YOYSEF GUDMAN

YOYSEF GUDMAN (b. 1870)

            He was born in Konotop, Ukraine.  In 1887 he emigrated to New York, later moving to Canada.  He lived in the Sommerfeld Colony, later in Calgary, Winnipeg, Ottawa, and Montreal.  We have no news of him after 1922.  In 1906 he edited the biweekly newspaper Viderklang (Echo) in Winnipeg; and Der birger (The citizen), “periodical for poetry, literature, and satire” (last issue, no. 17, June 20, 1913); co-edited the biweekly Kanader mazik (Canadian brat) (no. 8, 1912).  He wrote poetry, humorous sketches, stories, and reportage pieces in: Kanader id (Canadian Jew) (1909-1910); Dos idishe vort (The Yiddish word); Dos idishe lebn (The Jewish life) (1913); Forverts (Forward); Der kundes (The prankster); and Der kibitser (The joker), among others.  In book form: Gezamlte lider (Collected poems) (Winnipeg, 1919), 144 pp.  He used such pseudonyms as: Ish Doyg, A Kestkind, Baron Tengelbender, Akosta, Khap-lap, Ish Oshir, and Humorustikana.

Source: Kh. L. Fuks, Hundert yor yidishe un hebreishe literatur in kanade (A century of Yiddish and Hebrew literature in Canada) (Montreal, 1980).

Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), col. 149.