ALTER AYZENSHLOS (EISENSCHLOSS)

ALTER AYZENSHLOS (EISENSCHLOSS) (January 22, 1879-August 31, 1925)

Born in Minsk-Mazovietski (Mińsk Mazowiecki), Poland.  He later lived in Warsaw.  He started writing in Der tog (The day) in Krakow in 1914, and in Viner morgn-tsaytung (Vienna morning news) and Togblat (Daily newspaper) in Lemberg.  After WWI, he settled in Lodz whence he published stories from the Hassidic world in Lodzher folksblat (Lodz people’s newspaper) and Lodzher tageblat (Lodz daily).  His books include: Mayn troym (My dream) (Pressburg, 1916); Mayn zeydns mayselekh (My grandfather’s tales) (Lodz, 1922), 4 vols.; Mayn zeydns mayselekh (My grandfather’s tales) (Lodz, 1923), twenty-five tales, 154 pp.  In 1908 he wrote a play entitled Di geshterte khasone (The troubled wedding) as well as one-act plays which were staged during WWI by a theatrical group in Mehrn.  In 1917 he wrote a play entitled Zelig furman which was staged in 1918 in Vienna.  In 1918 he wrote a drama entitled Kise-harabones (The rabbinical throne), staged in Warsaw in 1921.  In his last years, he wrote: In yene tsayt (In those days), a play set in the time of the Maharal; In di shturem-teg (In the stormy days), set at the time of war; Der kunst-maler, di filantropn, der feldsher-yung (The painter, the philanthropists, the young barber), staged in January 1925 in Lodz.

Sources: Zalmen Reyzin, Leksikon, vol. 1; Z. Zilbertsvayg, Teater-leksikon, vol. 1.