NOSN FRUKHTER (FRUCHTER)

NOSN FRUKHTER (FRUCHTER) (September 21, 1891-March 1967)

            He was born in Bolekhov (Bolekhiv), eastern Galicia (Poland).  He studied in religious elementary school and completed six classes of public school.  In 1910 he moved to Germany, settling in Hamburg, and he began to write for Israelitisches Familienblatt (Jewish family newspaper) there.  Around 1914 he made his way to Argentina.  He published sketches and stories in the first daily [Yiddish] newspaper in Buenos Aires, Der tog (The day) as well as in Di idishe tsaytung (The Jewish newspaper).  In 1917 he became a regular contributor to the weekly Di gezelshaft (The society), in which, aside from sketches and stories, he published a novel about Jewish life in Argentina, entitled In der fremd (Abroad)—issues 33-58, though never completed.  He also gave weekly overviews of the war, also using the pen names: Yosem, Ben Khayim, and Ben Hagole.  He also edited the last twenty-four issues of the periodical.  From 1919 he was co-editor of Di prese (The press) and from February 1923 also of the illustrated weekly journal, Far groys un kleyn (For big and small) together with Y. Botoshanski and Sh. Glazerman.  In book form: Di geshikhte fun argentine (The history of Argentina), from Marco Polo and Columbus to the Peron government, 2 vols. (Buenos Aires, 1944-1945); General san martin, der bafrayer (General San Martin, the liberator) (Buenos Aires, 1950), 195 pp.; Iberlebungen fun yankev ovinu un yoysef, maysehlekh fun khumesh (Experiences of Jacob, our forefather, and Joseph, tales from the Bible) (Buenos Aires: Argentiner beymelekh, 1951), 91 pp.  Among his pseudonyms: Manis Soyfer, Niti Feter, and N. Binshtok.  He died in Buenos Aires.

Sources: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol. 3; Sh. Rozhanski, Dos yidishe gedrukte vort un teater in argentine (The published Yiddish word and theater in Argentina), vol. 1 (Buenos Aires, 1941), p. 102; Rozhanski, in Tsukunft (New York) (September 1945); Pinkes galitsye (Records of Galicia) (Buenos Aires, 1945), pp. 243-44; Meylekh Ravitsh, in Tsukunft (November 1946); P. Kats, Geklibene shriftn (Selected writings), vol. 7 (Buenos Aires, 1947), p. 68; Grigori Aronson, in Tsukunft (March 1951); Aronson, in Yorbukh tsht”v fun der yidisher kehile in buenos ayres (1954/1955 annual of the Jewish community of Buenos Aires) (Buenos Aires, 1955), p. 303; Aronson, in Tsukunft (February 1955).

Yankev Kahan