KEHOS KLIGER

KEHOS KLIGER (July 4, 1904-April 20, 1985)

            He was a poet, born in Volodymyr-Volynskyi (Ludmir).  He studied in religious elementary school and yeshiva, a Jewish public school and a Polish middle school.  His father was a composer and cantor.  In 1936 he made his way to Argentina due to political persecution.  He began writing—mostly poetry—in 1924 for various weekly newspapers in Volhynia and Polesia, later for: Warsaw’s Vokhnshrift far literatur (Weekly writing for literature), Literarishe bleter (Literary leaves), Folkstsaytung (People’s newspaper), and Yugnt-veker (Youth alarm); Argentina’s Morgntsaytung (Morning newspaper), In gang (In progress), Ikuf (IKUF = Jewish Cultural Association), Der shpigl (The mirror), Davke (Necessarily), and Di prese (The press) to which he was a regular contributor from 1937); Undzer fraynt (Our friend) in Montevideo, Kiem (Existence) in Paris, Di goldene keyt (The golden chain) in Tel Aviv; and Tsukunft (Future), Yidishe kultur (Jewish culture), and Idisher kemfer (Jewish fighter) in New York; among others.  His poetry also appeared in: Mortkhe Yofe, Erets-yisroel in der yidisher literatur (Israel in Yiddish literature), anthology (Tel Aviv: Perets Publ., 1961); Shmuel Rozhanski, Di froy in der yidisher poezye (Women in Yiddish poetry) (Buenos Aires, 1966); Kadia Molodowsky, Lider fun khurbn, t”sh-tsh”h (Poetry from the Holocaust, 1939-1945) (Tel Aviv, 1962).  He also wrote poetry for children.  He translated and adapted poetic works from English (a volume of poems by Walt Whitman), Spanish, Polish, and Hebrew.  His translations include: Clifford Odets, Vakh oyf un zing (Awake and Sing!); Ted Willis, In a heyser zumer nakht (Hot Summer Night); and Y. Pacheco, Ven do is geven a meylekh (When there was a king).  His pen names: K. Davidzon, Ben Yitshar, Ben-Dovid, Karlos Volinski, K. Khokhimo, and Kufkuf.  His works include: Gezang af der erd, lider un baladn (Songs of the earth, poems and ballads) (Buenos Aires, 1941), 126 pp.; Mit layb un lebn, lider un balads (With life and soul, poems and ballads) (Buenos Aires, 1943), 126 pp.; A fayfl in frimorgn (A whistle in the morning), lyrical poems (Buenos Aires, 1944), 134 pp.; Broyt mit kholem, lider far kinder (Bread with dreams, songs for children) (Buenos Aires, 1950), 36 pp.; Di velt farbet mikh shtarbn, lider un balades, 1943-1948 (The world invites me to die, poems and ballads, 1943-1948) (Buenos Aires, 1950), 170 pp., winner of the Tsvi Kessel Prize; Mayne libe-brivelekh tsu frimetn, dem rosh-yeshives tokhter (My love letters to Frimet, daughter of the head of the yeshiva) (Buenos Aires, 1952), 140 pp.; Peyzazhn fun yisroel (Landscapes from Israel), poem and hymn (Buenos Aires, 1954), 76 pp.; Di borvese vokh, lider un baladn, 1937-1957 (Barefoot week, poems and ballads, 1937-1957) (Buenos Aires: Khavershaft, 1957), 204 pp.; Ikh un der yam (Me and the sea), poetry (Buenos Aires, 1958), 104 pp.; Di sheyne royz, teg un nekht fun a meydl (Beautiful rose, days and night of a girl) (Buenos Aires, 1964), 205 pp.; Harf in demer, hundert kleyne lider (Harp in the twilight, one hundred short poems) (Buenos Aires, 1976), 118 pp.  “Kehos Kliger,” wrote Shloyme Bikl, “established himself in our literature as a lyrical poet with gentleness, as a spirited and woeful singer of love, nostalgia, and ordinary motifs—and primarily as a poet with a loving, folkish tone and with an organic musicality in verse.”  From Kliger’s poems, noted Y. Botoshanski, “you become infected and aroused.  You are entranced by their uneasiness and captivated by their quiet….  You are…always…under the impact of his word, of his image, of his sensibility.”  He died in Buenos Aires.

Sources: Volf Bresler, ed., Antologye fun der yidisher literatur in argentine (Anthology of Jewish literature in Argentina) (Buenos Aires, 1944); P. Kats, Geklibene shriftn (Selected writings), vol. 7 (Buenos Aires, 1947), pp. 147-52; A. Mukdoni, in Morgn-zhurnal (New York) (December 31, 1950); Y. Varshavski (Bashevis), in Forverts (New York) (November 25, 1956); A. Leyeles, in Tog-morgn zhurnal (New York) (May 18, 1957); Yankev Glatshteyn, In tokh genumen (In essence), vol. 2 (Buenos Aires, 1960), pp. 127-29; Shloyme Bikl, Shrayber fun mayn dor (Writers of my generation), vol. 2 (Tel Aviv, 1965), pp. 105-10; Y. Yanasovitsh, Penemer un nemen (Faces and names) (Buenos Aires, 1971), pp. 315-25; Dov Sadan, Toyern un tirn, eseyen un etyudn (Gates and doorways, essays and studies) (Tel Aviv, 1979), pp. 144-60; Yeshurin archive, YIVO (New York).

Berl Cohen