10  October 19th, 1946


  1. “The Two Kuni Lemels.” In the 1960s, this was made into an Israeli film called The Flying Matchmaker.↩︎

  2. Neighborhood in Brooklyn that was extremely Jewish through the 1950s.↩︎

  3. $10 in the 1890s equates to roughly $350 today↩︎

  4. Unclear if this is a correct translation - that he wasn’t scared of NYC.↩︎

  5. implies they would do anything for them; “come hell or high water” these fans are ready to defend their actors.↩︎

  6. “Beautiful Gold” in Hebrew, a direct translation of Schoengold <-> yaffa and gold <-> zahav↩︎

  7. “The Great Eagle” in Hebrew, since “Adler” means “eagle” in German.↩︎

  8. As in, he’ll just figure it out when he gets on the stage!↩︎

  9. This may not be a correct translation, but it’s the right vibe.↩︎

  10. He passed away in 1942, according to his Leksikon entry, in Los Angeles where he settled when he became older and ill.↩︎

  11. סטאַר ספּעשעלטי קלאָב↩︎

  12. This was Max Staller, a prominent Jewish anarchist and physician. Read more about him in Appendix A↩︎

  13. It’s worth noting that, according to the book Jewish Quarter of Philadelphia: A History & Guide 1881-1930, the “Star Specialty Club” troupe would sometimes play at the old fire station at 512 S 3rd St, right above South St.↩︎

  14. “The Free Voice of Labor”; Anarchist Yiddish newspaper↩︎

  15. God forbid↩︎

  16. a very common profession in the new world!↩︎

  17. big fan↩︎

  18. Literally “spinning head,” an idiom that refers to a schemer/swindler. They talk so much they spin your head around.↩︎

  19. Frank↩︎

  20. Herman↩︎

  21. aka, landsmen - people from the same region in the old country↩︎

  22. means, “came back empty-handed”↩︎

  23. I changed this from “tumult in the world for you”. It’s a conversational idiom - implies, you want to be famous in NYC?!↩︎

  24. Almost certainly idiom for “they will love you”↩︎

  25. implying, you don’t have to go crazy looking for somewhere↩︎

  26. סוזי שעיפער↩︎

  27. the word Sam uses translates to “withdrawal”; I think he is referring to her introversion?↩︎