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Marty Baratz



 

The Yiddish actor, Marty Baratz, was born on 14 March 1905 in New York, America. His father was the actor David Baratz.

He completed public school and he also learned in high school.

As a child he used to imitate his father and he played "theatre" with his friends.

At five years of age, actor Moshe Silberstein had him put on a beard as "Makhutn" in "A mentsh zol men zayn!" ("Be a Man!"); later he used to dance in the play, "Khinke and Pinke," and then he acted in children's roles.

Marty worked for a short time as an employee in a film studio, and thereafter won first prize as an amateur in a contest-production for English vaudeville; he toured across America as a vaudevillian.

In 1925-6 in Los Angeles he was engaged by Jacob Goldstein and M. Nestor in their Yiddish troupe as a buff-comic, and he acted there for a season.

From 1926-7 he acted with his father in Cleveland, and then for short time with Anshel Schorr at the Liberty Theatre in New York.

 

 

http://www.museumoffamilyhistory.com/yt/erg-eisman-goldie-20a.jpg

photo
: Marty Baratz, Menasha Skulnik and Goldie Eisman, at the Yiddish Folks Theatre, Manhattan, December 1936, in "Senior Hershl."
 

In 1927-8 he was at the Prospect Theatre in the Bronx, New York, and acted there from the onset of the season, at least through January 1928 in many productions, e.g. "Forget Me Not," "Children of the Underworld," "The Slaughter," "The Song of Youth," The Lady Next Door," "Broken Hearts," "The Polish Wedding," "Living Orphans," "Her Awakening," "The Number 3 Door," "Love and Crime," "The Poor Little Rich Girl," "The Black Jew," "Scenes of Life," "The Frau Besault," "Resurrections," and "Goldele's Wedding."
 From 1928-30 he was at the Public Theatre in Manhattan, New York, where he acted in such plays as: "A Galician Wedding," "Love and Politics," "The Galician Rebbetzin," "Slaves of Luxury," and "Sonitchka." He also went on the road with "A Galician Wedding," playing in such cities as Brooklyn, Baltimore and Boston.

In 1929, he and Goldie Eisman appeared in a film short, entitled, "Style and Class," which was directed by Sidney M. Goldin.

Marty was away from New York for some of the 1929-1930 season, acting in "Back to his People" at Philadelphia's Arch Street Theatre, as well as in Willie Siegel's play, "Count Yosl," in such cities as Providence, Boston, Pittsburgh and Chicago.

In the 1930-31 season he played in Brooklyn's Lyric Theatre in such plays as: "The Eternal Mother" and "The Soul of a Woman." Both plays were written by Harry Kalmanowitz.

During the 1932-33 theatre season, he acted with a troupe at the Arch Street Theatre in Philadelphia. He acted with Menasha Skulnik's troupe in such plays as: "Galician Shlemiel," "Shmerl the

Dumbbell," "Good Times," "Der rebe hot geheysn freylekh zayn," "Yoshke Khvat," "Bar Mitzvah," "The Imported Wife," and "Happy Days." He also went on the road in "Galician Shlemiel" in Boston and Providence, as well as with "Happy Days."

He continued playing at the Arch Street Theatre during the 1933-34 season, in such plays as: "The Polish Rabbi," "Motl Pantofl," "Three Hoboes," "The Eternal Bride," "A Village Wedding," "The Jewish Heart," "The Jolly Cobblers," and "The Jewish Dream."

During the same season he played in "The Organ Grinder," in such locations as in the Bronx and Brooklyn, and on the road in Baltimore, Providence, Boston and Chicago.

For the 1934-35 season, Marty (and Goldie) was at both the Second Avenue and Hopkinson Theatres, in Manhattan and Brooklyn, respectively. He acted in such plays as: "The Candy Kid," "The Little Bandit" (cf. troupe photograph on this page), "Some Boy," "The First Night," "What Girls Do," (all with Julius Nathanson's troupe), "Itche Mayer of Warsaw," "The Golden Ring," and "The Cantor's Wife."

During the 1935-36 season, Marty played mostly at the Hopkinson Theatre in Brooklyn, New York. He was in such plays as: "The Little Rabbi," "The Girl of My Heart," "The Jolly Tailors," "The Life of Fanny Dubinsky," "The Price of Sin," "God, Man and Devil," and "Shykele Shmadnik," which also played on the road.

In the 1936-37 season, he was at Manhattan's Yiddish Folks Theatre, in such shows as: "Shlumiel," "Shulamis," "The Woman in Chains," "The Rabbi's Melody," "The Galician Rabbi," and for at least March and April of 1937 was on the road, i.e. in theatres in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Maryland, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Newark, New Jersey, in "Pini from Pinchev."

In the 1937-38 season, Marty played in a few theatres in and around New York City. He played in the Second Avenue Theatre in "Yosel and His Wives," "The Jolly Village," "Warsaw at Night," and "The Little Tailor"; "The Wanderer" at the Bronx's McKinley Square Theatre and "Mirele Efros"; "Oh. America!" and "The Street Singer" at Brooklyn's "Hopkinson Theatre."

From at least January 1940 until February of 1942, Marty Baratz acted in the Clinton Theatre in Lower Manhattan, New York. The plays he participated in were: "Motl, the Operator," "The Jolly Litvack," "Let's Be Happy," "Di lustige mishpokhe," "The Girl From Warsaw," "The Jewish Father," "A Guest in Town," "Mothers of the World," "The Chelm Cantor," "The Bride of Suffolk Street," and "The Litvack in His Harem." From 1942-1947 Marty was most often playing in New York City's National Theatre, e.g. in "Di kale treft dem khosn," "Spring Song," "Song of Songs," "The Greatest Night of All Nights," "Chaim Mendl Goes Away," and "The Galician Cowboy."

Marty also arranged dances in the Yiddish theatre.
 

 

Two Signed Photgraphs, "Best Wishes" from Marty Baratz.


 

 


 

 

 



      Goldie Eisman and Marty Baratz >>>
 














 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 


 

 

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