We’re delighted to kick off a series close to our hearts: the story of Molly Picon, for decades a household name in Yiddish theater and vaudeville, then a Broadway star, performer with the USO and radio personality–not to mention Yente the Matchmaker in Fiddler in the Roof. Some called her "the Jewish Charlie Chaplin"; others, “the Jewish Helen Hayes.” We think she stands grandly…
It Came From the Stacks: Moby Dick
by Melanie J. Meyers, M.S., Senior Reference Services Librarian, Special Collections, Center for Jewish History
One of the strengths of the YIVO library collection is the amazing wealth of works translated into various languages, Yiddish or Hebrew in particular.
This version of Herman Melville’s classic work Moby Dick (Or, Mobi Diḳ, if you prefer), was printed in Tel Aviv, circa 1951,…
Food and the Jews of Alsace-Loraine
by David P. Rosenberg, M.P.A., Reference Services Research Coordinator, Center for Jewish History
“Circles of Justice: Law, Culture and the Jews of Metz in 18th Century France” is now on view in The David Berg Rare Book Room here at the Center. Related programming includes “Sex, Yiddish and the Law: Jewish Life in Metz in…
Women in the Performing Arts: Molly Picon
by J.D. Arden, M.L.I.S. candidate, Reference Services Research Intern, Center for Jewish History
The transition of the performance industry of America from stage to film was difficult for many to manage. One of the most beloved Jewish American actresses who managed that transition successfully was Molly Picon. We all remember her as the elderly but impish Yente…