Hershl Hartman

Interview with Hershl Hartman, discussing his
work as a Yiddish journalist, an educator in secular
Yiddish-oriented schools, and a translator from Yiddish to
English. Hershl Hartman was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1929.
He has been a leader at the Sholem Community in Los Angeles for
more than fifty years, serving as Education Director/Vegvayzer
since 1967. Between 1967 and 1985, he was also the school’s
principal. Hartman holds degrees in Secular Jewish education and
in Yiddish journalism. As a younger man, he became the first
American-born Yiddish newspaper reporter, having written for the
Morgen Freiheit when it was a New York City daily with a print
run in the thousands. In recent years, he has worked as a
professional translator from English to Yiddish, translating both
literary works, including poetry, and personal documents and
correspondence. His literary translation work has appeared in the
online Yiddish studies journal In Geveb
(https://ingeveb.org/people/hershl-hartman), and he contributed
to the translation of the book The Jews of Felshtin
(https://felshtin.org/). The interview was recorded via Zoom on
July 9, 2021.


Music:

Lillian Lux: Vashtis Kloglid (with Mike Burstyn as
narrator; lyrics by Itzik Manger)

Chava Alberstein Rabeynu Tam (lyrics by Itzik Manger)

Intro instrumental music: DEM HELFANDS TANTS, an
instrumental track from the CD Jeff Warschauer: The Singing
Waltz





Air Date: July 28, 2021