiation Department at the Institute for Cancer Research, Berlin-Dahlem and
used thorium in an effort to treat cancer. Halberstädter demonstrated
sensitivity of the ovary to irradiation in 1904. In 1907 he was a member of the
research expedition on syphilis which went to Java under Albert Neisser’s
direction. After 1933 he was one of 276 Jewish dermatologists who were able to
leave Nazi Germany. He settled in Palestine that year and became director of
radiation therapy at the Hadassah Hospital, Jerusalem. He brought with him a
tiny amount of radium and opened the first radium and X-ray institute in the
Middle East. Working together with cytologist Dr. Leonid Doljansky, he was able
to provide the first treatment for cancer in the country.
1939: “L’Osservatore Romano, the official
Vatican newspaper, insists that Pope Pius XII really is sorry that the Polish
people have lost their country and that they are experiencing such horrible
things such as persecution and mass murder” but has nothing to say about the
fate of the Jews of Poland.
1940:
“Charles Lindbergh delivers his second radio address to promote neutrality and
urge America not to enter the European war.” (Lindbergh will join forces with
America First which believes that the British and the Jews are among those
conspiring to get the United States to enter the war. Lindbergh will cling to his beliefs until he
is embarrassed by having a speech scheduled for December 7, 1941.)
1940:
“Four months after they had bicycled out of Paris” Margret and Hans
Rey arrived in New York, their new home and the new home for Curious George.
1940: The Nazis move non-Jews out of a designated section of
Warsaw, Poland, and import Jews to replace them.
1940: “The
Reverend William C. Kernan, chairman of the refugee committee of the Episcopal
Diocese of Newark, NJ, is scheduled to make the address at the exercises
opening the 19th academic year at the Jewish Institute of Religion”
which was founded by Rabbi Stephen S. Wise who is the president of the institute
and who will welcome the new students.
1941(23rd
of Tishrei, 5702): Simchat Torah
1941:
Birthdate of Arthur Louis “Art” Shamsky who played major league ball for seven
years and managed the Modi’in Miracle of the Israel Baseball League in 2007.
1941: Karl
Bishoff approved the plan of the POW camp at Birkenau today
1941: At
the intervention of the Union of Jewish Communities in Romania, an order was
given today to stop the deportations of Jews from Bessarabia, Bukovina, and the
Dorohoi district
1942: One thousand Jews living in Piotrkow, Poland are dragged from
their homes in the middle of the night. Those too ill or old to move were shot
on the spot. This was first of eight straight days of terror resulting in the
deportation of 20,000 Jews. All of them were sent to Treblinka to be killed.
The Shtetel of Piotrkow had had a Jewish population since at least the start of
the fifteenth century. At the start of
World War II, the Jews made up a third of the town’s population. After the Holocaust there were so few Jews
left that they were less than one percent of the population.
1942: 3rd
of Cheshvan, 5703): Twenty year old Charles Abelson of Montreal, a Private
serving with the Canadian Army Dental Corps, “was presumed to have died” today
“according to an official announcement” when the SS Carbou, aboard which he was
traveling was torpedoed and sank. (Canadian Jewish Congress records)
1943(15th
of Tishrei, 5704): Sukkoth I
1943(15th
of Tishrei, 5704): Led by Alexander Pecherski and a few other Jewish members of
the Red Army, a revolt broke out in the Sobibor
death camp when a number of SS guards were killed. Prevented from fleeing
through the gates, 130 Jews died trying to escape through the mine fields.
Thirty found their way to freedom. The remaining 140 were captured and shot.
The camp itself was closed immediately. Yes, you did read a description of the
same event on October 13. Apparently
different sources disagree on the date of this heroic act. If there can be such a lack of agreement on
the date of so recent an event, we should not be surprised when we have
difficulty providing exact dates for ancient events.
Or, a different version
1943(15th
of Tishrei, 5704): Leon Feldhendler and Jewish Soviet officer Aleksandr
Pechersky, interned at the Sobibór death camp since September, instigate an
inmate revolt and escape, during which 11 German SS guards and two or three
Ukrainian SS guards are killed. Two hundred of 600 Jews in the camp are killed
by gunfire and exploding mines; among them is 33-year-old Dutch painter Max Van
Dam. Of the 300 who escape, only 100 are recaptured; many of the remaining 200
escapees join Soviet partisan forces. Of these, only 50 to 70, including
Pechersky, will survive the war.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sobibor,_Oct._14,_1943,_4_p.m
1943:
Sixteen year old Tomasz Toivi Blatt, a native of Isbica, as Jewish shtetl in
Poland whose “parents and younger brother had been gassed six months earlier”
took part in the revolt at Sobibor today after which he was “shot in the jaw by
a Polish farmer” but was able to survive and eventually settled in the United
States where as Thomas Blatt he became a successful businessman and wrote
From the Ashes of Sobibor: A Story of Survival with Christopher R. Browning
and a memoir Sobibor: The Forgotten Revolt — A Survivor’s Report.
1943(15th
of Tishrei, 5704): Dr. Saul Tchernichovsky, the physician-poet who translated
Macbeth and The Odyssey into Hebrew died today the age of 68 after settling in
Eretz Israel ten years ago after fleeing from Nazi Germany. According to the New York Times, he
was born in the Ukraine, practiced medicine in St. Petersburg and Berlin. “In
My Dream,” his first Hebrew poem was published in the United States in a
magazine called Hagispah (Summit).
“His original verse and translations made him a leading figure in the
world of modern Hebrew literature. The
government of Finland decorated him for translating the Finnish national epic,
“Kalevala: and during his later years he won the Bialik Prize for his poetry.” He also served as one of the governors of
Hebrew University. During the First
World War, he “served as a Russian Army doctor on the Eastern Front. He practiced medicine for a year in Palestine
during the middle 1920’s before settling in Berlin where he was a successful
physician until the Nazis came to power.
1943:
Angelo Donati, an Italian banker and diplomat who has risked his to save Jews
in southern France found refuge in Switzerland today after evading the Gestapo
which had been ordered to arrest him.
1944: Soviet Troops entered Riga.
Only a handful of Jews survived where there were 30,000 just ten years earlier.
1944: ‘Hans Günther Adler, who wrote under pseudonym H. G. Adler” his
wife and his mother-in-law arrived at Auschwitz.
1944: In Hungary, the Horthy government promises to release
imprisoned Jewish-Palestinian paratroopers.
1944: As he
attempts to negotiate for the safety of Hungarian Jews, Dr. Rudolf Kastner
“travelled for the second time to St Margathen.”
1945:
Birthdate of Alan Blinder a Professor of Economics at Princeton who served as
Vice Chairperon of the Federal Reserve System during the Clinton
Administration.
1946(19th
of Tishrei, 5707): Fifth Day of Sukkoth
1946:Mrs.
Sol Boneparth, preside of the New York Chapter of Hadassah declared today that
“votes are the most powerful weapons American Jewish women have in helping to
gain recognition for Palestine as a Jewish homeland and haven for refugees.’
1946:Mr.David
M. Levy, the chairman of the United Jewish Appeal’s women’s division reported
today that “three hundred thousand Jewish women in the United States have
contributed $8,727,583 twoard the nationwide UJA goal of $100,000,000 during
the first nine months of 1946.”
1947: The
Palestine Supreme Court ruled that “the government must give Gershon Friedmann
of Tel Aviv and his wife Erna, legal status because years ago two certificates
had been deducted for them from the official immigration court.” The decision is “a test case that may provide
legal status for more than 2000 Jews who migrated to Palestine without proper
certificates.”
1948: Bob
Hope and the Clark Sisters recorded “Buttons and Bows” with music by Jay
Livingston and lyrics by Ray Evans.” (Evans and Livingston were Jewish; Hope
was not.)
1948: Brandeis University opened its doors to its first
undergraduate class of 120 first-years.
1948:
Birthdate of Minnesota native Dr. Norman J. Ornstein, the political scientist
affiliated with the American Enterprise Institute who is a friend of liberal
Senator Al Franken, the husband of attorney Judith L. Harris and co-author of One
Nation After Trump.
1948:
During the War for Independence major fighting between Egypt and Israel
resumed. The Egyptians found out that
the Israelis would not be any easier to defeat in “round two” of the fighting.
1949: In
the U.K. premiere of “Give Us This Day” with a score by Benjamin Frankel.
1949: In
Brooklyn, Basil Pollitt, a Protestant and
a lawyer who championed liberal causes, and her mother, Leonora Levine,
a Jewish real estate agent gave birth to
poet, essayist and critic Katha Pollit whose works include Reasonable
Creatures: Essays on Women and Feminism
a collection of nineteen essays published in 1949.
1950: In
New York City, “Two Flags West” starring Jeff Chandler premiered today at the
Rivoli Theatre.
1951:
Southpaw Morris “Moe” Savransky was traded by the Buffalo Bisons of
the International League to Cincinnati of the National League.
1952:
Birthdate of Steve Rothman, who was first elected to Congress from the 9th
District of New Jersey in 1997.
1952:
“Justine Wise Polier” gave a passionate “speech on justice at Christ Church”
today.
https://jwa.org/thisweek/oct/14/1952/justine-wise-polier-gives-passion-voice-in-justice
1952:
Having been trader by the Dodgers to the Cincinnati Reds, outfielder Cal Abrams
was traded by the Reds to the Pittsburg Pirates, which at that time meant he
had gone from the best in the NL to the worst in the NL in one short year.
1953: Unit
101, together with a unit of regular paratroopers, all under the command of
Ariel Sharon carried out a reprisal raid on the Arab village of Kibya on the
night after an Israeli woman and her two infant children were murdered by Arab
terrorists from Jordan.
1955: In
Washington, DC, real estate agent Joyce Sorkin and dentist Irving Sorkin, who
had “a longtime dream of having one of his film ideas adapted into a movie”
gave birth to Arleen Frances Sorkin, “an actress and comedian who created
memorable characters in two decidedly different universes — the soap opera one
of “Days of Our Lives” and the crime-fighting one of Batman” who was the wife of producer Christopher Lloyd and
the mother of Eli and Owen Lloyd. (As reported by Neil Genzlinger)
1956: After
winning their season opener, Sid Gillman’s Los Angeles Rams lost their second
game of the season as the Detroit Lions prevailed at home.
1957(19th
of Tishrei, 5718): Fifth Day of Sukkoth
1958:
Foundation stone of the Knesset laid in Jerusalem. The Knesset is the Israeli parliament. Knesset is a Hebrew word that means
“meeting.”
1958: “A bomb which police described as home-made exploded
early this morning in a stairwell at the Anshe Emet synagogue in Peoria,
Illinois, smashing at least one dozen windows.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/several-windows-smashed-at-reform-synagogue-in-peoria-illinois/
https://www.jta.org/archive/bomb-explodes-in-peoria-synagogue-building-damage-is-slight
1959:
Alexander “Alex” Bittelman’s planned memoir was condemned by Gus Hall
and other leaders of the Communist Party in the United States. This was part of Bittleman’s shift in views
in the wake of the exposure of Stalin’s crimes and the Hungarian uprising in
1956.
1960(23rd
of Tishrei, 5721): Simchat Torah celebrated for the last time during the
Presidency of “Ike” Eisenhower.
1961: The
National tour of Flower Drum Song, the eighth musical by the team of Richard
Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II which had opened in May of 1960 came to a
close today in Cleveland, “a month before the film version of the musical
opened.”
1961(4th
of Cheshvan, 5722): Parashat Noach
1961:
Birthdate of fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi
.http://www.isaacmizrahiny.com/
1962: NBC broadcast the first show of the final season The Dinah Shore
Chevy Shoe starring Dinah Shore.
1964(8th of Cheshvan, 5725): Sixty-nine year old Nathan Parnes
who had been a co-producer at the Second Avenue Theatre with Molly Picon and
been the house manager for the Biltmore Theatre passed away today.
http://www.nytimes.com/1964/10/16/nathan-parnes-stage-aide-dies.html?_r=0
1964: “Send Me No Flowers” with a screenplay by Julius Epstein and
co-starring Tony Randall was released today in the United States.
1964: The
Episcopal Church cleared Jews of the charge of killing Jesus. The Roman Catholic Church reached a similar
conclusion during this period. While
this action was a cause for optimism about the future of relations between
Christians and Jews, recent comments and actions by the Episcopal Church
concerning the state of Israel have clouded some of this optimism.
1965(18th
of Tishrei, 5726): Fourth day of Sukkoth
1965(18th
of Tishrei, 5726): Forty-three year old producer and director Burt Balaban, the
Chicago born son of Tillie Urkov, the stepson of Barney Balaban who became a
combat photographer during WW II after graduating from Roanoke College passed
away.
1965: Sandy
Koufax hurled his 2nd shutout of the World Series beating Twins 2-0. Koufax is still regarded by the greatest
southpaw and the leading Jewish athlete of his time.
1967(10th
of Tirshrei, 5728): Yom Kippur is observed in a united Jerusalem.
1968(22nd
of Tishrei, 5729) Shmini Atzeret
1968:
“Paper Lion” featuring Ann Turkel in the role of “Susan” was released today in
the United States.
1969: On
his 28th birthday, Art Shamsky started in Game 3 of the World
Series.
1970: “C.C.
and Company” a biker movie brought to the silver screen by executive producer
Joseph E. Levine was released today in the United States.
1971(25th
of Tishrei, 5732): Eighty-eight-year-old Usda, Russia native and “cotton goods
converter” Morris J. Bernstein, the philanthropist who along with his first wife Ethel
“established the Morris J. and Ethel. Bernstein Pastoral Psychiatry Center at
Jewish Theological. Seminary” and “who endowed the institute of that name, at
Beth Israel Medical Center that pioneered in the methadone treatment for heroin
addicts” passed away today.
1971(25th
of Tishrei, 5732): Seventy-two year old Samuel Spewack, the husband and writing
partner of Bella Spewack passed away today.
1971: “The
Samuel Freeman House” was added to the National Register of Historic Places
today.
1971:
“Blood from the Mummy’s Tomb” starring Valerie Leon was released today in the
United Kingdom.
1972: Lo chiameremo Andrea (We’ll Call Him Andrew) produced by Arthur Cohn was
released today in Italy.
1973: David Zeit and Eli Tovel ejected from their F-4E Phantom
Jet after it was shot down by either a MiG or a SAM. Both were recovered by Israeli forces.
1973:
During the Yom Kippur War, Egyptian tanks mount a major attack against Israeli
forces. Their goal is to seize the Mitla
and Gidi Passes in the Central Sinai which will then open the road to eastern
Sinai Peninsula and the Negev. Two
thousand tanks were involved in the battle.
This is more tanks than were used in any single battle of World War II
except for the great battle of Kursk. In
other words, this was one heck of big fight over a very limited front. At the end of the day, the Israelis held the
line. That evening, despite the
opposition of Moshe Dayan, the Chief of Staff of the Israeli Army ordered
Israeli forces to prepare to cross the canal on the following night and begin a
major assault on the Egyptian bridgeheads.
He correctly believed that the heavy Egyptian losses had weakened the
Arab army. He also had already been
convinced that the only way to end the war was to cut the supply line to the
Egyptian forces attacking east of the Suez Canal. Despite the battlefield
successes of the last forty-eight hours, moral on the homefront was low as the
Israeli casualty lists lengthened and the war moved into its second full
week. To make matters even worse, The
Soviets continued to rush tons of supplies by sea and air to both Cairo and
Damascus.
1973: In
one of the largest tank-to-tank battles ever fought, Israel is estimated to
have lost 10 tanks, the Egyptians anywhere from 250 to 300. Iraq and Jordan
send troops to the Golan, in response to appeals for assistance from Syria. (As
reported by JTA)
1975: The
President of the Soviet Union continued his visit to Tunisia which was part of
Russia’s attempt to increase in the Middle East which was detrimental to the
survival of Israel.
1976(20th
of Tishrei, 5737): Sixth Day of Sukkoth
1976(20th
of Tishrei, 5737): Eighty-six year old long time Zionist activist who counted
among his many friends Chaim Weizmann passed away today.
https://www.nytimes.com/1976/10/16/archives/morris-zeldin-86-dies-an-early-zionist-leader.html
1977:
“Equus” the film version of Peter Shaffer’s play directed by Sidney Lumet was
released in the United Kingdom today.
1979(23rd
of Tishrei, 5740): Simchat Torah
1980: The
Albert Kahn Building, the Detroit office building designed by architect Albert
Kahn, the son or Rabbi Joseph Kahn, was placed on the U.S. National Register of
Historic Places today.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Kahn_Building#/media/File:AlbertKahnBuildingDetroit.jpg
1980: In
something that is unique to Israeli government, MK Yitzhak Yitzhaky left Likud
and formed “a one man party called One Israel.”
1981(16th
of Tishrei, 5742): Second Day of Sukkoth
1981(16th
of Tishrei, 5742): David Nations, “the British water skiing champion in 1955
and 1956 who helped to found the British Water Ski Federation in 1955 passed
away today.
http://www.iwsf.com/halloffame/davidnations.txt
1982: “A
Kind of Alaska” “a one-act play written by Harold Pinter” premiered in the
Cottesloe Theatre in London.
1982: In
Manhattan, Mary Amanda Dargan and Steven Joel Zietlen, founder of City Lore
gave birth to Benjamin Harold “Benh” Zeitlin “the 2012 recipient of
Smithsonian magazine’s American Ingenuity Award in the Visual Arts category.”
1983: In
the Soviet Union refusnik Iosif Begun went on trial for a third time.
1985(29th
of Tishrei, 5746): Ninety-six year old Russian born Pinchas Cruso who came to
the United States in 1909, served in WW I and was chairman of the Labor Zionist
Movement passed away today.
1986: VHS
release of “The Cage” which was supposed to have been the first pilot episode
of Star Trek, featuring Leonard Nimoy as “Mr. Spock” and Malachi Thorne as “The
Keeper.”
1986:
Holocaust survivor and human rights advocate Elie Wiesel was named winner of
the Nobel Peace Prize
http://www.eliewieselfoundation.org/
1988: “Madame
Sousatzka” the movie version of the novel of the same name by Bernice Rubens
directed by John Schlesinger was released in the United States today.
1989: Sixty-three year old German historian and war crimes expert
Martin Broszat passed away. (As reported by Eric Pace)
1989:
The Syrian fighter pilot who defected to Israel in a
Soviet jet fighter on Wednesday said today that his flight was ”a very
difficult mission” since he flew at about 800 miles an hour and was only about
100 to 150 feet off the ground. In a meeting with journalists, the pilot, Maj.
Mohammed Bassem Adel, said that the monitors on his Soviet-made MIG-23 showed
that Israeli air-defense radar tracked him all along the way, and that he was
worried because he knew that ”the section I was crossing is spread all over
with missiles.” But the major said he believed that he was not shot down
before he landed because ”a country that has confidence in itself cannot be
afraid of one single plane and would take the time to evaluate what was going
on before taking action.” Major Adel, whom the Israelis had initially
identified as Maj. Adel Bassem, is balding and has a mustache, and he looks far
older than his 34 years. The Israeli military allowed journalists to interview
him this afternoon at a military base just north of Tel Aviv. He still wore his
deep green Syrian flight jumpsuit. Two dozen Israeli military officers sat in
the room as he talked. He said he fled Syria, leaving a family and fiancee
behind, because ”I wanted to change my life – I wanted to live in a democratic
country where people are free to express their views.” He would not elaborate.
He decided to leave three months ago but did not make his ”operational plans”
until Wednesday morning, he said. He was influenced by what he read of Israel
and saw on television. ”I was not in contact with anyone here before I came;
no one was expecting me,” he added. ”I’ve no connection whatsoever with
anyone in Israel before now.” Before leaving, Major Adel said, he told no one
what he intended to do. Once he lifted off from his base in Syria, he said he
was in the air 20 minutes, and over Israeli airspace only between three and
four minutes, before he landed near the town of Megiddo. On Thursday the
military opened an investigation to determine how Major Adel flew into Israel
in a potentially hostile fighter plan without interference. He appeared to give
much of the explanation today. He said all his active electronic systems were
off. Without any of his target radars armed – conditions easily monitored from
the ground – air defense officers could probably see he had no immediate
hostile intent. He said he did not know where he would land. ”I didn’t know if
there would be a facility I could land at and thought I might have to land on a
highway,” he said. ”I thought I might be intercepted by Israeli planes. But I
kept flying, looking for a place to land.” After he landed, he waited 20
minutes for security officials to arrive, and in that time he told a ground
technician at the airfield that police in Syria had beaten him up after he had
asked for better housing several months ago. Today, he declined to discuss his
life in Syria. He said his treatment here so far has been ‘gentle.” West Bank
and Gaza Killings
1990(25th
of Tishrei, 5751): Composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein passed away. During his 72 years, Bernstein drew on a
variety of themes from traditional Judaism to Shakespeare and racial conflicts
that divided the teenage gangs of New York. There is no way that this blog can
do justice to this musical genius and social icon. The man who gave the world West Side Story
was an ardent supporter in its darkest days. He came to Israel during the War
for Independence to perform and his concert on Mt. Scopus after the June War is
a treasure in more than one way.http://www.leonardbernstein.com/
1991(6th
of Cheshvan, 5752): Fifty-five year old Brooklyn born Alan Goldstein, “an
All-America and All-ACC end at the University of North Carolina who also played
one season with the Oakland Raiders passed away today.
1992(17th
of Tishrei, 5753): Third Day of Sukkoth observed for the last time during the
Presidency of George Bush.
1993: The
Wldodawa Museum which erected the first monument to Sobibór victims in 1965
“established a separate Sobibór branch today.
1993: In
“This Jewish Mom Dominates TV, Too” John J. O’Connor examines this comedic
staple in the closing decade of the 20th century.
1993: A
revival of “Conversations With My Father,” a play that “presents the saga of a
first generation of American Jews who came of age in the Depression and were
assimilated at a high price during and after World War II” opened today “at the
James Doolittle Theatre in Hollywood, CA.”
1994 (9th
of Cheshvan, 5755): Nachsho Wachsman, a nineteen year old Israeli soldier who
had been kidnapped by Hamas, was killed when Israeli forces attempted to rescue
him. “His father Yehuda was an advocated
of improved Jewish-Arab relations, and a supporter of the peace process.’”
1994: Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, Israeli
Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, and Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres receive
the Nobel Peace Prize.
1994: A
month after premiering at the Venice Film Festival, the Woody Allen Comedy
“Bullets Over Broadway” co-starring Harvey Fiertsein and featuring Rob Reiner was released today
in the United States.
1994: NBC
broadcast the first episode of season three of “Homicide: Life on the Street”
starring Yaphet Frederik Kotto as “Lieutenant Al Giardello” and Richard Belzer
as “John Munch.”
1995(20th
of Tishrei, 5756): Shabbat shel Sukkoth
1997(13th
of Tishrei, 5758): American novelist Harold Robbins passed away.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/obituary-harold-robbins-1236165.html
1997: First
broadcast of “The Dream Team” a British television series with scripts by Noam
Friedlander.
1998(24th
of Tishrei, 5759): Ninety-three year old New York native Leo S. Palitz the CCNY
basketball player and physician who was married to “Lillian Nassau, the doyenne
of New York antique dealers” passed away today.
2000(15th
of Tishrei, 5761): As Israelis cope with the violence of yet another round of
Arab terrorism, the first day of Sukkoth is observed.
2000:
Broadcast of the third episode of “A History of Britain” a documentary series
“written and presented by Simon Schama.
2001: The New York Times featured reviews of books by Jewish author or of special interest to
Jewish readers including Will the
Circle Be Unbroken?:Reflections on Death, Rebirth,
and Hunger for a Faith by Studs
Terkel.
2001: Delta
Flight 458 from Atlanta, Georgia to Newark, New Jersey, is diverted to
Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, and passengers are taken off the
flight while officials investigate a report of two “Middle Eastern
men” making threats in a foreign tongue — two Orthodox Jews peacefully
praying.
2002: “As
he prepared to leave Israel for a meeting with President Bush, Prime Minister
Ariel Sharon called on Palestinians today to change their “murderous
regime,” saying that the coming year could be “a year of
change.”
2003:
Following today’s celebration of the 60th anniversary of the revolt
at Sobibór “the grounds of the former death camp received a grant largely
funded by the Dutch government to improve the exhibits.”
2004: “FDR’s Auschwitz Secret,” by
Michael Beschloss appears in Newsweek Magazine. The article is an excerpt from Beschloss’ latest book and reveals the
fact that it was FDR himself who made the decision not to bomb the Nazi death
camp.’
2004: Today, Alfred Freiherr von Oppenheim,
whose father,Friedrich Carl von Oppenheim had been posthumously recognized as Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem
in 1996, “was awarded the North Rhine-Westphalia Decoration of Honour.”
2005: As part of an interview with the Israeli
Interior Minister, the Jerusalem Post reported that Jewish extremists were
continuing with plots against the life of Prime Minister Sharon.
2006:
International Haifa Film Festival comes to a close.
2006: A
show featuring the works of Lazar (El) Markovich Lissitzky opens at the
Phillips Collection in Washington.
According to an article in the Forwards, the “prints in the
Phillips show are from his “Victory Over the Sun” drawings for an opera
set.” Lissitzky was a contemporary of
Chagall with whom he was often confused.
The paintings from this period represent Lissitzky’s attempt to break
from “Chagall Shadow.”
2006(22nd
of Tishrei, 5767): Shemini Atzeret, 5767.
2007: “The New York Times cited U.S. and Israeli military intelligence sources
saying that the target of the attack in Syria had been a nuclear reactor under
construction by North Korean technicians, with a number of the technicians
having been killed in the strike.”
2007: The Sunday Washington
Post book section featured reviews of books by Jewish authors and/or of
special interest to Jewish readers including
Lost Genius: The Curious and Tragic Story of An
Extraordinary Musical Prodigy by Kevin Bazzan which is a biography
of pianist Ervin Nyiregyhazi — pronounced, “air-veen nyeer-edge-hah-zee”
– “who was born in Budapest of Jewish ancestry.”
2007: The Sunday New York
Times book section featured a slew of reviews of books by Jewish authors
and/or that featured Jewish topics including, The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World by Alan Greenspan, The Bulldozer and The
Big Tent by Jewish author Todd Gitlin, The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs, Lords of the Land: The War
Over Israel’s Settlements in the Occupied Territories,1967-2007 by Idith
Zertal and Akiva Eldar; translated by Vivian Eden and The Castle on Hester
Street by Linda Heller, a book for children that is a zestful tale of
Russian-Jewish immigration at the turn of the last century.
2007: As a sign of the vitality and
growth of the Jewish Community, The
Washington Post reported that Charles County, Maryland, is getting its
first synagogue. Congregation Sha’are Shalom, which has been holding services
for the last sixteen years at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Waldorf, has
located an acceptable site after a five year search. Speaking about the benefits of building a
permanent home, congregation treasurer Lee Weinberger said, “With the
construction of the synagogue, we will be able to expand our educational and
social activities and be able to offer all our activities and services at one
location.”
2007: The New York Times Magazine featured an article entitled “The SY
Empire” describing the growth of the Syrian Jewish Community.
2007: Rabbi
Shais Taub of the Chabad Lubavitch of Wisconsin led a group of 10 Orthodox
Jewish football fans on a pilgrimage from Milwaukee deep into Green Bay
Packerland. They tailgated across the street from Lambeau Field, in a
grass-covered parking lot, next door to Kroll’s West, where butter burgers –
definitely not kosher – are a specialty. They prayed, with some of the men and
their sons donning a prayer shawl called a tallit and phylacteries, two small
leather boxes containing verses of Scripture. They stood out amid the familiar
green-and-gold sea. And they showed that people can find or express their faith
at a house of worship or a house of sports. You recite morning prayers in
Hebrew, even if a rock band is on a nearby stage blaring “Brown
Sugar.” “What’s the point?” Rabbi Taub said. “Number one,
Judaism is not relegated to the synagogue or the study hall. When you’re a Jew,
you’re a Jew everywhere. If a group of Jews want to go to a Packer game, we do
it like Jews.” “Number two, Jewish pride,” he added. “Some
Jews should see this and say, ‘You know what, there is nothing to hide.’ I can
be openly and boldly Jewish and do that anywhere on earth and go where I want
to go.”
2007: Rafael Armament Development Authority Ltd.
Changed its name to to Rafael Advanced
Defense Systems Ltd.
2008(15th of Tishrei, 5769): First Day Sukkoth
2008: In Canada today, a “Battle of the Booths”;
Canada’s Conservative Party chooses to hold elections on the first Day of
Sukkoth giving Jews the choice between the voting booths or the Festivals of
Booths.
2008: Canter’s Deli, a famous Jewish style delicatessen in the Fairfax District
of Los Angeles, California, near the border of West Hollywood, celebrated its
60th anniversary today. To mark the occasion, the deli reduced the price of
their “famous” corned beef sandwich to its 1948 price of 60 cents,
limited to one per customer, for a period of 12 hours.
2008(15th of Tishrei, 5769):
Seventy-six year old Irish author and feminist June Levine author of Sisters
passed away today.
http://www.irishwriters-online.com/levine-june/
2009: The Jewish Agency is scheduled to hold
citizenship ceremonies for new immigrants on the roof of a Yeshiva overlooking
the Western Wall. Up until today the
ceremonies had been held at the Western Wall plaza. The agency changed the location for the
ceremony because the rabbi responsible for the site “had demanded gender
separation at the ceremonies.”
2009: The UN Security Council is expected to meet
today instead of October 20 and is expected to discuss the Goldstone Report
which reported on Israeli actions during the anti-terrorist incursion into Gaza
known as Cast Lead.
2009(26th of Tishrei, 5770): Sixty one
year old investment banker Bruce Wasserstein passed away today.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/15/business/15wasserstein.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
2009: The Center
for Jewish History and Leo Baeck Institute present: Music in the Age of the
Wittgensteins, Part 1.
2010: “Two
Thousand Years of Jewish Life in Morocco” an exhibition sponsored by American
Sephardi Federation that tells the story of one of the oldest Jewish
communities in the world is scheduled to open in New York.
2010: “Surveying
Judy Chicago: 1970-2010,” a one-woman exhibit, opens at the AC Galleries, in
New York.
2010: Rabbi Joseph Ehrenkranz, was presented with
CCJU’s prestigious Nostra Aetate Award for “his outstanding contributions
to a world at peace.”
2010: In Vague,
Opaque and Ambiguous: Israel’s Hush-Hush Nuclear Policy, published today Ethan Bronner reviewed The
Worst-Kept Secret: Israel’s Bargain With the Bomb by Avner Cohen
2010: According
to reports published today, “The world’s youngest billionaire, Dustin
Moskovitz, is 26, born just eight days after his former Harvard roommate and
Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg
2010: The Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust, the
city’s second Holocaust museum was dedicated today at Pan Pacific Park in the
city’s heavily newish Beverly-Fairfax neighborhood.
2010(6th of Cheshvan, 5771): Eighty-five year old “maverick mathematician” Benoît B. Mandelbrot passed
away today. (As reported by Jascha Hoffman) http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/17/us/17mandelbrot.html
2010(6th of Cheshvan, 5771): Ninety-two
year old legal scholar Louis Henkin passed away today. (As reported by William
Grimes) http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/17/us/17henkin.html
2011(16th of Tishrei, 5772): Second Day of Sukkoth
2011(16th of Tishrei, 5772): Eighty-seven year old Morris Chaftez, the
first director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism passed
away today. (As reported by William Grimes)
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/21/us/morris-chafetz-87-dies-altered-view-of-alcoholism.html
2011: “The
Big Year” a comedy directed by David Frankel and co-starring Jack Black was
released today by
2011: Following Friday night services at Auguda
Achim in Iowa City, IA, congregants are scheduled to view “Ushpezin,” a comedy
in which an impoverished Jerusalem couple is visited by a pair of escaped
convicts “become their guests (ushpezin) in the Sukkah”
2011: The
disagreements and tensions within Hamas over the Gilad Shalit prisoner swap are
reportedly pitting group detainees against each other in Israel’s prisons.
2011: “It was
announced that Scott Radinsky would be promoted to pitching coach for the
Indians for the 2012 season:
2011: Bereaved families filed a petition with the High Court of Justice today,
the first against the Gilad Shalit deal which will see 1,027 Palestinian
prisoners being released in exchange for the Hamas-held soldier
2012: The Jewish Historical Society is
scheduled to sponsor a walking tour of Downtown Jewish Washington that will
include a look at “the historic 7th Street, NW neighborhood from
1850 to 1950.”
2012: “Outsiders in Israel” and “Who
Shot My Father” are scheduled to shown at the Syracuse (NY) Film Festival.
2012: History of Jewish Giving: Jews and
Charity, a “symposium organized by Debra Kaplan, Yeshiva University and Judah
Galinsky, Bar-Ilan University” is scheduled to take place in New York City.
2012: Today, the cabinet approved a resolution
calling for new elections to be held in 101 days, on January 22, 2013.
2012: The Hezbollah drone that infiltrated the Negev last week beamed back live
images of secret Israeli military bases, the Sunday Times reported today.
2012(28th of Tishrei, 5773):
Eighty-two year old Arlen Spector, long-term senator from Pennsylvania passed
away today.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/former-pennsylvania-senator-arlen-specter-dies-at-82/
2012(28th of Tishrei, 5773):
Eighty-seven year old broadcast magnate and philanthropist Joseph Rosenmiller
passed away today. (As reported by Leslie Kaufman)
2012: The New York Times featured reviews of books by Jewish authors
and/or of special interest to Jewish readers including I’m Your Man: The
Life of Leonard Cohen by Sylvie Simmons, The Machine That Kills Secrets: How WikiLeakers, Cypherpunks, and
Hacktivists Aim to Free the World’s Information by Andy Greenberg and the recently released paperback edition of The
Quest: Energy, Security and the Remaking of the Modern World by Pulitzer
Prize winner Daniel Yergin.
2013:
In Manhattan, the Israel Real Estate Exhibition is scheduled to come to a
close.
2013:
The Center for Jewish History is scheduled to host “Creating Identity: Yiddish
across a Spectrum of Jewish Communities Today” featuring Isabelle Barrière and
Sarah Benor
2013:
Maj.-Gen. (res.) Eli Marom, who served as the commander of the Israeli Navy
during Operation Cast Lead and during the raid on the Gaza-bound Mavi Marmara
vessel, was held for questioning at around noon today at London’s Heathrow
Airport upon his arrival in Britain (As reported by YNet)
2013:
Ten Jewish men were detained by police after they were accused of praying and
bowing inside the Temple Mount enclosure on Monday morning (As reported by
Stuart Winer)
2014:
It was announced today that Tulane University graduate Andrew Friedman “had
left the Rays to become the President of Baseball Operations for the Los
Angeles Dodgers.”
2014:
The Oregon Jewish Museum and Center of Holocaust Education is scheduled to host
“Ray of Hope Concert” with Alika Hope and Ray Morant.
2014:
Tziporela, the award winning Israeli theatre is scheduled to perform its latest
production, “Odd Birdz.”
2014:
The Wiener Library is scheduled to host Hitler’s First War: Adolf Hitler and
the First World War during which author Thomas Weber will present a picture of
the German dictator’s military service which is at odds with the myth he
created.
2014:
The Center for Jewish History is scheduled to present “The Haunted Sukkah.”
2014:
“From Moses to Moses,” a three week course taught be Dr. Maurice Mirahi is
scheduled to begin tonight at the JCC of Northern Virginia.
2014:
Tel Aviv Noir, an anthology of Gadi Taub’s short stories published by
Akashic Books is scheduled to go on sale today.
2014:
In the first move to rebuild Gaza fifteen trucks of cement (600 tons), ten of
steel (400 tons), and 50 of gravel along
with trucks from the West Bank filled with dates and bananas entered the
coastal enclave today from Israel.(As reported by Avi Issacharoff and Marissa
Newman)
2014:
Sixty-two year old Berry Freundel the long-time rabbi at Kesher Israel
Congregation in the Georgetown section of Washington, D.C. was arrested this
morning and charged with voyeurism; a charge stemming from reports that he had
placed a camera in the women’s mikvah.
2014:
“A letter purportedly penned by slain journalist Steven Sotloff days before his
murder was published in an Islamic State publication today, as the jihadists
addressed the hostage’s Jewish identity for the first time connecting his death
with his religious beliefs. (As reported by Marissa Newman)
2015(1st
of Cheshvan, 5776): Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan
2015(1st
of Cheshvan, 5776: Ninety-four year old publisher Gerald Gross, the Jewish WW
II veteran who is best known for his connection with Nazi leader Albert Speer
passed away today. (As reported by Bruce Weber)
2015:
The Oxford University Jewish Society is scheduled to host “the first official
event of Hilary, Toast the Term.”
2015:
As part of the Tulane University Jewish Studies Speaker Series, Professor Ilan
Tojerow is scheduled to speak in New Orleans.
2015:
The American Sephardi Federation is scheduled to present a Book Talk featuring
Seth M. Siegel, author of Let There Be Water: Israel’s Solution For A
Water-Starved World
2015:
This date is “a feast day on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church
(USA)” honoring Samuel Isaac Joseph Schereschewsky the Lithuanian born Jew who
became “Anglican Bishop of Shanghai.”
2015:
The Museum of Jewish Heritage is scheduled to host “The Picture – A Cinematic
Concert.”
2016:
In a testament to the vitality of small town Judaism in Iowa, at Agudas Achim,
Boaz Abramoff is scheduled to participate in Erev Shabbat services as part of
his “Bar Mitzvah weekend” while at Temple Judah Leah Dillon is scheduled to
participate in Erev Shabbat services as part of her “Bat Mitzvah weekend.”
2016:
“Carmel Shama HaCohen, Ambassador of Israel to International Organization wrote
to Andres Roemer, Mexico’s ambassador to UNESCO, expressing appreciation for
his opposition to the resolution denying the Jewish connection to Israel and
his willingness to walk out rather than vote for the resolution.
2016:
Trumpeter Avishai Cohen is one of the musicians scheduled to perform the works
of Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Mongo Santamaría, and Thelonious Monk at
Lincoln Center.
2016:
Four days after premiering at Gruman’s Chinese Theatre, “The Accountant” a
crime thriller with a twist co-starring Jeffrey Tambor and Jon Bernthal
premiered was released in the United States
2016: The “US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation,” a
national coalition of anti-Israel organizations, whose co-founder Anna Baltzer
who “has declared that she is not opposed merely to any supposed Israeli
occupation but to the very existence of Israel itself” is scheduled to begin it
annual conference in Arlington, VA.
2016: Michael Worbs, “the chair of UNESCO’s Executive Board said”
today that “he was sorry about the resolution passed by UNESCO” yesterday
“ignoring Jewish ties to Jerusalem’s sites.”
2017(24th of Tishrei, 5778): Bereshit – The cycle
begins again
2017:
In the UK, The Oxford University Jewish Society is scheduled to host Shacharit
Services followed by a Shabbat luncheon.
2017:
Dance Tel Aviv is scheduled to host the second performance by Compagnie Thor
“directed by Belgian dancer Thierry Smits.”
2017:
Theo Epstein’s Chicago Cubs take on the Dodgers in their quest to get to the
World Series where they will hope to prove that last year’s victory was not a
fluke.
2018:
The Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center and the Chicago YIVO Society
are scheduled to host “Grand Tango Duo: From Tango to Klezmer,” a “special concert
honoring the memory of Chicago music teacher, Sarah Lazarus, featuring a
performance by Carl Algermissen, piano, and Ethan Lazarus, cello.”
2018:
The Breman Museum is scheduled to a preview reception for its newest
exhibition, “Vedem Underground: The Secret Magazine of the Terezin Ghetto
(1942-1944)”.
2018:
In Portland, ME, “the Cantor Kurt Messerschmidt Memorial Fund and the Jewish
Community Alliance” are scheduled to “present DIVAS ON THE BIMA Live in
concert.”
2018:
The New York Times featured reviews
of books by Jewish authors and/or of special interest to Jewish readers
including Your Duck Is My Duck by Deborah Eisenberg and Deviation
by Luce D’Eramo
2019:
In Florida, sentencing is scheduled to begin today for the man convicted of
first degree murder in the brutal, murder-for-hire shooting of Canadian born
FSU law professor Dan Markel.
2019:
Having been benched yesterday, quarterback Josh Rosen will be contemplating his
future with the Miami Dolphins
2019(15th
of Tishrei, 5780): First Day of Sukkoth
2020:
EBIJFF in partnership with Contra Costa JCC and Cong. B’nai Shalom are
scheduled to sponsor “a course examining the Red Scare’s impact on movies and
two of the first U.S. films to examine antisemitism, “Crossfire” and “The
Gentleman’s Agreement” which is “taught by Riva Gambert, director of East Bay
Jewish film fest.
2020:
The Jewish Heritage Center is scheduled to present online “The First American
Jewish Woman Novelist: The Story of Cora Wilburn”
2020:
The Streicker Center is scheduled to an evening with New York Governor Andrew
Cuomo where he will probably be asked about the recent behavior of certain
parts of the Jewish community during the Pandemic.
2020:
The Center for Jewish History, Leo Baeck Institute & YIVO Institute for
Jewish Research are scheduled to present Derek Penslar and Jonathan Gribetz
discussing “Theodore Herzl: The Charismatic Leader.”
2020:
The Illinois Holocaust Museum is scheduled to host “Coffee with a Survivor”
during which Steen Metz talk about “how the Swedish Red Cross liberated
Holocaust Survivor Steen Metz and
his mother from Theresienstadt concentration camp.
2020:
The Streicker Center is scheduled to host Dr. Robert R. Cargill lecturing on
“Good Faith Archaeology – Biblical Claims Confirmed and Challenged by
Archaeological Evidence.”
2020:
The ASF Institute of Jewish Experience is scheduled to present the first
session of “Learn Arabic with Professor Daniel Tsadik.”
2020:
As Israelis continue to live under a lockdown that began in the middle of
September, based on figures released yesterday while Israel is dealing with
1,424 new coronavirus cases, the positivity rate of 4.9% which is “the lowest
since early July.”
2021:
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid’s visit to the United States where he was to meet
with the Secretary of State is scheduled to come to an end today.
2021:
“The Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, Illinois Jewish
Legislative Caucus, Jewish Judges Association of Illinois, Asian American
Judges Association of Illinois, The Alliance of Illinois Judges, and the Asian
American Caucus are scheduled to host a thought-provoking discussion with local
and national leaders working to combat anti-AAPI racism and hate, to educate
about the history and stories of the community, and to raise awareness of what
individuals, communities, and institutions can do to be allies in this
important work.”
2021:
In Canada, Thornhill Woods is scheduled to host “musician David Skolnick” at
its Virtual Yiddish Café.
2021:
The Museum at Eldridge Street is scheduled to host the opening of its newest
exhibition featuring the work of Debra Olin.
2021:
The Jewish Film Festival at the Jacob Burns Film center is scheduled to come to
a close today.
2022:
In Boston, the Vilna Shul is scheduled to host a docent-led tour of its “Come
to the Sukkah public art exhibit and sukkah installation created by visual
artist Caron Tabb.”
2022:
In San Francisco, at Congregation Sherith Israel, Rabbi Jessica Zimmerman Graf
and Cantor Toby Glaser are scheduled to lead a Family holiday event with
interactive music, games, crafts and a potluck dinner followed by a blessing of
the children.
2022:The
Center for Jewish History and the American Jewish Historical Society is
scheduled to present a walking tour led by Frieda Vizel a disaffected member of
the Satmar community and “tour guide who specializes in Jewish Williams that
will explore “
2022:
In California, Los Gatos High School Wildcat Theater is scheduled to present
“And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank.”
2022:
Security forces are scheduled to be on high alert in Jerusalem after Palestinians declared
today as “a day of rage,” following police actions to capture the
suspected terrorists who shot and killed an IDF soldier in the Shuafat
checkpoint earlier in the week. (As reported by Haim Goldich and Einav Halabi)
2022(19th
of Tishrei, 5783): Fifth Day of Sukkoth.
2023(
29th of Tishrei, 5784): Parashat Bereshit; for more see https://downhomedavartorah.blogspot.com/
2023:
The Eden Tamir Music Center’s was scheduled to open its 55th concert
season today but it is another “casualty” of the terrorist attacks that began
last Shabbat.
2023:
In New Orleans, the Federation’s Katz-Phillips Tolmas Leadership Retreat is
scheduled to continue for a second day.
2023:
At Temple Judea, Harvey Brazell is scheduled to be called to the Torah as a Bar
Mitzvah and Blake Berg is scheduled to be called to the Torah as a Bat Mitzvah.
2023:
As October 14 begins in Israel, “the Health Ministry has updated the number of
wounded to 2, 2243 with over 350 in critical or serious condition,” the IDF is
confronted with the real possibility of a two-front war as Hezbollah fires
rockets into Israel, the IAF “pounds” Gaza and the country continues to reel
from the traumas of last Saturday as new revelations of atrocities are made
public. (Editor’s note: this situation is too fluid for this blog to cover so
we are just providing a snapshot as of the posting at midnight Israeli time)
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