DOVID KRIVITSKI

DOVID KRIVITSKI (September 15, 1884-November 28, 1967)

            He was born in Kurenits (Kurenets), Vilna region.  He studied in religious primary school and three years in a Russian school.  He came to the United States in 1900.  He lived for thirty years in New Haven and later in New York.  He was active as an anarchist and in his later years as a school activist as well.  He published poetry, feature pieces, and satirical stories in: Fraye arbeter shtime (Free voice of labor), Morgn-zhurnal (Morning journal), Tog (Day), Forverts (Forward), Kundes (Pranskter), Di feder (The pen), Der veker (The alarm), Gerekhtikeyt (Justice), Nyu-yorker vokhnblat (New York weekly newspaper), and Eygns (One own) in Bayonne.  He signed his feature pieces “Otbinikh.”  His poems appeared in Nakhmen Mayzil’s Amerike in yidishn vort antologye (America in Yiddish, an anthology) (New York: Ikuf, 1955).  His works include: Itst, poemen tsu leyenen far zikh un far yenem (Now, poems to read for oneself and others) (New York, 1934), 32 pp., third edition (1935); Mit zikh aleyn, gezamlte lider (By oneself, collected poems) (New York: Biderman, 1948), 189 pp.; Fun bagin biz farnakht, lider un impresyes (From dawn to dusk, poems and impressions) (New York, 1959), 113 pp.  Several of his poems, such as “Hent” (Hands), among others, were often recited.  He died in New York.

Sources: Avrom Reyzen, in Di feder (New York) (1949); Talush, Yidishe shrayber (Yiddish writers) (New York, 1953), pp. 191-97; Y. Varshavski (Bashevis), in Forverts (New York) (May 29, 1960); M. Bernshteyn, in Fraye arbeter shtime (New York) (October 15, 1964); Yeshurin archive, YIVO (New York).

Sh. Apter