LEYZER-DANIEL LAKSON

LEYZER-DANIEL LAKSON (1872-September 17, 1923)

            He was born in Kovno, Lithuania.  His literary activities began (using the pen name “Don Lazar”) in the Zionist weekly newspaper Di velt (The world) in Vienna in 1900, while at the same time he was also writing in Hebrew and Russian.  In 1903 he moved to the United States.  From 1908 he was contributing to: Di varhayt (The truth), Morgn-zhurnal (Morning journal), Der amerikaner (The American), Avrom Reyzen’s Dos naye land (The new land), Fraynd (Friend) which was the organ of the Workmen’s Circle, Tsukunft (Future)—among other items, about George Eliot in the January-February 1920 issue and about the Hungarian Jewish poet József Kiss in the July 1922 issue—Der idisher kemfer (The Jewish fighter), and others in New York.  He translated from other languages and published as books: Mikhail Artsybashev, Di froy vos shteyt in midst (The woman standing in the midst [original: Zhenschina, Stoyaschaya Posredi]) (New York, 1916), 178 pp.; Raffaele Giovagnoli, Spartak (Spartacus [original: Spartaco]), a historical novel (New York, n.d.), 264 pp.; Georg Brandes, Ferdinand lasal (Ferdinand Lassalle), with Borekh Rivkin, 2 vols. (New York, 1920); Anatoly Vasilievich Lunecharsky, Religye un sotsyalizm (Religion and socialism [original: Religiia i sotsialism]) (New York, 1921), 342 pp.  He was also the New York correspondent for Fraynd (Friend) in St. Petersburg and Haynt (Today) in Warsaw, as well as literary editor for Froyen-zhurnal (Women’s magazine), edited by V. Mirski in New York (1922-1923), in which he published the series: “Barimte froyen in der velt-geshikhte” (Important women in world history) and “Kultur-historishe bilder” (Cultural historical images).  He was co-editor (with V. Mirski) of the yearbook Der idisher almanakh (The Jewish almanac) (New York, 1922), 288 pp. and (New York, 1923), 276 pp.  He died in New York.

Sources: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol. 2; Reyzen, in Yivo-bleter (Vilna) 5.2 (1933), pp. 137-52; D. B. Tirkel, in Pinkes fun amopteyl fun yivo (Records of the American division of YIVO) (New York) 1 (1927-1928), p. 261; Moyshe Shtarkman, in Hadoar (New York) (May 23, 1947).

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