Re: Thomashevsky

[Lori M Simon <lorelecs...>]

I wanted to reply to this and give a correction.  Thomashevsky didn't say
"Momzer, gib mir a vort",  but merely "Momzer, gib a vort!"  That's what
I had meant to write.  Small difference, but sets a little different
tone.  Mabel told me today that she thought the prompter had refrained
from giving him his lines to play with him because he knew he was drunk. 
S'iz shver tsu zayn a yid in teater.
Lorele
 
On Sun, 23 Nov 2003 15:54:16 -0500 Lori M Simon <lorelecs (at) juno(dot)com>
writes:
> Friends,
> 
> I thought I'd share this story with you.  An older friend of mine, 
> Mabel
> Snyder (nee Fenster), grew up in the Yiddish Theater in Cleveland 
> and
> from time to time tells me stories.  Today she shared this gem with 
> me. 
> Boris Thomashevsky was in town doing Grine Felder and little Mabel 
> was
> sitting in the prompter's box, where she liked to watch from. 
> Thomashevsky played a coal miner and in the opening scene he walked 
> down
> into his basement apartment, covered in coal dust, face black, and
> prepared for himself a glezele tey (glass of tea).  Since the glass 
> would
> have been hot, he took a towel and wrapped it around the 
> glass...and
> wrapped it around the glass, and wrapped it around the glass.  He 
> was
> making such a big deal about the wrapping.  Now Mabel's father had 
> warned
> her.that Thomashevsky was an alcoholic, like Barrymore, and when he 
> was
> drunk he was magnificent onstage, sometimes improvising great 
> things,
> improved in artistry, so everyone watched quietly to see what he 
> would
> do.  When nothing was forthcoming but the towel shtik, the house 
> started
> whispering and tittering because he had been sitting for such a long 
> time
> doiing the pantomime with the towel.  Quietly, to the prompter he 
> said,
> "Momzer, gib mir a vort!"  The first two rows and the orchestra pit 
> heard
> and were hysterical, but the rest of the house had no idea what was 
> going
> on.  They just thought here was the great Thomashevsky, hamming it 
> up
> with a shtick, but really it was the drunk Thomashevsky who had 
> forgotten
> his line and said, "Bastard, give me a word!"  Dosn't translate as 
> well,
> but there ya go.
> 
> Lorele
> 
> ________________________________________________________________
> The best thing to hit the internet in years - Juno SpeedBand!
> Surf the web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER!
> Only $14.95/ month - visit www.juno.com to sign up today!
> 
> ---------------------- jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org 
> ---------------------+
>