MENDELSON, JOSÉ

MENDELSON, JOSÉ (Yoysef; 1891–1969), Argentine Yiddish editor and writer. Born in Cherkassy (Ukraine), Mendelson had a traditional education from his father and was early recognized as a talmudic genius. His first publication was an article on peretz smolenskin in 1912 in the Russian-Zionist monthly, Di Yidishe Hofenung. In the same year, he immigrated to Argentina, where he taught Hebrew. With Z. Brokhes he co-edited the fortnightly, Der Kolonist, in which he also published articles on Yiddish and Spanish writers. He began writing for Di Yidishe Tsaytung in 1917 and later edited the publication (1923–29); with Y. Helfman he edited the Yiddish monthly Argentine (1921). He also edited the anthologies Oyf di Bregn fun La-Plata ("On the Banks of La Plata," 1919), 50 Yor Yidishe Kolonizatsye in Argentine ("50 Years of Colonization in Argentina," 1939), and Rashi-Bukh ("Rashi-Book," 1940). A collection of his writings, Amol in a Halbn Yoyvl ("Once in Half a Lifetime"), was published in 1943. He translated many Russian, Spanish, French, and English novels into Yiddish. Among his other works were plays and writings about artists, sculptors, etc. From 1943, he directed the Hebrew-Yiddish Teachers Seminary in Buenos Aires. -BIBLIOGRAPHY: LNYL, 6 (1965), 39–41. (Israel Ch. Biletzky / Jerold C. Frakes (2nd ed.)