The Singing Blacksmith (1938)

Directors:

Edgar G. Ulmer
Ben-Zvi Baratoff

Writers:

David Pinski (play)
David Pinski (adaptation)

Genre:

Drama | Musical

Plot:

Moishe Oysher gives his most robust performance as a passionate shtetl blacksmith who must struggle against temptation to become a mensch. Ulmer's film is a musical version of David Pinski's classic 1906 play Yankl der Schmid.

Plot Keywords:

Yiddish | Blacksmith | Dancing | Rabbi | Baby

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Moyshe Oysher	...	Yankel (as Moishe Oysher)
Miriam Riselle	...	Tamara
Florence Weiss	...	Rivke
Anna Appel	...	Chaye-Peshe
Ben-Zvi Baratoff	...	Bendet
Michael Gorrin	...	Raffuel (as Michael Goldstein)
Lea Noemi	...	Mariashe
Max Vodnoy	...	Simche
Luba Wesoly	...	Frumeh
Judel Dubinsky	...	Reb Aaron (as Yudel Dubinsky)
Luba Rymer	...	Sprintz-Gnesye
Benjamin Fishbein	...	Frolke (as B. Fishbein)
Rubin Wendroff	...	Elia (as R. Wendroff)
Rae Schnier	...	Chaika - Rivke's Mother (as Ray Schneier)
R. Shanock	...	Leah

Also Known As:

Yankl the Blacksmith (USA) (original script title)

Runtime:

115 min | 107 min (1998 restoration)

Country:

USA

Language:

Yiddish

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Variray Blue Seal Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #02307) | USA:TV-14 (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Collective Film Producers Inc.

Trivia:

Director Edgar G. Ulmer stated in an interview that the location shooting near Newton, NJ, was on land owned by the Catholic Monastery of the Benedictine Order, who were very cooperative in letting him build sets and film there, even supplying some monks who wore beards to be cast as extras. He also said there was a camp of a violent pro-Nazi organization called the German-American Bund nearby, and when they heard there was a company of New York Jews shooting a film in Yiddish near them, they threatened to assault the cast and crew and burn down the sets. Ulmer stated that the Benedictine monks - many of whom were Germans themselves - patrolled the film's location at night carrying shotguns to guard against any attack by the Bund.

Soundtrack:

In Der Kuznie (Yankel der Schmidt)

Yiddish film featuring the singing of Moyshe Oysher

Yankl der Shmid, the Singing Blacksmith, was filmed in New Jersey in the late 1930's. It was originally a play, simplified and brought to the screen as a vehicle to show off the singing talents of Moyshe Oysher as Yankl. Not a great film, but the singing is spectacular, and it's interesting as a period piece. As an extra bonus, the young Yankl is portrayed by Herschel Bernardi, in his first film role.