Meir Margalit (actor)
Encyclopedia
Meir Margalit was an Israeli stage actor.
, then part of in the Russian Empire
, and began acting in his home town at the age of 13. In 1922, he emigrating
to Mandate Palestine within the framework of the Hechalutz movement. He worked initially as a construction worker in Tel Aviv
and Rishon Lezion and as an agricultural worker in Hadera
. For two and half years he was a pioneer in the Jerusalem section of Gdud HaAvoda
and worked in a quarry.
In 1925, he was chosen and accepted to the drama school of the Ha'ohel Theatre under the guidance of Moshe Halevi and in 1929 he joined the acting cast of the theatre.
Margalit excelled in fulfilling comic roles. His most successful role was the title role in The Good Soldier Schweik
, the play based on the novel by Jaroslav Hašek
and translated into Hebrew by Avigdor Hameiri
. The premiere was held on 22 December 1935. This presentation was Ha'ohel's most successful throughout its years of existence and was performed some one thousand and five hundred times. Margalit played the character of Schweik so convincing that Margalit remained identified with the figure of Schweik throughout his acting career.
At the end of the Second World War, Margalit made a tour to play before Jewish volunteers from Palestine serving in the British Army
in Europe and the Middle East, as well as Holocaust survivors
in Italy
and illegal immigrants and deportees held by the British in detention camps in Cyprus
.
Another acclaimed role played by Margalit was in the successful comedy "Ha'ketubah" by Ephraim Kishon
, performed in Ha'ohel in 1961.
In the early nineteen sixties, he moved briefly to the Habima Theatre, but returned to Ha'ohel, where he continued to act until the theatre closed in 1969.
In 1964, Margalit appeared as Noah Simchon in the film "Simchon Family", based on the popular radio series of the same name, when Samuel Rodensky, hero of the radio series, was abroad at the time.
The last performance by Margalit was in the play "Where is the Land of Israel?" by Ada Ben Nachum, privately produced at the Lilach Theatre in 1972 and 1973.
In 1976, Margalit's family established, in cooperation with the Jerusalem Theatre Archives and Museum, a fund in the name of Margalit to award prizes in the field of theatre arts.
Biography
Margalit was born in 1906 in Ostrołęka, PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, then part of in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, and began acting in his home town at the age of 13. In 1922, he emigrating
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
to Mandate Palestine within the framework of the Hechalutz movement. He worked initially as a construction worker in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
and Rishon Lezion and as an agricultural worker in Hadera
Hadera
Hadera is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel approximately from the major cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. The city is located along of the Israeli Mediterranean Coastal Plain...
. For two and half years he was a pioneer in the Jerusalem section of Gdud HaAvoda
Gdud HaAvoda
G'dud HaʿAvodah VeHaHaganah ʿAl-Shem Yosef Trumpeldor , commonly known as Gdud HaAvoda, was a socialist Zionist work group in Mandate Palestine.The group was established on 8 August 1920, with the three focuses of work, settlement and defence...
and worked in a quarry.
In 1925, he was chosen and accepted to the drama school of the Ha'ohel Theatre under the guidance of Moshe Halevi and in 1929 he joined the acting cast of the theatre.
Margalit excelled in fulfilling comic roles. His most successful role was the title role in The Good Soldier Schweik
The Good Soldier Švejk
The Good Soldier Švejk , also spelled Schweik or Schwejk, is the abbreviated title of a unfinished satirical/dark comedy novel by Jaroslav Hašek. It was illustrated by Josef Lada and George Grosz after Hašek's death...
, the play based on the novel by Jaroslav Hašek
Jaroslav Hašek
Jaroslav Hašek was a Czech humorist, satirist, writer and socialist anarchist best known for his novel The Good Soldier Švejk, an unfinished collection of farcical incidents about a soldier in World War I and a satire on the ineptitude of authority figures, which has been translated into sixty...
and translated into Hebrew by Avigdor Hameiri
Avigdor Hameiri
Avigdor Hameiri was an Israeli author.-Biography:Hameiri was born Avigdor Feuerstein in 1890 in the village of Odavidhaza , Carpathian Ruthenia in Austria Hungary. He emigrated to Mandate Palestine in 1921, where he became one of the original 16,000 1948 freedom fighters...
. The premiere was held on 22 December 1935. This presentation was Ha'ohel's most successful throughout its years of existence and was performed some one thousand and five hundred times. Margalit played the character of Schweik so convincing that Margalit remained identified with the figure of Schweik throughout his acting career.
At the end of the Second World War, Margalit made a tour to play before Jewish volunteers from Palestine serving in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
in Europe and the Middle East, as well as Holocaust survivors
Sh'erit ha-Pletah
Sh'erit ha-Pletah is a biblical term used by Jewish survivors of the Nazi Holocaust to refer to themselves and the communities they formed following their liberation in the spring of 1945....
in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and illegal immigrants and deportees held by the British in detention camps in Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
.
Another acclaimed role played by Margalit was in the successful comedy "Ha'ketubah" by Ephraim Kishon
Ephraim Kishon
' was an Israeli author, dramatist, screenwriter, and film director. He is one of the most widely-read contemporary satirists in the world.- Early life and World War II :...
, performed in Ha'ohel in 1961.
In the early nineteen sixties, he moved briefly to the Habima Theatre, but returned to Ha'ohel, where he continued to act until the theatre closed in 1969.
In 1964, Margalit appeared as Noah Simchon in the film "Simchon Family", based on the popular radio series of the same name, when Samuel Rodensky, hero of the radio series, was abroad at the time.
The last performance by Margalit was in the play "Where is the Land of Israel?" by Ada Ben Nachum, privately produced at the Lilach Theatre in 1972 and 1973.
Awards and honours
- In 1956, Margalit was awarded the Ramchal Prize by Municipality of Tel Aviv.
- In 1962, he received the Klausner Prize for Acting.
- In 1964, he was awarded the Israel PrizeIsrael PrizeThe Israel Prize is an award handed out by the State of Israel and is largely regarded as the state's highest honor. It is presented annually, on Israeli Independence Day, in a state ceremony in Jerusalem, in the presence of the President, the Prime Minister, the Knesset chairperson, and the...
, in theatre. - A street is named after him in the AfekaAfekaAfeka is a residential neighborhood of Tel Aviv, Israel. It is located in the northwestern part of the city.-Notable residents:*Yaron London , media personality, journalist, actor, and songwriter...
neighborhood of Tel Aviv.
In 1976, Margalit's family established, in cooperation with the Jerusalem Theatre Archives and Museum, a fund in the name of Margalit to award prizes in the field of theatre arts.
See also
- List of Israel Prize recipients