Shatzky, Jacob, -1956

Jacob Shatzky (1893-1956) was an historian, literary and theater critic, editor, bibliographer, lexicographer, lecturer, teacher and librarian. The Papers of Jacob Shatzky cover the period of 1910-1960's and reflect to different degrees all aspects of his activities. Some papers of Jacob Shatzky's wife, Ida, consist for the most part of materials relating to his death. Manuscript and other materials relating to memorial books published posthumously in commemoration of Jacob Shatzky, such as the Shatzky Book, (Buenos Aires, 1957) and Yakov Shatzki in Ondenk, (New York, 1957) constitute another significant part of the collection.

Includes two form letters addressed to participants in an event sponsored by the museum in 1926 in honor of Abraham Goldfaden and the 50th anniversary of Yiddish theater; a form letter about the founding of a journal, "Maske"; a draft constitution; and a clipping of a call for collection of materials.

This collection contains manuscripts of some of the earliest Yiddish plays, correspondence between playwright, poet, and director Abraham Goldfaden, the father of Yiddish theater, and various actors and writers, as well as some family correspondence, newspaper clippings on Goldfaden and his impact on Yiddish theater, articles by Goldfaden on a variety of topics, and various other theater materials, such as title pages of plays, programs and song sheets. The collection illustrates Goldfaden’s great and ongoing influence on Yiddish theater.

This collection is made up of Moshe Starkman’s correspondence with many well-known literary and political figures, as well as with various New York and international organizations. There are also biographical sketches written by several of the authors that Starkman included in the Anthology of American-Jewish Poetry and the Lexicon of Modern Yiddish Literature, of which he was an editor.

This collection contains manuscripts of plays, articles and other writings, correspondence, memoirs, photographs, theater programs, and personal materials of Yiddish playwright, novelist, journalist, travel writer, and theater director Peretz Hirschbein. The collection helps to illustrate Hirschbein’s importance and lasting impact upon the revival of Yiddish theater and literature in the early twentieth century.

This subseries mainly consists of a scrapbook created by Jacob Shatzky containing articles about Abraham Goldfaden and the beginnings of Yiddish theater. Also included are a few miscellaneous materials: two items of correspondence; and some proof pages pertaining to his editing of a scholarly volume about Yiddish theater, Arkhiv far der geshikhte fun yidishn teater un drame (Archive for the History of Yiddish Theater), published by the YIVO Institute in Vilna in 1930.

The scrapbook contains articles by Shatzky, Zalmen Zylbercweig, Nachman Mayzel, B. Gorin, Shmuel Niger, and others. Two items in it concern the Hebrew theater "Habimah."

This collection contains documents and records accumulated by Elias Tcherikower in his capacity as co-founder of YIVO, member of the Executive Office, and Chair of the Historical Section, 1925-1943. It is particularly significant for its records of the YIVO Historical Section, and extensive correspondence documenting the founding of the Institute.