The Yiddish writer Sholem Aleichem (1859-1916) was an author and humorist whose 40-plus volumes famously combine high intellect with a raucousness and a Jewish redneck sensibility. His style was uncannily reminiscent of another writer of his time, an American, who also had a knack for satire and irony: Mark Twain.
In Aleichem’s novel The Bloody Hoax (1913), a non-Jewish nobleman and a Jewish pauper switch places—just like in Twain’s book The Prince and the Pauper. Unlike Twain’s all-ages parable, however, Aleichem’s story is distinctly adults-only, combining bawdy humor with a trenchant look at anti-Semitism.
Twain and Aleichem’s meetings were not limited to the realm of the literary. When they first met in real life, as the story goes, at a Manhattan hotel in 1906, Aleichem was introduced as “the Yiddish Mark Twain.” Upon hearing this, Twain halted the speaker: “Please tell him that I am the American Sholem Aleichem.”
____
Watch a trailer for Sholem Aleichem: Laughing in the Dark:
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
