Anna Appel (1888–1963), was a Romanian-born American stage and film actress, known for her works in the Yiddish language.[1] She was active in New York City for over 50 years in Yiddish theatre (in the Yiddish Theatre District), and Yiddish cinema.
Anna Appel | |
|---|---|
| Born | Anna Bercovici May 1, 1888 Bucharest, Kingdom of Romania (now Romania) |
| Died | November 19, 1963 New York City, New York, United States |
| Other names | Anna Berkovitsh, Anna Khane |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1902–1961 |
| Known for | Vaudeville, stage and film acting |
| Spouse(s) | Isadore Appel (?–1908; his death), Sigmund Ben Avi (m. 1915–1929; his death) |
| Partner | Morris Ross |
| Children | 2 |
Biography
editAnna Bercovici was born on May 1, 1888 in Bucharest, Kingdom of Romania (now Romania).[2] Her parents Jeanette (née Schaeffer) and Bernard Bercovici, owned a hotel.[2]
Her career started in 1902, when her family moved to Montreal, Canada where she worked with amateur theatre groups.[1] She moved to New York City to marry Isadore Appel (Isidor Appel), who died in 1908.[1] In 1904, she joined a Yiddish vaudeville company in New York City;[1][2] and in 1918, she joined Maurice Schwartz’s Yiddish Art Theatre in New York City.[2] In 1915, she married Sigmund Ben Avi.[1]
Appel continued to act in vaudeville until 1916, followed by work on Broadway and off-Broadway stage productions.[1][2] She was in the cast of Did I Say No? (1931) at the 48th Street Theatre;[3] Good Neighbor (1941) at the Windsor Theatre;[4] All You Need Is One Good Break (1950) at the Mansfield Theatre;[5] Highway Robbery (1955) at the President Theatre;[6] Comic Strip (1958) at the Barbizon-Plaza;[7] and Abie's Irish Rose (1954) at the Holiday Theatre.[1][8][9]
She died on November 19, 1963 at the age of 75 of a heart attack at Bellevue Hospital in New York City.[1]
Filmography
edit- Yizker (1924), silent film directed by Sidney M. Goldin; as Zsusi, Leybke's foster mother[10]
- Broken Hearts (1926), silent film directed by Maurice Schwartz; as Shprintze[11]
- The Heart of New York (1932), directed by Mervyn LeRoy; as Mrs. Zelde Marantz[12]
- Symphony of Six Million (1932), directed by Gregory La Cava; as Hannah Klauber[13]
- Faithless (1932), directed by Harry Beaumont; as Mrs Mandel, second landlady[14]
- Jolly Paupers (1937), directed by Leon Jeannot and Zygmunt Turkow[15]
- Green Fields (1937), directed by Edgar Georg Ulmer; as Rochel[16]
- The Singing Blacksmith (1938), directed by Edgar Georg Ulmer, Ben–Zvi Baratoff, Ossip Dymow; as Chaye-Peshe[17]
Television
edit- Lux Video Theatre (1952), television anthology series; as Frau Schmidt[18]
- Goodyear Television Playhouse (1954), television anthology series; as Mama
- Kraft Theatre (1954–1955), television anthology series; as Mom
- Naked City (1958), television police procedural series; as Mrs. Levinsky
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h "Anna Appel Dead; Yiddish Actress; Character Player Also Had Many Broadway Roles In Yiddish and English Films". The New York Times. 1963-11-21. p. 39. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
- ^ a b c d e Warnke, Nina (December 31, 1999). "Anna Appel". Jewish Women's Archive. Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
- ^ "Did I Say No?". Playbill Vault.
- ^ "Good Neighbor". Playbill Vault.
- ^ "All You Need Is One Good Break". Playbill Vault.
- ^ Gelb, Arthur (November 7, 1955). "Play From Israel Arrives Tonight; ' Highway Robbery' Will Be Put On at the President by Heritage Group". The New York Times. p. 32 – via Times Machine.
- ^ Atkinson, Brooks (May 25, 1958). "'Comic Strip'; Folkways of New York In Admirable Cartoon". The New York Times. pp. Section X, Page 1 – via Times Machine.
- ^ "Abie's Irish Rose". Playbill Vault.
- ^ Zolotow, Sam (October 5, 1954). "'Abie's Irish Rose' Will Be Revived; Up-to-Date Version of Play That Had Record Run in the Twenties Due Next Month". The New York Times. p. 23. ISSN 1553-8095 – via Times Machine.
- ^ "Yizkor". National Center for Jewish Film. Retrieved 2024-02-12.
- ^ Gevinson, Alan (1997). Within Our Gates: Ethnicity in American Feature Films, 1911-1960. University of California Press. p. 172. ISBN 978-0-520-20964-0.
- ^ Erens, Patricia (1988-08-22). The Jew in American Cinema. Indiana University Press. p. 130. ISBN 978-0-253-20493-6.
- ^ Doherty, Thomas (Summer 2011). "Symphony of Six Million". Cineaste. XXXVII (1). Archived from the original on September 25, 2013.
- ^ Hall, Mordaunt (1932). "Tallulah Bankhead and Robert Montgomery in a Film Version of a Story by Mildred Cram", film review, archives of The New York Times, November 19, 1932.
- ^ "Jolly Paupers / Freylekhe Kabtsonim". National Center for Jewish Film. Retrieved 2024-02-12.
- ^ "Green Fields". National Center for Jewish Film. Archived from the original on 2011-08-30.
- ^ "The Singing Blacksmith / Yankl Der Schmid". National Center for Jewish Film.
- ^ Hawes, William (16 November 2015). Live Television Drama, 1946-1951. McFarland. p. 118. ISBN 978-1-4766-0849-5.
External links
edit- Anna Appel at IMDb