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Jewish Student Federation, York University [textual record] – 1975.

Accession Number: 1979-9-16

Source: Archival Accessions

Accession Number: 1979-9-16

Material Format: textual record

Physical Description: 1 folder of textual records

Date: 1975

Scope and Content: Accession consists of textual records relating to a "Teach-In on Israel" held at the university on 22 January 1975. There is also an announcement of a meeting of the Revolutionary Marxist Group at York.

MG_RG: MG2 P1d

Subjects: Education; Children; Politics and government

Name Access: Jewish Student Federation (York University)

Source: Archival Accessions

Ben Collis - 1 Jun. 1976

Name: Ben Collis

Material Format: sound recording

Interview Date: 1 Jun. 1976

Source: Oral Histories

Name: Ben Collis

Number: OH 93

Subject: Musicians; Cemeteries; Synagogues; Antisemitism; Farmers; Yiddish language

Interview Date: 1 Jun. 1976

Quantity: 2 audio cassettes (1 copy); 2 WAV files

Interviewer: Larry Troster and Elaine Kahn

Total Running Time: OH93_001:43.50 minutes OH93_002:18.45 minutes

Conservation: Copied August 2003; Digitized 2014

Notes: poor sound quality in some sections

Use Restrictions: Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Biography: Ben Collis, the son of Russian immigrants, was born in 1911. He grew up in Oshawa, Ontario. In 1944, he moved to Peterborough, Ontario. Ben's interest in music led him to form his own dance band and play gigs throughout Ontario.

Material Format: sound recording

Language: English

Geographic Access: Oshawa (Ont.); Peterborough (Ont.)

Original Format: Audio cassette

Copy Format: Audio cassette; Digital file

Transcript: G:\Description\Oral Histories\OH 93 - Collis\OH93_001_Log.pdf; G:\Description\Oral Histories\OH 93 - Collis\OH93_002_Log.pdf

Source: Oral Histories

Charna Galper - 15 Aug. 2018

Name: Charna Galper

Material Format: moving images

Interview Date: 15 Aug. 2018

Source: Oral Histories

Name: Charna Galper

Number: OH 448

Subject: Immigrants--Canada; Synagogues; Camps; Musicians; Yiddish language; Yiddish literature

Interview Date: 15 Aug. 2018

Quantity: 1 MP4 file

Interviewer: Naomi Raichyk

Total Running Time: 1:42 minutes

Biography: Charna Galper was born in 1921 in Bershet, Ukraine and immigrated with her family to Toronto in 1923. Charna grew up and lived in the Kensington Market area until 1955, when she moved north of the downtown core. Charna attended Landsdowne Public School and Harbord Collegiate, where she graduated as a legal secretary. She was a member of Hashomer Haztair and attended its summer camp at the Stroud, Ontario location. Charna married Abe Galper in 1947. Abe's career as a musician allowed them to travel to New York, Israel, and China. Charna has volunteered for Circle of Care and today spends her time pursuing her interest in Yiddish and attending programs at the Baycrest Centre.

Material Format: moving images

Geographic Access: Kensington Market (Toronto, Ont.)

Transcript: 0:40: Charna born in 1921 in Bershet, Urkaine, tells the story of how she her parents and siblings fled Ukraine for Canada. Sponsored by Joe and Philip Finkler her mother’s brothers, the family arrived in Toronto in 1923. 3:24: Charna describes the living conditions of the family’s first home at 237 Beverley St., Fitzroy Terrace in the Kensington area and Grange Ave. 4:55: Charna talks about her elder sister’s contracting diphtheria and the resulting quarantine her family had to endure 5:2: Charna talks her parents first home at 210 Robert St. and the family’s move to Albany Ave. 6:15: Charna describes in detail the family’s living conditions prior to their move to 210 Robert St. 7:15: Charna talks about some of the challenges her parents faced when they first came to Toronto. She describes the hardships her father endured working as a carpenter during the depression 9:40: Charna talks about Joe and Philip Finkler as instrumental in helping her parents buy the house on Robert St. in 1926, the year her brother Shloime was born 10:00: Charna recalls some memories of the Robert St neighborhood, a closely knit Jewish immigrant community with Yiddish spoken as the primary language and her experiences at the Landsdowne Public school 11:40: Charna recalls her grandmother as being a wonderful davener 13:00: Charna talks about the details of the Robert St. house mortgage 14:1: Charna talks about her first job working for Harry Grainer as a legal secretary and later with Lou Rasminsky, the first Jewish governor of the Bank of Canada. 15:33: Charna recalls the area around Rasminsky’s storefront at 418 Spadina Ave. Spadina was filled with many businesses, egg stores, Hyman’s bookstore and Goodmans on the corner of Oxford, “we all knew each other, it was a leibedik velt. 16:00: Charna talks in more detail about her job as a legal secretary for Lou Rasminsky 18.45: Charna describes her daily walk to Harbord Collegiate 19:30: Charna talks about not having enough money for carfare and riding the bus for free 20:33: Charna talks about her best friend Rose Ruskin 21:35: Charna talks about how as a child she was spoiled by her older sisters Nechama and Ethel 22:04: Charna talks about helping with the household chores 22:15: Charna describes family laundry day on Sunday. We had laundry tubs in the backyard, my sisters and I had scrubbing boards and my mother was good at wringing, it was a team effort 22:46: Charna talks about the Kosoys who owned a home laundry at Borden and Harbord St. They had what was called wet wash, they would bring the clean laundry back to us wet and we would hang it to dry. 23:27: Charna talks about getting their first refrigerator 23:41: Charna describes their first refrigerator 24:01: Charna describes their icebox and Katz the iceman who came once a week to deliver ice 24:44: Charna talks about buying groceries on credit 25:37: Charna talks about why her parents wanted her to go to school rather than working in a factory 25:50: Charna talks about helping with the shopping in Kensington market 26:05: Charna talks about going to Kensington market on Thursday morning to buy a big carp, bring it home, put it in the tub until Friday morning when her grandmother would kill it and turn it into gefilte fish 27:33: Charna describes her own gefilte fish recipe 28:35: Charna recalls going to the market on Friday to buy a live chicken for Shabbat and taking it to the Schoichet on Major St. to be killed and plucked 29:03: Charna describes how to hold a live chicken 29:23: Charna describes bargaining for goods in the market 30:41: Charna recalls the pickled crabapple treats from a delicatessen located at Dundas in Kensington Market 32:04: Charna recalls Tryman’s family run grocery store on Baldwin St., Little Eaton’s on Kensington that sold Eaton’s castoffs, Hyman’s bookstore on Spadina Ave that sold office supplies, religious books and had a registry for bar-mitzvahs and weddings. 34:45: Charna describes her brother Shloime’s bar-mitzvah held at their Robert St. home and catered by her grandmother 35:42: Charna recalls about the days when her grandmother was a caterer in Russia and also in Toronto 37:12: Charna describes her grandmother’s cooking 37:49: Charna talks about her grandmother as a very orthodox woman who wore both a sheitel and kerchief 38.22: Charna talks about the family’s traditional observance of Shabbos and Jewish holidays, the Russian Shul on Centre St, and her grandmother’s cooking for Rosh Hashanah 40:36: Charna talks about the Russian Shul’s move to Markham St. and describes its interior 42:39: Charna talks about Joe and Philip Finkler’s connection with the Kiever Shul 43:42: Charna talks about her grandmother’s passing in 1939 44:04: Charna talks about her sisters Elsie and Nechama 45:35: Charna talks about her surprise birthday party in celebration of her 95th year 46:08: Charna talks about her sister Nechama’s move to Palestine 46:34: Charna talks about her father in-law’s move to Palestine in 1930 47:30: Charna talks about her involvement with Hashomer Hatzair 49:24: Charna talks about Hashomer Hatzair’s summer camp locations in Keswick, Stroud, Parry Sound, and Lake Ooty in Perth, Ontario 50:25: Charna describes her camp experience at the Stroud location 52:05: Charna talks about accompanying her husband Abe, a clarinet teacher to camp Hashomer Hatzair in Perth, Ontario 52:59: Charna talks about her past and present affiliation with schlichim coming to Toronto 53:45: Charna talks about her affiliation with Pioneer Women, now known as Na’amat 54:32: Charna tells the story of how she met her husband Abe in 1947 57:18: Charna describes her first date with Abe 57:43: Charna talks about walking with Abe to the Tivoli theatre at Victoria and Shuter. “Who used cars, who used streetcars, we walked. On the way back I got the most terrible blisters, I was with new shoes, with high heels.” 58:26: Charna continues to describe her first date with Abe 59:01: Charna describes the inside of the Tivoli theatre 59:49: Charna talks about City Dairy where she and Abe went for ice cream on their first date. City Dairy was located at Spadina Crescent near College St. 1:00:36: Charna explains why she and Abe decided to get their marriage license in May 1948 1:02:08: Charna talks about the attraction she and Abe had for one another 1:02:42: Charna talks about her wedding held in the family’s backyard at Albany Ave. in August of 1948 1:04:47: Charna describes her wedding cake and how she preserved it in a tin box until her 25th wedding anniversary 1:06:04 Charna talks about her first apartment with Abe at College and Crawford 1:06:52: Charna talks the period following her marriage and her mother’s stroke 1:07:45: Charrna talks about her first pregnancy and birth of Batsheva in November 1949 1:07:54: Charna talks about moving into her parent’s home on Albany St. 1:09:25: Charna talks about thinking of buying their own home 1:10:16 Charna talks about why they waited a year before moving into their own home. She explains everything she needed was close by the house on Albany, including Starkman’s and Honest Ed’s. 1:11:28: Charna describes their first house as it looked when they moved in 1955 1:12:14: Charna talks about the shifting demographics of the neighborhood from primarily Gentile to Jewish 1:12:40: Charna talks about the neighborhood Daysbury public school her children attended 1:12:55: Charna talks about how life became easier for them when Abe’s work with the symphony increased from 26 weeks to 42 weeks a season 1:13:34: Charna talks about the death of her mother before the move to their own home and her father who moved in with them 1:13:50: Charna talks about Abe’s music students and his work with the Conservatory 1:14:26: Charna talks about her 2 youngest children attending the Bialik School 1:14:59: Charna gives the ages of her 5 children, Batsheva 69 years old, Chaya 68 years old, Devora 64 years old, Penina 56 years old, and Yanke 55 years old1:16:03 1:14:60: Break in interview as Charna speaks with her daughter Devora 1:17:40: Charna talks about Abe’s relationship with her parents 1:18:07: Charna talks about Abe’s career as a musician 1:19:02: Charna talks about Abe playing for the Israel Philharmonic in 1962 and their thoughts about making Aliyah 1:19:39: Charna talks about their return from Israel to Toronto, his work with the conservatory and some of his music students 1:20:36: Charna talks about Abe’s medical condition 1:20:51: Charna talks about how she and Abe worked as a team 1:21:11: Charna talks about accompanying Abe to New York when he played with the New York Philharmonic 1:22:08: Charna talks about Abe’s work following his heart attack 1:22:22: Charna talks about Abe giving a master class in Israel for Israeli clarinetists 1:24:00: Charna talks about Abe’s experience playing with the Palestine Symphony 1:26:25: Charna talks about how she came to know famous people such as Frank Shuster, John (Louie) Wayne, Sylvia and Ben Lennick, and pianist Leo Barkin 1:29:14: Charna talks about musicians from Israel who moved to Toronto 1:31:08: Break in conversation as Charna gets up from her chair 1:31:57: Charna talks about her children being what is most important to her 1:32:41: Charna talks about her son Jacob’s 25th wedding anniversary 1:33:15: Charna talks about her current interest in Yiddish, going to the Baycrest program and meeting interesting people 1:36:13: Charna talks accompanying Abe to China during a 3 week master class program 1:40:17: Charna talks about the evening’s upcoming anniversary party and invited guests 1:42:00: Charna talks about her service volunteering for Circle of Care and the Jewish elderly 1:42:33: Charna talks about learning to drive her first car, a blue and white chevy with wings

Source: Oral Histories

Maurice Solway fonds [multiple media] – 1919-1989.

Part Of: Maurice Solway fonds

Level: Fonds

ID: Fonds 13

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Maurice Solway fonds

Level: Fonds

Fonds: 13

Material Format: multiple media

Date: 1919-1989

Physical Description: 11 cm of textual records and other material

Admin History/Bio: Maurice Solway (1906-2001) was a violinist, music teacher, composer, author and actor who lived and worked for most of his life in Toronto. Although he was highly respected as a musician in Toronto, and thoroughly immersed in the city’s musical culture from the 1920s until the 1980s, his greatest fame came to him later in life, as an actor in the Academy Award nominated NFB short film “The Violin”.; Maurice Solway's family lived at 164 York Street, Toronto, where he was born, in 1906. His parents, Jakob (b.1877) and Roza Solway (b.1877), had only just emigrated that year from Halofzen, Russia, where Jakob had been a musician and band leader. In Canada, Jakob adopted his father's trade and worked as a Kosher butcher, in Toronto’s St. John’s Ward. As a youth, Maurice played the violin in variety programmes with his sister, Dora, accompanying him on piano. His father was his first teacher, but he quickly showed enough promise to warrant private lessons with Harry Adaskin, and later with Dr. Luigi von Kunits, at the Canadian Academy of Music. He also studied at the Hambourg Conservatory in Toronto with Henri Czaplinsky and Geza de Kresz, starting in 1921.; Solway began his professional career with the New Symphony, which later became the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO). During the 1920s, he also played in the Famous Players Cinema orchestras that accompanied silent films, and performed lunch concerts in Toronto hotel and department store orchestras, professional venues that would disappear by the 1930s.; From 1926 to 1928, Solway left Canada to study in Brussels with the highly regarded violinist, Eugène Ysaÿe. There he befriended other students of Ysaÿe, such as Nathan Milstein, William Primrose, Viola Mitchell, Robert Velton, and Joseph Gingold.; Upon his return to Toronto, Solway gave several recitals that were both critically and publicly well-received. Few such opportunities, however, existed in Canada at the time, and Solway was obliged to find work in-between solo concerts. He also suffered an injury to his left hand while moving a piano in 1929 that required him to adjust his technique for three fingers and interfered with his being able to play comfortably for a number of years.; He was married in 1930 to Anne Cass (1907-1994), and they had a son, Stephen. Facing his financial obligations to his new family, he opted for the more dependable income of orchestral playing versus the riskier and transitory life of a soloist. Besides classical music, he played with jazz groups like the Jolly Bachelor’s Orchestra, Oscar Peterson, Jerome Kern, and Percy Faith, and on numerous recordings for the CBC, CFCA, and CKGW radio stations. He also played chamber music with the Joyce Trio, founded by Simeon Joyce (piano) and featuring Charles Mathe (cello).; In 1952, Solway retired from the TSO, dedicating himself to his chamber playing and radio work. He founded the Solway String Quartet (SSQ) in 1947, with Marcus Adeney (cello), Nathan Green (viola) and Jack Groob (violin). The quartet played a mixed repertoire that included standard classical music with more widely recognized popular songs and new compositions, especially works by Canadian composers such as Howard Cable, John Weinzweig and Jean Coulthard. Sponsored by the Ontario Board of Education and the CBC, the SSQ played rural Ontario towns and broadcast concerts for a wide demographic of music listeners. In 1955, they performed the Canadian debut of the Castelnuovo-Tedesco Quintet for guitar and strings with Andres Segovia. The SSQ, with frequent changes in personnel, continued performing until 1968. Other players in the SSQ included Robert Warburton, Martin Chenhall, Murray Adaskin, Arthur Milligan, Charles Dobias, Eugene Hudson, Berul Sugerman, Joseph Pach and Ivan Romanoff.; In 1973, Solway was invited to act in a short children’s film “The Violin,” co-produced by George Pastic and Andrew Walsh. Solway also contributed the original music to the film, which was nominated for an Academy Award in 1975. Following the success of the film, Solway also appeared on television, making guest appearances with Sharon, Lois and Bram, on the Elephant Show and Mr. Dressup. During this time, his wife Anne traveled with him and managed his appointments.; Solway was also a violin teacher throughout his career. In 1989, he published a preparatory book, Fiddling for Fun: the Visual and Aural Art of Violin Playing, in which he outlined a new theory for violin practice that proposed an easy to use visual system for familiarizing students with intervals and fingerboard positions.; He also wrote an autobiography, Recollections of a Violinist, in 1984, and continued to lecture and speak about music. In 1981 and 1983 he devised a lecture performance series to commemorate Ysaÿe, the proceeds of which went to the establishment of a music scholarship at the Royal Conservatory. As he began to play less frequently in the 1980s, he also began to compose more regularly, completing more than one hundred compositions, primarily works for solo violin and for violin and piano. As a composer, he returned frequently to folk themes and completed a series of songs based on his travels around the world. Among his folk themes are songs inspired by his visits to such diverse countries as Norway, Maui, Japan, Israel and Spain.; Maurice Solway was affiliated with the Beth Tzedec Synagogue and frequently contributed to charity concerts and fundraising efforts for organizations such as the Inner City Angels, a cultural society for disadvantaged children. He died in 2001 in Toronto.

Scope and Content: The Solway fonds is arranged into twelve files. The documents relate to Solway's professional activities as a musician, educator, composer, actor and author. These include printed texts, photographs, original music scores, promotional materials, programmes, audio cassettes, articles, correspondence, radioscripts and a video.

Notes: Includes 31 photographs, 2 v. of text, 1 videocassette (VHS) and 17 audio cassettes.

Name Access: Solway, Maurice, 1906-2001

Subjects: Musicians

Related Material: Fonds 25, Series 11, Item 9: Photo cabinet, photo #179 (oversized); Photo cabinet, photo #501; Two titles in the archives library collection (1984-12-6) (1 title missing 15 Aug. 2006); A vertical file has been created for Maurice Solway.

Creator: Solway, Maurice, 1906-2001

Accession Number: 1988-10-9; 1991-3-3

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Hyman Rosen, Annie Rosen, Lily Finkelstein and Jenny Cohen with musical instruments (Kingston, ON) [graphic material] – [192-].

Level: Item

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [192-]

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 13 x 18 cm

Scope and Content: This item is a copy print of Hyman Rosen, Annie Rosen, Lily Finkelstein and Jenny Cohen of Kingston, Ontario. Hyman is holding a fiddle and Jenny is holding a mandolin. All four are pictured in front of a car and identified from left to right. The young boy seated on the front fender is unidentified.

Notes: Grandchildren of Hyman and Annie Rosen confirmed that Jenny Cohen was Hyman Rosen's sister and Lily Finkelstein was Annie Rosen's sister. In addition, Hyman Rosen was the longest serving President of Beth Israel Congregation. Jenny Cohen owned a grocery store and dance hall in Kingston.

Name Access: Cohen, Jenny; Finkelstein, Lily; Rosen, Annie; Rosen, Hyman

Subjects: Automobiles; Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Kingston (Ont.)

Accession Number: 1986-3-5

Source: Archival Descriptions

The Strand Theatre, Kirkland Lake, Ontario [graphic material] – 1976.

Level: Item

ID: Item 876

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 876

Material Format: graphic material

Responsibility: Duke Studio

Date: 1976

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 9 x 14 cm

Scope and Content: This item is an original print of the Strand Theatre in Kirkland Lake, which was built in the 1920s by the Kaplan brothers with the help of Harry Oakes.

Name Access: Kaplan; Oakes, Harry; Strand Theatre (Kirkland Lake, Ont.)

Subjects: Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright may not be held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.

Places: Kirkland Lake (Ont.)

Source: Archival Descriptions

Former Uptown Theatre, Kirkland Lake, Ontario [graphic material] – 1976.

Level: Item

ID: Item 893

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 893

Material Format: graphic material

Responsibility: Duke Studios

Date: 1976

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 9 x 13 cm

Scope and Content: This item is an original print of the former Uptown Theatre, built by the Kaplan brothers in the 1930s and then converted to use as Children's Aid offices and apartments.

Name Access: Kaplan; Uptown Theatre (Kirkland Lake, Ont.)

Subjects: Architecture; Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright may not be held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.

Places: Kirkland Lake (Ont.)

Source: Archival Descriptions

Louis and Jenny Fingold outside their Elmwood Theatre (London, ON) [graphic material] – 15 May 1947.

Level: Item

ID: Item 3256

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 3256

Material Format: graphic material

Date: 15 May 1947

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 7 x 12 cm and 10 x 12 cm

Scope and Content: This item is an original print and copy negative of Louis and Jenny Fingold standing with their daughter in front of their Elmwood Theatre in London, Ontario.

Name Access: Elmwood Theatre (London, Ont.); Fingold, Jenny; Fingold, Louis

Subjects: Families; Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: London (Ont.)

Accession Number: 1982-6-4

Source: Archival Descriptions

Louis and Jenny Fingold outside their Elmwood Theatre (London, ON) [graphic material] – 15 May 1947.

Level: Item

ID: Item 3257

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 3257

Material Format: graphic material

Date: 15 May 1947

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 8 x 7 cm and 10 x 12 cm

Scope and Content: This item is an original print and copy negative of Louis and Jenny Fingold, and their daughter, standing in front of their Elmwood Theatre in London, Ontario.

Name Access: Elwood Theatre (London, Ont.); Fingold, Jenny; Fingold, Louis

Subjects: Families; Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: London (Ont.)

Accession Number: 1982-6-4

Source: Archival Descriptions

Esther Fingold and son in front of the Capitol Theatre (Meaford, ON) [graphic material] – [1948?].

Level: Item

ID: Item 3260

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 3260

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [1948?]

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 9 x 7 cm and 12 x 10 cm

Scope and Content: This item is an original print and copy negative of Esther Fingold holding her son, Douglas, in front of the Capitol Theatre in Meaford, Ontario.

Name Access: Capitol Theatre (Meaford, Ont.); Fingold, Douglas; Fingold, Esther

Subjects: Mothers and sons; Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Meaford (Ont.)

Accession Number: 1982-6-4

Source: Archival Descriptions

Philip Fingold with son in front of the Captiol Theatre (Meaford, ON) [graphic material] – [1950?].

Level: Item

ID: Item 3261

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 3261

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [1950?]

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 8 x 5 cm and 12 x 10 cm

Scope and Content: This item is an original print and copy negative of Philip Fingold holding with his son, Douglas, in front of the Capitol Theatre in Meaford, Ontario.

Name Access: Capitol Theatre (Meaford, Ont.); Fingold, Douglas; Fingold, Philip

Subjects: Fathers and sons; Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Meaford (Ont.)

Accession Number: 1982-6-4

Source: Archival Descriptions

Emil Gartner [graphic material] – [ca. 1959].

Part Of: William Stern fonds; Toronto Jewish community photographs series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 33; Series 4; Item 18

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: William Stern fonds; Toronto Jewish community photographs series

Level: Item

Fonds: 33

Series: 4

Item: 18

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [ca. 1959]

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 26 x 21 cm

Admin History/Bio: Emil Gartner (1914-1960) was born in Vienna in 1914 and came to Canada in 1938, just before the outbreak of the Second World War. In 1939, he became the conductor of the Toronto Jewish Folk Choir. He is considered by many to be the most influential and dynamic conductor in the choir's history. Under his leadership, the choir became more accomplished and increased in size. As a result, its repertoire increased considerably to include Canadian folk songs, and eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth-century works, in addition to the Yiddish and Hebrew folk songs and operettas that they had performed in the past. During Gartner's tenure the choir also performed with many world-renowned guests and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra often assisted the choir. Fagel Freeman Gartner, the director's wife, was the choir's accompanist.; Gartner was also a faculty member at the Hamburg Conservatory of Music in Toronto and remained conductor of the Toronto Jewish Folk Choir until 1959, a year before his sudden death in an automobile crash in 1960.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Emil Gartner, former conductor of the Toronto Jewish Folk Choir.

Subjects: Immigrants--Canada; Musicians; Portraits

Repro Restriction: Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Accession Number: 2004-5-96

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Jewish music and musicians [textual record, sound recording] – [19--].

Accession Number: 2014-8-16

Source: Archival Accessions

Accession Number: 2014-8-16

Material Format: textual record; sound recording

Physical Description: ca. 20 cm textual records; 1 audio cassette

Date: [19--]

Scope and Content: Accession consists of files related to the musical careers of musicians and composers including John Weinzweig, Nathan Appleby, Cantor Norman Summers, and Boris Charloff. Materials include audio cassettes, sheet music, concert programmes, correspondence, and lyrics.

Custodial History: Found in storage with donor unknown, presumed to have been left in music room of Latner Jewish Public Library.

Subjects: Musicians

Name Access: Appleby, Nathan; Charloff, Boris; Summers, Norman; Weinzweig, John

Source: Archival Accessions

Julius A. Cohen [textual record] – [194-].

Accession Number: 2015-9-23

Source: Archival Accessions

Accession Number: 2015-9-23

Material Format: textual record

Physical Description: 1 folder of textual records

Date: [194-]

Scope and Content: Accession consists of a bound document entitled 'This Is Our Faith'. The subtitle is 'The Religion of the Jews' and it appears to have been presented at a seminar of religions, under the auspices of Community Programs Branch, Department of Education, Province of Ontario.

Custodial History: There is no information on the acquisition of this material.

Subjects: Religion; Politics and government

Name Access: Cohen, Julius

Places: Toronto, Ont.

Source: Archival Accessions

Debby Solomon-Natan Sharansky [graphic material, textual record] – 1976-[ca. 1990].

Accession Number: 2016-6-12

Source: Archival Accessions

Accession Number: 2016-6-12

Material Format: graphic material; textual record

Physical Description: ca. 60 cm of textual records; 11 photographs (3 negatives) : b&w ; 20 x 25 cm or smaller

Date: 1976-[ca. 1990]

Scope and Content: Accession consists of textual and graphic records that trace Natan Sharansky's history as a prisoner of political conscience; the broader Refusenik issue; and the community advocacy efforts of Debby and Stan Solomon from 1976 and into the late 1980s at the local, national and international scales. Included are memos and newsletters from the Committee for Soviet Jewry (Ontario Region and national-level); background information as well as petition templates, speeches and planning documentation produced by the Committee to Release Anatoly Sharansky and the Beth Tikvah Synagogue in conjunction with community organizations, including the CJC and its Soviet Jewry social action committees, to support on-going advocacy efforts; correspondence with Canadian and American political representatives at the provincial/state and national levels; white papers/grey literature from non-governmental organizations about the persecution of the Soviet Jewry; planning documentation from the First Annual Sharansky Lectureship on Human Rights in 1980; correspondence, articles and ephemera associated with the granting of Sharansky's honourary law doctorate from York University in 1982; 1985 Freedom Rally/Weekend in Ottawa planning documentation and correspondence; 1987 National Conference on the Soviet Jewry and Mobilization for Freedom planning documentation; 1987 Community Rally at Massey Hall promotional materials; and promotional materials from Sharansky's autobiographical "Fear No Evil" 1988 book launch. Graphic material includes photographs of Sharansky's release during the February 11, 1986 American-Soviet prisoner exchange on the Glienicke Bridge in Berlin.; Identified in the photographs are: Debby Solomon; Stan Solomon; Natan Sharansky; Avital Sharansky; U.S. Ambassador Richard Burt;

Custodial History: Material was collected and/or created by Debby Solomon, Natan Sharansky's cousin. Debby donated it to the OJA.

Administrative History: Debby Solomon is the cousin of Anatoly (Natan) Sharansky, the Soviet born Israeli politician, human activist and author who spent nine years in Soviet prisons. Debby's father Boris Landis (born 1900) and Sharansky's father were first cousins.Their grandfathers were brothers. Debby's father immigrated 1929 to Toronto from Russia as his older brothers were already in Toronto. Debby and her husband Stan Solomon got involved in the community's activism efforts to free Sharansky and other Refuseniks.They were worked for many years on these efforts by planning programs through their synagogue Beth Tikvah and with Sam Filer, a lawyer and volunteer at the CJC who was also a member of Beth Tikvah.

Subjects: Antisemitism; Politics and government; Human rights; Demonstrations; Synagogues; Committees

Source: Archival Accessions

Steele and Walsh family [multiple media] – 1937-2004.

Accession Number: 2017-2-12

Source: Archival Accessions

Accession Number: 2017-2-12

Material Format: multiple media

Physical Description: 45 cm of textual records and other material; 230 photographs : sepia and b&w ; 23 x 30 cm and smaller; 8 sound recordings (50 wav files; 1 microcassette); 1 artifact

Date: 1937-2004

Scope and Content: Accession consists of textual records, photographs and audio recordings documenting the lives of Dick Steele, his wife Esther, and friend Bill Walsh. The materials are mostly correspondences between Dick and Esther during his internment at the Don Jail and Ontario Reformatory in Guelph, and from Dick and Bill's military service overseas during the Second World War. They also include correspondences between Esther and Bill, Bill and Anne Walsh, "Jack" and Esther, and other family and friends. Some of the letters show evidence of being censored. There are news clippings in English and Yiddish about the family from various newspapers including the Canadian Tribune (a Communist Party paper). There is a letter Esther wrote to campaign for Dick's release from internment, part of women's activism in this period. There is also a photocopy of a memoir written by Moses Kosowatsky and Moses Wolofsky "From the Land of Despair to the Land of Promise" ca. 1930s.; The photographs include Dick and Bill in the army during the Second World War, a signed picture of Tim Buck addressed to Esther and the twins and a photo of Dick delivering a speech related to the Steel Workers. Also included is a recording of edited sound clips of Bill and Esther talking about Dick, Esther speaking about the letters, (how she received letters and flowers from Dick after he had already been killed), Bill reading a letter Dick wrote to Esther that he left with friends in England to send her in the case that he was killed (which he was), recordings of "Bill Walsh Oral history" Vols.1 and 2 compiled by Leib Wolofsky's (Bill's nephew), and 5 audio recordings by Adrianna Steele-Card with her grandparents Bill and Esther. There is also a microcassette labelled "Joe Levitt."; The accession also includes the stripe of a German corporal that Bill captured as a prisoner, peace stamps and an early copy of Cy Gonick's A Very Red Life: The Story of Bill Walsh, edited by Bill.

Administrative History: Richard "Dick" Kennilworth Steele is the name adopted by Moses Kosowatsky. He was born in 1909 in Montreal to Samuel Kosowatsky and Fanny Held. He lived in a laneway off Clark Street, below Sherbrooke, where his father collected and recycled bottles. He grew up with his siblings, Joseph, Mortimer, Matthew, Gertrude, and Edward.; Bill Walsh (birth name Moishe Wolofsky) was born in 1910, to Sarah and Herschel Wolofsky, the editor of the Keneder Adler (Montreal's prominent Yiddish newspaper). He attended Baron Byng and then Commercial High School, where he met Dick Steele. Bill recalled that Dick denounced militarism in the school when a teacher tried to recruit students to be cadets.; Bill moved to New York City in 1927. His brother, who was living there, helped him get a job as a messenger on Wall Street. He also worked in the drug department at Macy's while attending courses at Columbia University in the evening. Dick worked on a ship for a year and then joined Bill in New York City in 1928. Dick worked at a chemical plant called Linde Air Products while also studying in the evenings at Columbia University.; In 1931, Dick and Bill boarded a ship together in New York bound for Copenhagen. Together, they travelled across Europe, witnessed a Nazi demonstration in Breslau, Germany, and found work in Minsk and Moscow, Russia. This trip inspired them to become Communists. In 1933, Bill's father was on a Canadian trade mission to Poland, which he left to "rescue" his son from the Bolsheviks. Bill agreed to return to Canada after being advised to do so by the Comintern. He then changed his name to Bill Walsh to protect his family.; In 1934, Bill moved to Toronto. He worked as the educational director for the Industrial Union of Needle Trade Workers and the Communist Party, where he met Esther Slominsky/Silver, the organization's office manager. Dick joined Bill in Toronto soon after. Bill introduced Dick and Esther, who then married. In 1940, Esther gave birth to twin sons, Michael and John Steele. Esther was born in Toronto in 1914 to Joseph Slominsky and Fanny (Blackersany?). Her siblings were Bella, Eileen, Morris, and step-sister Eva. Her father, Joseph, was a cloak maker and Esther also worked in the garment industry. Her mother Fanny passed away in 1920 at the age of twenty-six from tuberculosis.; Dick was a metal worker and became a union organizer in the east end of Toronto. He was the head organizer of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) and the Steel Workers Organizing Committee of Canada (SWOC) until 1940, when he was dismissed for being a Communist. Bill helped organize Kitchener's rubber workers into an industrial union and was also an organizer for the United Auto Workers of Windsor, Ontario.; Jack Steele, an alias for Dick's brother Mortimer, fought with the Mackenzie-Papineau Brigade in the Spanish Civil War. Jack Steele was recalled to Canada in October 1937 to rally support for the efforts in Spain, returned to the front in June 1938, and was killed in action in August. Some of Dick's letters to his wife, Esther, are signed "Salud, Jack" and were likely written in 1940 when the Communist Party (CP) was banned by the Canadian government under the War Measures Act.; In November 1941, after Mackenzie King's call for enlistment, Dick wrote to the Department of Justice to ask permission to join the army. He never received a reply. On 1 April 1942, Dick's home was raided and he was interned at the Don Jail until September 1942, when he was moved to the Ontario Reformatory in Guelph. Esther wrote a letter to the minister of justice, Louis St. Laurent, to appeal on his behalf.; Major public campaigning by Communists and the wartime alliance with the USSR after 1941 shifted public opinion toward the CP, and the Canadian government slowly began releasing internees in January 1942. Dick was released in October 1942 and enlisted at the end of the month. Dick died on 17 August 1944 in Normandy, France. He was a tank driver in the Canadian Army.; Bill was similarly arrested in 1941, spending time in jail and then an internment camp with other members of the CP. He joined the Canadian Army in 1943 and fought in Holland and Belgium. Bill was first married to Anne Weir who died of a brain hemorrhage in 1943, just before he enlisted. The family believes this may have been due to drinking unpasteurized milk. Encouraged by Dick Steele to take care of his family should he pass in the war, Bill married Esther Steele in 1946. They had a daughter named Sheri and were members of the United Jewish People's Order. For twenty years, Walsh worked for the Hamilton region of the United Electrical Workers (UE). Bill remained a member of the CP until 1967, when we was expelled for criticizing another union leader. He died in 2004. Esther passed away in 2010 at age ninety-six.

Use Conditions: Partially closed. Researchers must receive permission from the OJA Director prior to accessing some of the records.

Descriptive Notes: RELATED MATERIAL NOTE: Library and Archives Canada has the William Walsh fonds and MG 28, ser. I 268, USWA, vol.4, SWOC Correspondence, has various letters from Dick Steele ca. 1938. Museum of Jewish Montreal has an oral history with Leila Mustachi (daughter of Max Wolofsky, Bill's brother) where she speaks about Bill, Dick and Esther. USE CONDITION NOTES: For "Bill Walsh Oral history" Vols.1 and 2, some contributors stipulate that recordings are restricted to personal use only and must not be used for any commercial purpose.

Subjects: World War, 1939-1945; Politics and government; Labour and unions

Name Access: Steele, Michael; Steele, Dick; Walsh, Bill; Walsh, Esther Steele

Places: England; Fort William (Ont.); Germany; Guelph (Ont.); Hamilton (Ont.); Montréal (Québec); Netherlands; Oshawa (Ont.); Ottawa (Ont.); Thunder Bay (Ont.); Toronto (Ont.)

Source: Archival Accessions

Stan Jacobson [textual record, graphic material, object] – 1955-[2005?].

Accession Number: 2017-7-4

Source: Archival Accessions

Accession Number: 2017-7-4

Material Format: textual record; graphic material; object

Physical Description: 1 folder of textual records; 1 artifact; 1 commemorative coin; 2 photographs : b&w and col. ; 35 x 28 cm or smaller

Date: 1955-[2005?]

Scope and Content: Accession consists of material documenting the career of Canadian TV producer Stan Jacobson. Records include: theatre programs for stage productions Jacobson was involved in (1955-1958); a signed photograph of Sammy Sales addressed to Stan Jacobson and Mervyn Rosenzveig (1956?); a small amount of correspondence pertaining to Johnny Cash including a letter to the U.S. Consulate in Toronto from Cash commending Jacobson (1964-1968); one photocopy of a photograph of Frances Jacobson, Stan Jacobson, June Carter Cash, Johnny Cash, and three other individuals (197-?); a photograph of Jacobson with Arte Johnson (1973); a photocopy of an article that appeared in the Globe and Mail and that quotes Stan about Burton Cummings (1979); a commemorative coin from the Winter Olympic Games (1988); an artifact recognizing Stan Jacobson's participation in Alberta's Rocky Mountain Salute to the XV Olympic Winter Games (1988); and theatre/television credits for Jacobson (2005?).

Custodial History: Frances Jacobson, Stan Jacobson's widow, mailed the records that constitute the accession to Annie Matan who is responsible for Jewish Life and Family Engagement at Miles Nadal Jewish JCC. Annie in turn got the records to Dara Solomon who passed them to Michael Friesen to accession.

Administrative History: Stan Jacobson (1968-2015) was a Canadian television producer known for his work on the Wayne & Shuster Comedy Show 1965-1967), The Johnny Cash Show (1969-1971), the 1988 Winter Olympics, and the opening of the SkyDome (1989).; Stanley Jacobson was born in Saint John, New Brunswick on 23 June 1930 to Joseph and Sadie Jacobson. When Stan was young, the family moved to Montreal, which was his mother's hometown. Upon graduating high school, he attended Sir George Williams University, which, upon merging with Loyola College, eventually became Concordia University.; For a time, Stan worked in the rag trade, but eventually got involved in theatre. An early hit came in the form of Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? Stan succeeded in negotiating the rights to produce the stage comedy outside of New York while it was still running on Broadway, which he regarded as his proudest achievement. Not long after, he began working for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation as a writer for several variety programs and even wrote and directed a documentary on the Battle of Britain that was released in 1966.; When Johnny Cash was invited to sing at the White House, he brought along Stan and his wife Frances as two of his guests.; When The Johnny Cash Show ended its run in 1971, Stan and his wife moved to Los Angeles only to return to Toronto a short time later. Thereafter, he commuted back and forth between LA and Toronto and worked on several programs for CTV. He also worked on a sitcom for ABC called Viva Valdez, but it was not a success.; Stan died in North York, Ontario on 1 Dec. 2015. He left behind his wife Frances; a sister-in-law, Grace; two nephews; two grand nephews; and one grand niece.

Use Conditions: Copyright may not be held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.

Subjects: Musicians; Television personalities; Television producers and directors

Name Access: Cash, Johnny, 1932-2003; Jacobson, Stan, 1968-2015; Johnson, Arte, 1934-; Olympic Winter Games (15th : 1988 : Calgary, Alta.)

Places: Alberta; Toronto (Ont.); United States

Source: Archival Accessions

Eliyahu Hanavi horns Pesach 2020! [moving images (electronic)] – April 8, 2020.

Accession Number: 2020-4-16

Source: Archival Accessions

Accession Number: 2020-4-16

Material Format: moving images (electronic)

Physical Description: 1 video recording : mov. ; 292 MB

Date: April 8, 2020

Scope and Content: Accession consists of a recording of a musical porch performance featuring: Porch: Adam Seelig (trombone), Shai Rotbard-Seelig (tuba), Arlo Rotbard-Seelig (trumpet). Driveway: Neil Deland (horn), Vanessa Fralick (trombone). Sidewalk: Marcus Thompson (cornet), Jack Vandermeer (trumpet).; The donor provided the following information:; During the pandemic, two days after my son Arlo’s bar-mitzvah (via Zoom/screen), I started a band with my two kids (Shai 17 on Tuba, Arlo 13 on trumpet, I'm 44 on trombone) to cheer on frontliners and to cheer up the neighbourhood (plus ourselves). We were soon joined by two more horn players at a distance. Their other band? The Toronto Symphony Orchestra! And then another two. We call ourselves Horn on the Cob and the Social Distance and have played a newly arranged song from our front porch and yard every night at 7:30 pm for 50 nights in a row (as of May 9, 2020). Nomi Rotbard, my spouse, introduces and videos each night’s song. This one was special: I arranged Eliyahu Hanavi for Erev Pesach, April 8, 2020 - it was such a pleasure to share a Passover moment with our neighbourhood!; The performance took place on the porch of their Brunswick Avenue home in Toronto.

Use Conditions: Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the Archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Subjects: COVID-19 (Disease); Musicians

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Source: Archival Accessions

Mendel Granatstein’s home, 1919-1999

Address: 42 St George Street

Source: Landmarks

In 1919, Mr. Mendel Granatstein commissioned Benjamin Brown and Robert McConnell to design a three storey Classical Georgian style house located at 42 St. George Street. The house contained a unique feature -- a retractable roof used on Sukkoth. In 1947, the house was acquired by the University of Toronto and was used for a variety of purposes until it was demolished in 1999. The Bahen Centre for Information Technology now stands in its place.

Address: 42 St George Street

Time Period: 1919-1999

Scope Note: In 1919, Mr. Mendel Granatstein commissioned Benjamin Brown and Robert McConnell to design a three storey Classical Georgian style house located at 42 St. George Street. The house contained a unique feature -- a retractable roof used on Sukkoth. In 1947, the house was acquired by the University of Toronto and was used for a variety of purposes until it was demolished in 1999. The Bahen Centre for Information Technology now stands in its place.

History: Mr. Mendel Granatstein was a member of one of the early Jewish families of Toronto. In 1895, he founded M. Granatstein and Sons, Ltd., a junk dealing company, and by the early 20th century, he had become one of the most prosperous Jews in Toronto. Mr. Granatstein was also a community leader, having a hand in the foundation of Beth Jacob Synagogue.

Category: Architecture; Residences

Source: Landmarks

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Harry Belafonte and Rabbi Abraham Feinberg, Toronto [graphic material] – 3 Dec. 1960.

Level: Item

ID: Item 5039

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 5039

Material Format: graphic material

Date: 3 Dec. 1960

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm

Scope and Content: Item is a photograph of Harry Belafonte and Rabbi Abraham Feinberg with a booklet titled "Survival or Suicide?" Belafonte may have been the guest at a State of Israel Bonds fundraiser.

Notes: Photo by Graphic Artists.

Name Access: Belafonte, Harry, 1927-; Feinberg, Rabbi Abraham

Subjects: Motion picture actors and actresses; Musicians; Rabbis

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Accession Number: 1990-1-5

Source: Archival Descriptions

Harry Belafonte and Rabbi Abraham Feinberg, Toronto [graphic material] – 3 Dec. 1960.

Level: Item

ID: Item 5040

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 5040

Material Format: graphic material

Date: 3 Dec. 1960

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm

Scope and Content: Item is a photograph of Harry Belafonte shaking hands with Rabbi Abraham Feinberg while holding a booklet entitled "Survival or Suicide?" Belafonte may have been the guest at a State of Israel Bonds event.

Notes: Photo by Graphic Artists.

Name Access: Belafonte, Harry, 1927-; Feinberg, Rabbi Abraham

Subjects: Motion picture actors and actresses; Musicians; Rabbis

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Accession Number: 1990-1-5

Source: Archival Descriptions

Detail of Victory Theatre, Toronto [graphic material] – Nov. 1975.

Level: Item

ID: Item 603

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 603

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Nov. 1975

Physical Description: 2 photographs : (1 negative)

Scope and Content: The "New Strand Building".

Notes: Negative: 8:5:13.; Acquired November 1975.

Name Access: Victory Theatre (Toronto, Ont.)

Subjects: Architecture; Theaters

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Source: Archival Descriptions

Detail of Victory Theatre, Toronto [graphic material] – Nov. 1975.

Level: Item

ID: Item 605

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 605

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Nov. 1975

Physical Description: 2 photographs : (1 negative)

Scope and Content: The "New Strand Building".

Notes: Acquired November 1975.; Negative: 8:6:15.

Name Access: Victory Theatre

Subjects: Architecture; Theaters

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Source: Archival Descriptions

Detail of Victory Theatre, Toronto [graphic material] – Nov. 1975.

Level: Item

ID: Item 604

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 604

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Nov. 1975

Physical Description: 2 photographs : (1 negative)

Scope and Content: The "New Strand Building".

Notes: Acquired November 1975.; Negative: 8:5:14.

Name Access: Victory Theatre (Toronto, Ont.)

Subjects: Architecture; Theaters

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Source: Archival Descriptions

Detail of Victory Theatre, Toronto [graphic material] – Nov. 1975.

Level: Item

ID: Item 606

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 606

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Nov. 1975

Physical Description: 2 photographs : (1 negative)

Scope and Content: The "New Strand Building".

Notes: Acquired November 1975.; Negative: 8:6:16.

Name Access: Victory Theatre (Toronto, Ont.)

Subjects: Architecture; Theaters

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Source: Archival Descriptions

Concert Poster for Chenstochover Hilfs Farein at the Victory Theatre, Toronto [graphic material] – 1950.

Level: Item

ID: Item 4035

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 4035

Material Format: graphic material

Date: 1950

Physical Description: 2 photographs : (1 negative)

Scope and Content: Features: M. rotstein; Max Seifert; Chayale Luxenburg; Jennie Eisenstat; Maurice Turk; Eva Fishman.

Subjects: Concerts; Posters; Theaters

Places: Dundas Street West (Toronto, Ont.); Spadina Avenue (Toronto, Ont.)

Accession Number: 1986-3-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

William Shankman Orchestra at the Grand Theatre in Birmingham, England [graphic material] – [1925 or 1926].

Level: Item

ID: Item 4294

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 4294

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [1925 or 1926]

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative)

Scope and Content: Identified third from left: William Shankman.

Notes: Photo by Midland Press Agency, 520 Suffolk St., Birmingham.

Subjects: Orchestra; Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Birmingham (England)

Accession Number: 1987-9-5

Source: Archival Descriptions

Broadway Theatre and other building, south side of Queen Street West, Toronto [graphic material] – Feb. 1965.

Level: Item

ID: Item 676

Source: Archival Descriptions

Level: Item

Item: 676

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Feb. 1965

Physical Description: 2 photographs : (1 negative)

Scope and Content: Item is a photograph of a Broadway Theatre and another building on the south side of Queen Street West, Toronto.

Name Access: Broadway Theatre

Subjects: Architecture; Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright may not be held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.

Places: Queen Street West (Toronto, Ont.)

Source: Archival Descriptions

Willie Bryant [graphic material] – Feb. 1940.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 1

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 1

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Feb. 1940

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 9 cm and 11 x 8 cm

Admin History/Bio: Willie Bryant (b. August 30, 1908) was an American jazz bandleader, vocalist, and disc jockey.; Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Bryant grew up in Chicago. His first job in entertainment was dancing in the Whitman Sisters Show in 1926. He worked in various vaudeville productions for the next several years and in 1934 he appeared in the show Chocolate Revue with Bessie Smith.; In 1934, he put together his first big band, which at times included Teddy Wilson, Cozy Cole, Johnny Russell, Benny Carter, Ben Webster, Eddie Durham, Ram Ramirez, and Taft Jordan. They recorded six times between 1935 and 1938 with Bryant singing on 18 of the 26 sides recorded.; Once his ensemble disbanded, Bryant worked in acting and disc jockeying. He recorded R&B in 1945 and led another big band between 1946 and 1948. During September and October 1949, he hosted Uptown Jubilee, a short-lived all-black variety show on CBS-TV . The show aired on Tuesday nights.; In the 1950s he was the emcee at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem. He moved to California later in the 1950s and died of a heart attack in Los Angeles in February 9, 1964.

Scope and Content: This is a portrait of Willie Bryant. The photograph was taken at the Apollo Theatre in New York City.

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: New York (N.Y.).

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Duke Ellington [graphic material] – Nov. 1943.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 4

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 4

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Nov. 1943

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 18 x 13 cm and 13 x 9 cm

Admin History/Bio: Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (b. April 29, 1899) was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader.; A prominent figure in the history of jazz, Ellington's music stretched into various other genres, including blues, gospel, film scores, popular, and classical. His career spanned more than 50 years and included leading his orchestra, composing an inexhaustible songbook, scoring for movies, and world tours.; Ellington called his music "American Music" rather than jazz, and liked to describe those who impressed him as "beyond category". These included many of the musicians who were members of his orchestra, some of whom are considered among the best in jazz in their own right, but it was Ellington who melded them into one of the most well-known jazz orchestral units in the history of jazz.; Ellington recorded for many American record companies, and appeared in several films.; Ellington led his band from 1923 until his death in 1974.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Duke Ellington.

Name Access: Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Duke Ellington [graphic material] – Nov. 1943.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 5

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 5

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Nov. 1943

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 18 x 13 cm and 12 x 8 cm

Admin History/Bio: Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (b. April 29, 1899) was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader.; A prominent figure in the history of jazz, Ellington's music stretched into various other genres, including blues, gospel, film scores, popular, and classical. His career spanned more than 50 years and included leading his orchestra, composing an inexhaustible songbook, scoring for movies, and world tours.; Ellington called his music "American Music" rather than jazz, and liked to describe those who impressed him as "beyond category". These included many of the musicians who were members of his orchestra, some of whom are considered among the best in jazz in their own right, but it was Ellington who melded them into one of the most well-known jazz orchestral units in the history of jazz.; Ellington recorded for many American record companies, and appeared in several films.; Ellington led his band from 1923 until his death in 1974.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Duke Ellington.

Name Access: Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Willie Bryant [graphic material] – Feb. 1940.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 2

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 2

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Feb. 1940

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 18 cm and 9 x 13 cm

Admin History/Bio: Willie Bryant (b. August 30, 1908) was an American jazz bandleader, vocalist, and disc jockey.; Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Bryant grew up in Chicago. His first job in entertainment was dancing in the Whitman Sisters Show in 1926. He worked in various vaudeville productions for the next several years and in 1934 he appeared in the show Chocolate Revue with Bessie Smith.; In 1934, he put together his first big band, which at times included Teddy Wilson, Cozy Cole, Johnny Russell, Benny Carter, Ben Webster, Eddie Durham, Ram Ramirez, and Taft Jordan. They recorded six times between 1935 and 1938 with Bryant singing on 18 of the 26 sides recorded.; Once his ensemble disbanded, Bryant worked in acting and disc jockeying. He recorded R&B in 1945 and led another big band between 1946 and 1948. During September and October 1949, he hosted Uptown Jubilee, a short-lived all-black variety show on CBS-TV . The show aired on Tuesday nights.; In the 1950s he was the emcee at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem. He moved to California later in the 1950s and died of a heart attack in Los Angeles in February 9th,1964.

Scope and Content: Item is a portrait of Willie Bryant with two companions of Sylvia Schwartz: Jewell Schwartz and Frances Gruber. The photograph was taken at the Apollo Theatre in New York City.

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: New York (N.Y.).

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Duke Ellington [graphic material] – Nov. 1943.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 6

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 6

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Nov. 1943

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 18 x 13 cm and 12 x 8 cm

Admin History/Bio: Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (b. April 29, 1899) was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader.; A prominent figure in the history of jazz, Ellington's music stretched into various other genres, including blues, gospel, film scores, popular, and classical. His career spanned more than 50 years and included leading his orchestra, composing an inexhaustible songbook, scoring for movies, and world tours.; Ellington called his music "American Music" rather than jazz, and liked to describe those who impressed him as "beyond category". These included many of the musicians who were members of his orchestra, some of whom are considered among the best in jazz in their own right, but it was Ellington who melded them into one of the most well-known jazz orchestral units in the history of jazz.; Ellington recorded for many American record companies, and appeared in several films.; Ellington led his band from 1923 until his death in 1974.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Duke Ellington.

Name Access: Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Calvin Jackson [graphic material] – Dec. 1952.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 7

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 7

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Dec. 1952

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 18 cm and 11 x 8 cm

Admin History/Bio: Calvin Jackson (May 26, 1919, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader.; Jackson played piano from childhood and studied at Juilliard and New York University. Early in his career he worked with with Frankie Fairfax, then moved to Hollywood from 1943-47 as an assistant director of music for MGM. In 1947 he recorded with Phil Moore and also under his own name as a solo pianist for Discovery Records. He played with Mildred Bailey in New York in 1948, then moved to Toronto in 1950. His quartet appeared regularly at the Park Plaza Hotel, and he hosted a weekly program featuring jazz music on Canadian television. Over the course of the 1950s and early 1960s he released several LPs for labels such as Columbia Records.; In 1957 he returned to Los Angeles, where he continued to work as a composer for film and television. He also arranged for Ray Charles at one point, receiving an arrangement and co-producer credit for Charles' 1964 release "Sweet and Sour Tears".; By the early 1980s, he had moved to San Diego County, where he lived in semi-retirement in the Point Loma neighborhood, giving music lessons on a piano in his apartment.; Calvin Jackson died in Encinitas, California, in 1985.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Calvin Jackson.

Notes: This negative has two imags on it.

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Herbert and Lillian (Lil) Mills [graphic material] – June 1952.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 10

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 10

Material Format: graphic material

Date: June 1952

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 18 cm and 12 x 9 cm

Admin History/Bio: Herbert Mills (b. April 2, 1912, Piqua, Ohio) belonged to the Mills Brothers, an American jazz and pop vocal quartet who made more than 2,000 recordings that combined sold more than 50 million copies, and garnered at least three dozen gold records.; Among their many achievements, the Mills Brothers became the first African-Americans to have a network show on radio in 1930.; In 1934, The Mills Brothers became the first African-Americans to give a command performance before British royalty. They performed at the Regal Theatre for a special audience: King George V and Queen Mary.; After two of his borthers died. Herbert Mills continued to perform with his remaining living brother until his death in 1989 and was survived by his second wife Dorothy.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Herbert Mills with his wife Dorothy.

Name Access: Mills Brothers

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Bert Niosi [graphic material] – Feb. 1944.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 12

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 12

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Feb. 1944

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 10 cm and 12 x 8 cm

Admin History/Bio: Bert Niosi (b. London, Ontario, February 10, 1909) was a Canadian bandleader, clarinetist, saxophonist, composer and arranger, known as "Canada's King of Swing".; He began studying flute and saxophone at age nine with Pasquale Venuta in London, Ont, and for a time in his teens played with Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians in Cleveland. He then toured on the Loew's vaudeville circuit with his own band, the McPhillips Buescher Boys' Orchestra, which included his brother Joe (bassist, b London, Ont, 26 May 1906, d Toronto 14 May 1977), Tony Briglia (drummer, later a founding member of the Casa Loma Orchestra), and Hugo D'Ippolito (pianist, later a member of the Royal Canadians).; In 1931 Niosi formed a nine-piece band to play at the Embassy Club in Toronto. In 1932 he expanded the band and moved to the Palais Royale dance hall where, in an 18-year residence, he became an institution in Canadian pop music. The band was heard nationally on CBC broadcasts and toured Canada in 1945 and 1946. It included Niosi's brother Johnnie (drummer, b London, Ont, 26 Sep 1914, d Toronto 21 Nov 1965).; Niosi next embarked on a career with the CBC, first as a member 1952-9 of the Happy Gang, and then as music director of the TV series 'Four for the Show,' 'Cross-Canada Hit Parade,' and, 1965-76, 'The Tommy Hunter Show'. He continued to lead a dance band on occasion and returned to the Palais Royale for appearances as late as 1979.; A versatile musician, Niosi was proficient on trumpet and trombone as well as with the alto saxophone and clarinet; accompanied by his brothers he played all four instruments on a CBC TV show ca 1957. On an earlier occasion (1950) he played Mozart's Clarinet Quintet with the Solway String Quartet for CBC radio.; Niosi's recordings included several 78s from the 1940s with a jazz sextet for RCA Victor and Musicana, and one with his orchestra for Zephyr. He also made an LP as leader of the Jack Kane Band (1963, CTL CTLS-5036) and others as a soloist with the Albert Pratz Orchestra (RCI 173 and 174) and with the Johnny Burt Strings (1964, CTL CTLS-5044). His compositions have been recorded by Lucio Agostini and by the pianist Alexander 'Ragtime' Read.; Niosi died in 1987 in Mississauga.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Bert Niosi.

Name Access: Niosi, Bert, 1909-1987

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Bennie Payne [graphic material] – Oct. 1941.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 13

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 13

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Oct. 1941

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 18 cm and 8 x 14 cm

Admin History/Bio: Bennie Payne (b. 18 June, 1907, Philadelphia, PA) was a pianist and arranger. He played with the likes of Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Chu Berry, and Fats Waller, but his longest collaboration was with the lounge singer Billy Daniels; during the 1950s, they were among the first African-American entertainers to appear on national television. In 1964, Payne appeared on Broadway in a revival of "Golden Boy" with Daniels and Sammy Davis, Jr.; He is best known as the pianist in Cab Calloway's band.; Payne died in 1986 in Los Angeles, CA.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Bennie Payne with two companions of Sylvia Schwartz: Jewell Schwartz and Frances Gruber.

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Bennie Payne [graphic material] – June 1951.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 14

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 14

Material Format: graphic material

Date: June 1951

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 10 cm and 11 x 8 cm

Admin History/Bio: Bennie Payne (b. 18 June, 1907, Philadelphia, PA) was a pianist and arranger. He played with the likes of Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Chu Berry, and Fats Waller, but his longest collaboration was with the lounge singer Billy Daniels; during the 1950s, they were among the first African-American entertainers to appear on national television. In 1964, Payne appeared on Broadway in a revival of "Golden Boy" with Daniels and Sammy Davis, Jr.; He is best known as the pianist in Cab Calloway's band.; Payne died in 1986 in Los Angeles, CA.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Bennie Payne.

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Bennie Payne [graphic material] – June 1951.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 15

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 15

Material Format: graphic material

Date: June 1951

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 18 cm

Admin History/Bio: Bennie Payne (b. 18 June, 1907, Philadelphia, PA) was a pianist and arranger. He played with the likes of Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Chu Berry, and Fats Waller, but his longest collaboration was with the lounge singer Billy Daniels; during the 1950s, they were among the first African-American entertainers to appear on national television. In 1964, Payne appeared on Broadway in a revival of "Golden Boy" with Daniels and Sammy Davis, Jr.; He is best known as the pianist in Cab Calloway's band.; Payne died in 1986 in Los Angeles, CA.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Bennie Payne at his piano.

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Walter "Foots" Thomas [graphic material] – Oct. 1941.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 17

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 17

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Oct. 1941

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 18 cm and 12 x 9 cm

Admin History/Bio: Walter 'Foots' Thomas (b.1907, Muskogee, Oklahoma) was a saxophonist and arranger in Cab Calloway's orchestra. He moved to New York City in 1927, and played for a time with Jelly Roll Morton. He then joined the Missourians in 1929, just before Calloway took it over.; Since the 1940s, he lived in Englewood, New Jersey. He died on August 26, 1981 as a result of cancer.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of Walter "Foots" Thomas.

Notes: This negative has two images on it.

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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John Weinzweig [graphic material] – Nov. 1945.

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

ID: Fonds 80; Series 4; Item 19

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Sylvia Schwartz fonds; Portraits of Prominent Entertainers series

Level: Item

Fonds: 80

Series: 4

Item: 19

Material Format: graphic material

Date: Nov. 1945

Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w (1 negative) ; 13 x 10 cm and 12 x 8 cm

Admin History/Bio: John (Jacob) Weinzweig (b. March 11, 1913) was a Canadian composer of classical music.; Born in Toronto, Weinzweig went to Harbord Collegiate Institute, and studied music at the University of Toronto. In 1937, he left for the United States to study under Bernard Rogers. During the Second World War, he began composing film music, and in 1952 he became a professor at the University of Toronto. In the previous year he had co-founded the Canadian League of Composers, and he was actively involved in several other organisations representing musicians and composers.; In 1974, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. In 1988, he was awarded the Order of Ontario.; Weinzweig died in 2006.

Scope and Content: This item is a portrait of John Weinzweig.

Notes: This negative has two images on it.

Name Access: Weinzweig, John, 1913-2006

Subjects: Musicians

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Physical Condition: Negative is bent as if it has been rolled around something for a long period of time. Emulsion is still intact and not cracked as a result of the bending.

Source: Archival Descriptions

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David Broza [textual record] – 2006-2007.

Part Of: Koffler Centre of the Arts fonds; Performances and events series

Level: File

ID: Fonds 100; Series 9; File 19

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Koffler Centre of the Arts fonds; Performances and events series

Level: File

Fonds: 100

Series: 9

File: 19

Material Format: textual record

Date: 2006-2007

Physical Description: 1 folder of textual records

Scope and Content: File consists of promotional material for the performance of Israeli musician David Broza, a Leah Posluns theatre contract, a signed agreement between the Koffler School of Music and Aviv Productions, hospitality and sound riders, financials and correspondence relating to the performance.

Subjects: Musicians

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Kobi Oz [textual record] – 2009.

Part Of: Koffler Centre of the Arts fonds; Performances and events series

Level: File

ID: Fonds 100; Series 9; File 32

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Koffler Centre of the Arts fonds; Performances and events series

Level: File

Fonds: 100

Series: 9

File: 32

Material Format: textual record

Date: 2009

Physical Description: 1 folder of textual records

Scope and Content: File consists of promotional material for the performance Psalms for the Perplexed by Israeli musician Kobi Oz. Also included is correspondence, administrative and financial documentation related to the event.

Subjects: Musicians

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Loew's Theatre (189 Yonge St., Toronto) [architectural drawing, textual record] – 1913-1959.

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series; Loew's Theatre (189 Yonge St., Toronto) sub-series

Level: Sub-series

ID: Fonds 27; Series 1-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series; Loew's Theatre (189 Yonge St., Toronto) sub-series

Level: Sub-series

Fonds: 27

Series: 1-1

Material Format: architectural drawing; textual record

Date: 1913-1959

Physical Description: 57 drawings : pencil on tracing paper, blueprints and other reproductions ; 72 x 114 cm or smaller; 1 cm of textual records

Admin History/Bio: Built in 1913, Loew's Yonge Street Theatre and Winter Garden Theatre complex was the flagship of Marcus Loew's Canadian theatre chain. The theatres were designed by Thomas Lamb as a "double-decker" theatre, with the Winter Garden located seven-stories above the street-level Yonge Street Theatre. This was the only double-decker theatre built in Canada and one of less than a dozen built internationally. The design was considered economical in that it provided a greater amount of seating on a given piece of real estate while allowing the theatre operator to present the same daily show in two theatres. The shows included both vaudeville acts and silent movies.; In 1928, there was a major fire on the site and the Winter Garden Theatre was closed due to the decline in popularity of vaudeville. By 1930, the Yonge Street Theatre was solely a movie theatre, equipped for sound movies. Over the years it gradually fell into disrepair, but continued as a movie theatre until 1981. It was renamed the Elgin Theatre in 1978.; In 1981, the Elgin and Winter Garden were purchased by the Ontario Heritage Foundation, and in 1987 the foundation began a two and half year, $30 million restoration of the theatres. The theatres re-opened in Dec. 1989 exclusively for theatrical productions.

Scope and Content: Sub-series consists of seating plans, blueprints of structural details, and floor plans, sections and elevations for successive alterations (to the entrance, lobby, basement, etc.) of the theatre. The sub-series includes a copy of a city building permit dating from 1934 for renovations carried out by Loew's Theatres Engineering Division. Some of the blueprints date from the original construction of the theatre in 1913.; The sub-series is organized into 9 sub-sub-series, corresponding to project dates of 1913, 1919, 1934, 1939, 1949 (two projects), 1952, 1957 and 1959. The earliest materials, such as those from 1913 and 1919, were not created by Kaplan & Sprachman, but were no doubt used as reference materials for their work at the theatre.; Please note that the blueprints of structural details such as columns and roof reinforcing beams may apply to the theatre complex as a whole, including the Winter Garden Theatre.

Notes: Title is derived from the formal titles of the drawings.

Name Access: Lamb, Thomas; Elgin Theatre (Toronto); Winter Garden Theatre (Toronto)

Subjects: Theaters

Physical Condition: Some drawings are torn & damaged.; Some are discoloured or damaged by deteriorating pressure-sensitive tape.

Places: Yonge Street (Toronto, Ont.)

Accession Number: 2003-6-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Loew's Uptown Theatre (Toronto) [architectural drawing, graphic material] – 1919-1968.

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series; Loew's Uptown Theatre (Toronto) sub-series

Level: Sub-series

ID: Fonds 27; Series 1-2

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series; Loew's Uptown Theatre (Toronto) sub-series

Level: Sub-series

Fonds: 27

Series: 1-2

Material Format: architectural drawing; graphic material

Date: 1919-1968

Physical Description: 132 architectural drawings : pencil (some on tracing paper, some hand col. using pencil crayon), blueprints and other reproductions ; 76 x 106 cm or smaller; 5 photographs : b&w ; 44 x 55 cm or smaller

Admin History/Bio: One of sixteen theatres in Canada designed by the well-known architect Thomas W. Lamb, the Uptown Theatre opened in 1920 as a movie and vaudeville theatre of almost 3000 seats, and was later the first theatre in Toronto equipped for sound movies. In 1960 the Uptown's main auditorium was destroyed by a major fire. Kaplan & Sprachman participated in the theatre's subsequent renovation.; In 1969 the Uptown was split into a five screen theatre through conversion of the theatre's balcony, backstage and basement areas. The Uptown was closed and demolished in late 2003 following the 28th Annual Toronto International Film Festival after the cinema operator, Famous Players, decided to close it and other theatres rather than comply with an Ontario Human Rights Commission order to make the theatres fully wheelchair-accessible.

Scope and Content: Sub-series consists of seating plans, blueprints of structural details, floor plans, sections and elevations for successive alterations (to the entrance, lobby, escalator, etc.) of the theatre, as well as several photographs of the Uptown's entrance and auditorium. The sub-series includes a number of hand-coloured drawings of the main auditorium dating from 1962, with paint and fabric samples attached, apparently associated with the re-building of the auditorium following the fire of 1960. The sub-series also includes a set of photo-reproductions of Thomas Lamb's original 1919 plans for the theatre, acquired by Kaplan & Sprachman in 1960.; The sub-series is arranged in 9 sub-sub-series corresponding to project dates of 1919, 1936, 1945, 1949, 1960, 1962, and 1968. The final sub-sub-series relates to work done by Kaplan after the dissolution of Kaplan & Sprachman.; In several cases, a sub-sub-series includes drawings and plans from earlier projects, used as reference materials for the current project.

Name Access: Lamb, Thos. W. (Thomas White), 1871-1942; Uptown Theatre (Toronto, Ont.)

Subjects: Theaters

Physical Condition: Some drawings torn or water-damaged. Some are discoloured or damaged by deteriorating pressure-sensitive tape.

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Accession Number: 2003-6-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Kum-C Theatre (Toronto) [graphic material] – [1934?].

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

ID: Fonds 27; Series 1; File 2

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

Fonds: 27

Series: 1

File: 2

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [1934?]

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm

Scope and Content: Exterior shot of theatre marquee.

Notes: Title and creation date based on the content of the photograph, inscriptions on the photograph and Mandel Sprachman's published Inventory of Kaplan & Sprachman theatre projects (Historic Theatres' Trust Bulletin, Spring-Summer 1996).; Photographers: Pringle & Booth.

Name Access: Pringle & Booth

Subjects: Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Accession Number: 2003-6-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Garbarino [Odeon] Theatre, 1473 Queen St. W., Toronto [graphic material] – [ca. 1931].

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

ID: Fonds 27; Series 1; File 3

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

Fonds: 27

Series: 1

File: 3

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [ca. 1931]

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 15 x 9 cm

Scope and Content: Photograph of the theatre in early stages of construction.

Notes: Title based on inscription on the photograph and information found in series 2 newspaper clippings.

Subjects: Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Queen Street West (Toronto, Ont.)

Accession Number: 2003-6-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Blue Bell Theatre (Toronto) [graphic material] – [ca. 1932].

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

ID: Fonds 27; Series 1; File 4

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

Fonds: 27

Series: 1

File: 4

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [ca. 1932]

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm

Scope and Content: Exterior shot of theatre marquee.

Notes: Title and creation date based on content of the photograph and Mandel Sprachman's published Inventory of Kaplan & Sprachman theatre projects (Historic Theatres' Trust Bulletin, Spring-Summer 1996).; Photographers: Pringle & Booth.

Name Access: Pringle & Booth

Subjects: Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Accession Number: 2003-6-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Bloordale Theatre (Toronto) [graphic material] – 1935.

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

ID: Fonds 27; Series 1; File 5

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

Fonds: 27

Series: 1

File: 5

Material Format: graphic material

Date: 1935

Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm

Scope and Content: Exterior shot of theatre marquee.

Notes: Title and creation date based on content of the photograph and Mandel Sprachman's published Inventory of Kaplan & Sprachman theatre projects (Historic Theatres' Trust Bulletin, Spring-Summer 1996).

Subjects: Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Accession Number: 2003-6-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

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Eglinton Theatre (Toronto) [graphic material] – [1936?].

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

ID: Fonds 27; Series 1; File 6

Source: Archival Descriptions

Part Of: Harold S. Kaplan fonds; Architectural projects series

Level: File

Fonds: 27

Series: 1

File: 6

Material Format: graphic material

Date: [1936?]

Physical Description: 4 photographs : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm

Scope and Content: File contains 3 exterior shots of the theatre and 1 of the auditorium.

Notes: Title and creation date based on content of the photographs and Mandel Sprachman's published Inventory of Kaplan & Sprachman theatre projects (Historic Theatres' Trust Bulletin, Spring-Summer 1996).; Three of the photographs were taken by the photographers Pringle & Booth. The fourth print is of a later date, and is from an exposure made ca. 1938, based on the release dates of the films showing at the theatre.

Subjects: Theaters

Repro Restriction: Copyright is in the public domain and permission for use is not required. Please credit the Ontario Jewish Archives as the source of the photograph.

Places: Toronto (Ont.)

Accession Number: 2003-6-1

Source: Archival Descriptions

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