YANKEV GINZBURG

YANKEV GINZBURG (September 10, 1882-April 8, 1925)

            He was born in a village in the Vilna region.  He studied in religious elementary school and in yeshivas in Vilna.  He acquired secular knowledge in a public school.  At age thirteen he became a tradesman.  In 1909 he composed a drama in four acts: Opgezogt (Fired).  It was performed mainly in Bundist amateur circles.  In 1903 he emigrated to the United States.  In 1904 he published stories, sketches, and articles in: Di fraye shtunde (The free hour) in New York; Fraye arbeter shtime (Free voice of labor); and Fraye gezelshaft (Free society), edited by Sh. Yanovski, in New York; over the years 1913-1914, in Denver idishe prese (Denver Jewish press), edited by Kalmen Marmor, and Kalifornyer idishe shtime (Jewish voice of California), edited by Y. Yortsman, in San Francisco.  He served as editor of Pasifishe folkstsaytung (Pacifist people’s newspaper), 1921-1922, in Los Angeles.  He wrote the one-act play Der toes (The error), which was staged.  He was also the translator of Émile Zola’s novel Arbet (Labor [original: Travail]), published serially in Teglekhe herald (Daily herald) and in Folks-advokat (People’s advocate) in New York.

Sources: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol.1 (Vilna, 1928); Z. Zilbertsvayg, Leksikon fun yidishn teater (Handbook of the Yiddish theater), vol. 1 (New York, 1931); “Di yidishe prese in kalifornye” (The Yiddish press in California), Kheshbn (Los Angeles) 5 (1954).