MOYSHE-SHIMEN VALDMAN (MOSHE WALDMAN)

MOYSHE-SHIMEN VALDMAN (MOSHE WALDMAN) (March 1911-1996)

            He was born in Ozorkov (Ozorków), near Lodz, Poland, into a poor family.  He studied in religious primary school, a Polish public school, and in Bet Ulpana seminary.  From 1927 to 1931, he lived in Lodz.  Later he was in Warsaw, Paris, and Brussels.  In 1933 he returned to Poland and lived until WWII in Warsaw where he was active among the left Labor Zionists, especially in the cultural arena.  At the time of the German invasion of Poland in 1939, he took off for Bialystok, and from there he was exiled by the Russians to Komy.  He lived from 1941 to 1946 in Bukhara, and from 1946 to 1949 he returned to Lodz and later still went to Paris where he was active in the Jewish Literary Association, the Jewish Culture Club, and other organizations.  He began writing poetry and stories in his early years.  In 1932 he published in Arbeter-vort (Workers’ word) in Brussels his first article which concerned Zishe Bagish, and in Idishe velt (Jewish world) in Philadelphia his “Lid fun a farzindiktn” (Poem from a sinner); from that point, he contributed poems, literary critical treatises, and articles on educational issues to: Lodzer tageblat (Lodz daily newspaper) and Nayer folksblat (New people’s newspaper) in Lodz; Arbeter-tsaytung (Workers’ newspaper) in Warsaw; Der yunger dor (The young generation), Inzl (Island), and Di post (The mail) in Cracow; Belgishe bleter (Belgian pages) in Brussels; Dos naye lebn (The new life), Yidishe shriftn (Yiddish writings), Unzer vort (Our word), and Kinder fraynd (Children’s friend) in Poland; Kiem (Existence), Kunst un visnshaft (Art and science), and Arbeter-vort in Paris; Tsukunft (Future), Ksovim fun khayim krul (Writings of Khayim Krul), and Lerer yizker-bukh (Remembrance book for teachers) in New York; Unzer dor (Our generation), Der shpigl (The mirror), and Shmerke katsherginski ondenk-bukh (Szmerke Kaczerginski remembrance volume) in Buenos Aires; Foroys (Onward) in Mexico City; Di goldene keyt (The golden chain) in Tel Aviv; and more.  He edited (with Y. Rotenberg) Di fraye yugnt (The free youth) (Lodz, 1947); Lomir kinder lerner (Let’s learn, children) (Warsaw), issues 4 to 20; and Far unzere kinder (For our children) in Paris.  He published a book of poems: Fartunklte frimorgns (Eclipsed mornings) (Warsaw, 1938), 80 pp., with illustrations by Y. Tinovitski.  He also used such pen names as: M Moshrak, M. V. Aras, M. Ven, M. Rokhlin, Avrom Tobyash, Avrom Yiskes, V. Morin, Mem-Vov, and V. Abramovitsh.

Sources: G. Vaytman, in Radomer lebn (Radom) (February 8, 1938); M. Shimel, in Arbeter-tsaytung (Warsaw) (July 15, 1938); A. Vevyorka, in Parizer haynt (Paris) (July 1938); A. Gelb, in Inzl (Lodz) 2 (1938); Y. Volf, Tsvit (Bloom) (Berestechko, 1938); M. Mirski, in Foroys (Warsaw) (February 3, 1939); Avrom Reyzen, in Di prese (New York, 1949); Rekuda Potas, in Nay-velt (Tel Aviv) (July 1954); Kh. L. Fuks, in Fun noentn over (New York) 3 (1957).

Khayim Leyb Fuks