Researching Yiddish penny songs (tenement song broadsides of theater and variety show songs, 1895-1925)
Index of songs on this site
Youtube: all the Penny Songs I've recorded so far (with subtitles)
About this project ♦ ♦ About Jane Peppler
List of the still-lost songs: do you know any of them?
Search the blog:

A kind anonymous commenter left me some information on the post about the Yiddish vaudeville song Tsum Tayvl. I had asked, who is F. Zinger? Now I have the answer. But I still don't have the tunes for his songs except for Yidl mit zayn fidl (Yudl mit zayn fidel etc).

His name is variously spelled Fishel Singer, Fishl or Fishel Zinger, Philip Singer (or Phillip). Jewniverse has a death date of 1940 for him. Here is my translation of his entry in the Zilberzweig Lexicon of the Yiddish Theatre (volume 1 page 792):

Born September 4, 1887 in Yassi, Rumania. Father - a storekeeper. Studied in kheyder and 4 classes in the state school. Around 13 years of age he came to America, sought Yiddish theater and was drawn to the stage. Around 17 years old, played the romantic role Shabasi Goylem in Lateiner's "Wandering Soul" (Farblondzhete neshome)

Later Z. became a prompter and wrote lyrics for the Yiddish vaudeville houses, among others the popular couplet "Yidl mitn fidl" (adapted from an English text and motif), which was later sung in other languages as well. Afterwards he played vaudeville with Gebil, Nathan Goldberg, etc.

He became director of the Monument National Theater in Montreal (for two years), ran a troupe in Chelsea (two years), and a small theater in Boston.

He also played in English vaudeville theaters and a whole season in the piece "Turn to the right", afterwards toured with the piece across America. In 1925 he played with Molly Picon in the Second Avenue Theater. In 1926 again on the English language stage, 1927-1928 with Begil i Peoples Theater and 1929-1930 played in Brooklyn's Hopkinson Theater.

Z. wrote one show, from which "The street girl" (Dos gasn-meydl) was played in the former Comedy Theater in New York (Suffolk Street).

---

For sheet music and/or performances contact me: jane@mappamundi.com

---