YUDE-LEYB TELER (JUDD L. TELLER)

YUDE-LEYB TELER (JUDD L. TELLER) (May 5, 1912-May 3, 1972)

            He was born in Tarnopol, eastern Galicia.  From 1921 he was living in the United States.  He studied Bet Sefer Leumi, Herzliya, Bet Sefer Lemorim (Teachers’ training college) associated with Rabbi Yitskhok Elchanan, City College, and Columbia University—all in New York.  In 1937 he visited Poland, and he visited Germany and Israel in 1938-1939.  He was chief editor of the English-language Jewish press syndicate, “Independent Jewish Press Service,” and he was editor for the Palkor News Agency; he was also political secretary of the World Zionist Organization.  He began writing poetry for Dos yudishe likht (The Jewish light) (New York, 1926), and later published poems, essays, and articles in: Di vokh (The week), Der amerikaner (The American), Idisher kemfer (Jewish fighter), Tsukunft (Future), the anthology Hemshekh (Continuation), Epokhe (Epoch), Inzikh (Introspective), and Fraye arbeter shtime (Free voice of labor)—in New York; Tsushteyer (Contribution) in Lemberg; Literarishe bleter (Literary leaves) in Warsaw; and Der veg (The way) in Mexico City; among others.  He was a standing contributor to Morgn-zhurnal (Morning journal) in New York.  He also edited Laym un tsigl (Clay and brick), a literary journal for Jewish writers brought up in America (New York, 1931).  In book form he published: Simboln (Symbols), poetry (New York, 1930), 32 pp.; Minyaturn, lider (Miniatures, poetry) (New York, 1934), 48 pp.; Lider fun der tsayt (Poems of the times) (New York, 1940), 112 pp.  For a time he interrupted his writing in Yiddish and contributed to a series of English-language Jewish periodicals, such as: Commentary (in which, among other items, he published his article “Yiddish Writers and American Jews” which aroused a stir in Yiddish newspapers to which Shmuel Niger, Arn Tsaytlin, and Yankev Glatshetyn, among others, contributed), Congress Weekly, Reconstructionist, New Comment, Jewish Frontier, Journal American, and New Currents, among others.  His English-language book, Scapegoat of Revolution (New York: Scribner, 1954), 352 pp., which attacked Marxist socialism, also raised a controversy in the Yiddish press.  He also wrote in English the volume The Kremlin, the Jews, and the Middle East (New York: T. Yoseloff, 1957), 202 pp.  From 1959 he again took up writing poetry in Yiddish, which appeared in: Tsukunft, Goldene keyt (Golden chain) in Tel Aviv, and elsewhere.  In B. Vaynshteyn’s annual anthology Opkleyb (Assortment) (New York) 6 (January 1959), some of his poetry was published.  Posthumously: Durkh yidishn gemit, lider (Through the field of Yiddish, poetry) (Tel Aviv: Yisroel-bukh, 1975), 250 pp. (pp. 223-50 contain appreciations of his work).  He died in New York.

Sources: B. Shnaper, in Tsushteyer (Lemberg) 3 (April 1931); Sh. Tenenboym, in Idisher kuryer (Chicago) (March 30, 1941); Moyshe Shtarkman, Hemshekh-antologye (Hemshekh anthology) (New York, 1945), pp. 277-84 (with a bibliography); Dr. M. Naygreshl, in Tsukunft (New York) (December 1950); Shmuel Niger, in Tog-morgn-zhurnal (New York) (June 3, 1954; August 8, 1954; September 5, 1954); D. Shub, in Forverts (New York) (May 15, 22, 29, 1955; July 10, 17, 1955); P. Shteynvaks, in Keneder odler (Montreal) (November 6, 1956); Yankev Glatshteyn, in Tog-morgn-zhurnal (November 15, 1957); Arn Tsaytlin, in Tog-morgn-zhurnal (July 17, 1959); editorial, in Tog-morgn-zhurnal (August 30, 1959); A. Leyeles, in Tog-morgn-zhurnal (January 31, 1960); Elisabeth Ford, in Freeland (New York) (September –October 1954).

[Additional information from: Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), col. 283.]