YITSKHOK-HERSH RADOSHITSKI (HARRY RADOSHISKY)

YITSKHOK-HERSH RADOSHITSKI (HARRY RADOSHISKY) (April 24, 1883-November 1957)

            He was a poet, born in Radoshits (Radoszyce), Poland, into a devout family.  Until age twelve he studied in religious elementary school and synagogue study chamber, but because of need he took up a trade.  From 1904 he worked for two years in Berlin and studied the classical German authors.  He returned to Poland in 1906 and lived in Lodz.  In 1920 he settled in New York, where he had a wig-making business as he had had earlier in Lodz.  In his last years he became very ill.  He began writing poetry in 1909.  He contributed poems, sketches, and literary articles to: Di yidishe vokh (The Jewish week) in Warsaw (1912), edited by Y. Hofman; Lodzer tageblat (Lodz daily newspaper); Lodzer folksblat (Lodz people’s newspaper); and other Lodz publications, such as Di yetstike tsayt (Contemporary times), edited by Herman Solnik, Heften (Notebooks), edited by Hersh-Leyb Zhitnitski, Yugend (Youth), edited by Tsvi Cohen, Literatur (Literature), Gezangen (Songs), S’feld (The field), and Shveln (Thresholds) (1923), edited by Y. Rubin.  In America, he wrote for such newspapers and magazines as: Dos idishe folk (The Jewish people), Amerikaner (American), Groyser kundes (Great prankster), Nay-idish (New Yiddish), Tsukunft (Future), Di feder (The pen), Oyfkum (Arise), Oyfsnay (Afresh), Unzer tsayt (Our time), Fraye arbeter shtime (Free voice of labor), Frayhayt (Freedom), and Morgn-zhurnal (Morning journal).  Elsewhere: Di prese (The press) in Buenos Aires; and Kiem (Existence) in Paris; among others.  In book form: In der shtil, a zamlung lieder (In the quiet, a collection of poems) (Lodz: Yugend, 1909), 32 pp.; Baginen (Lodz, 1914), 47 pp.; Di velt in flamen, poema (The world in flames, a poem) (Lodz: Gezangen, 1920), 32 pp.; Radoshits, lider un poemen (Radoszyce, poetry) (New York: Eygene, 1927), 111 pp., an epic poem to his hometown; Lid in umru, lider un poemen (Poem in anxiety, poetry) (New York: R. Y. Novak, 1950), 192 pp.; Ven bleter faln, lider (When leaves fall, poetry) (New York: Yung Yidish, 1957), 103 pp.  He collected, edited, and published with his own money the writings of his friend, Ksovim fun khayim krul (The writings of Khayim Krul) (New York: Eygene, 1954), 188 pp.  He also wrote under the pen name: Roda-Roda.  He left in manuscript for publication: In der zun (In the sun), poetry; Likht fun vort (Light from word), essays on poets.  “Y. H. Radoshitski was not a standard poet,” wrote Y. Botoshanski.  “He brings forth in his poetry weakly what is a national or social character, and strongly in his poems there is an intimate and personal character.”  He died in New York.

Sources: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol. 4; Shimen-Dovid Zinger, in Tsukunft (new York) (November 1957); Y. Botoshanski, in Di prese (Buenos Aires) (November 28, 1957); Shiye Tenenboym, Dikhter un doyres, eseyen (Poets and generations, essays) (New York, 1954), pp. 240-50; Khayim Leyb Fuks, Lodzh shel mayle, dos yidishe gaystiḳe un derhoybene lodzh, 100 yor yidishe un oykh hebreishe literatur un kultur in lodzh un in di arumiḳe shtet un shtetlekh (Lodz on high, the Jewish spiritual and elevated Lodz, 100 years of Yiddish and also Hebrew literature and culture in Lodz and in the surrounding cities and towns) (Tel Aviv: Perets Publ., 1972), see index; Yeshurin archive, YIVO (New York).

Berl Cohen