AVROM VAYTS (WEITZ, WAJC)

AVROM VAYTS (WEITZ, WAJC) (1908-June 24, 1980)

            He was born in Lask (Łask), near Lodz, Poland.  He studied in religious primary school, a Tachkemoni high school, and with private tutors.  While still a youth, he became a laborer.  In 1928 he left Poland, lived for a time in Berlin, Liège, Antwerp, and Brussels, and later settled in Paris, where until the German occupation he worked in tailoring.  He served in the French army, 1939-1940, later spending four years in German captivity and in concentration camps.  In the summer of 1945 he returned to Paris.  He debuted in print with a story entitled “Di lebedike statue’ (The living statue) which appeared in Nayer folksblat (New people’s newspaper) in Lodz in 1927.  He later contributed to Naye prese (New press) in Paris.  He published stories, novels—such as In lateynishn kvartal (In the Latin Quarter), Ven der boym hot geblit (When the tree bloomed), and Di letste geto (The last ghetto)—sketches, tales, reportage pieces, and treatises about literature and art, which appeared in: Naye prese, Unzer vort (Our word), Parizer shriftn (Parisian writings), Oyfsnay (Afresh), Unzer eynikeyt (Our unity), and Unzer shtime (Our voice)—in Paris; Loshn un lebn (Language and life), Yidishe shriftn (Yiddish writings), and Di idishe shtime (The Jewish voice)—in London; Der tog (The day), Forverts (Forward), Tsukunft (Future), Yidishe kultur (Jewish culture), and Unzer tsayt (Our time)—in New York; Kol yisrael (Voice of Israel), Yisroel-shtime (Israel’s voice), Hatsofe (The spectator)—in Israel; Ilustrirte literarishe bleter (Illustrated literary leaves) in Buenos Aires; Dorem-afrike (South Africa) in Johannesburg; Belgishe bleter (Belgian pages) in Brussels; Unzer fraynd (Our friend) in Brazil; Di post (The mail) and Oyfboy (Construction) in Melbourne; and elsewhere.  He edited the literary supplement to the weekly newspaper Arbeter-vort (Workers’ word) in Paris (1954-1955), and he co-edited the literary anthology Parizer almanakh (Parisian almanac) (1955).  His books would include: Oysyes in blut, dertseylungen (Letters in blood, stories), stories of destruction and pain (Paris, 1948), 271 pp.; A nayer tog geyt oyf, noveln (A new day rises, stories) (Paris, 1952), 202 pp.; Der bahaltener yid (The hidden Jew), stories from Jewish sorrow and self-sacrifice (Paris, 1954), 191 pp.; Di letste geto (Buenos Aires: Yidbukh, 1961), 347 pp.; Der karshnboym, noveln (The cherry tree, stories) (Paris, 1961), 59 pp.; Bal-shem-tov motivn un andere dertseylungen (Themes of the Bal-Shem-Tov and others stories) (Paris, 1977), 237 pp.  He died in Paris.

Sources: M. Dluzhnovski, in Fraye arbeter shtime (New York) (January 1946); American Hebrew (New York) (October 4, 1946); Idisher kemfer (New York) (August 29, 1947); M. Litvin, in Di naye prese (Paris) (February 18, 1948); M. Goldin, in Oyfsnay (Paris) (April 1948); Sh. Tenenboym, in Di shtime (Mexico City) (August 7, 11, and 21, 1948); M. Ravitsh, in Keneder odler (Montreal) (October 11, 1949); A. Leyeles, in Der tog (New York) (November 8, 1949); Khayim Leyb Fuks, in Arbeter vort (Paris) (May 28, 1952; May 27, 1958); Fuks, in Fun noentn over (New York) 3 (1957); N. Gris, in Nayvelt (Tel Aviv) (June 12, 1952); L. Domankevitsh, in Unzer vort (Paris) (October 20, 1954); G. Vaysman, in Lebns-fragn (Tel Aviv) (July 1956).

Khayim Leyb Fuks

[Additional information from: Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), col. 245.]