LEYB DINSKI

LEYB DINSKI (October 20, 1890-August 29, 1976)

            He was born in Suwalki, Russian Poland.  He studied in religious primary school and yeshiva.  Over the years 1905-1913, he was living in Paris where he was employed in various trades.  From 1913 he was in the United States, living in New York and for a time in Chicago.  He was cofounder of the Chicago poets group that assembled around the journal Ineynem (Altogether), and later he joined the Proletpen (Proletarian pen) group.  He was active in circles close to the leftwing movement.  He began publishing lyrical poetry in Kundes (Prankster) in New York in 1916.  He contributed as well to: Naye velt (New world), Idisher kemfer (Jewish fighter), Frayhayt (Freedom), Hamer (Hammer), and other serials.  Among his books: Dervayl (For the time being), lyrical poems in free verse (New York, 1922), 63 pp.; and Teg in shap (Days in a sweatshop), revolutionary labor motifs (New York: Signal [Proletpen], 1936), 93 pp.  He died in New York.

Sources: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol. 1; Yitshak Elhanan Rontsh, Amerike in der yidisher literatur (America in Yiddish literature) (New York, 1945), p. 153; N. Mayzil, ed. and comp., Amerike in yidishn vort, antologye (America in the Yiddish word, an anthology) (New York, 1955), p. 507; Aleksander Pomerants, Proletpen (Proletarian pen) (Kiev, 1935), p. 203; Sh. Slutski, Avrom reyzen biblyografye (Avrom Reyzen’s bibliography) (New York, 1956), no. 4643.