ZEREKH SHPITALNI

ZEREKH SHPITALNI (Shvat [January] 1870-late 1928)

            He was born S. Levinson in Treseni [Trzęsiny].  He early on became a brush maker.  In 1889 he emigrated to the United States.  He learned to be a hat maker and for many years worked in a sweatshop.  He was active in the Jewish labor movement and socialist organizations.  He debuted in print in 1913 in New York’s weekly Der sotsyal-demokrat (The social democrat), and he contributed to the trade union publications: Kepmeykers zhurnal (Cap-makers’ journal), Der leydis garment vorker (The ladies’ garment worker), and Der arbeter (The worker); and later in Chicago, Yidishe arbeter-velt (Jewish workers’ world), Di naye velt (The new world), the daily Der veg (The way) in Detroit, Veker (Alarm).  He finally became a regular contributor to Forverts (Forward), in which he placed feuilletons in a folkish, humorous tone.  His pen names included: Ben-Arye, Klorer Filozof, A Yidel fun Mizuri, as well as his own original name of Levinson.  He died in New York.

Source: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol. 4.

Yekhezkl Lifshits