God, Man and Devil () is a 1950 Yiddish-language film directed and produced by Joseph Seiden, based on Jacob Gordin's 1900 play of the same name. The film was the last Yiddish feature film released in the U.S. after World War II. It stars Michal Michalesko as Hershele Dubrovner, Gustav Berger as Satan, Berta Gersten as Pesa, and Shifra Lehrer as Freyde.
Background The underlying play, Got, Mentsh un Tayvl (1900), draws loosely on the Faust legend: a poor, pious scribe named Hershele Dubrovner is tempted by the Devil, disguised as a benefactor named Uriel Mazik, to abandon his modest life for wealth and a talis factory, at the cost of his soul and his marriage.
The play, along with Mirele Efros, is considered among Gordin's most successful works and helped establish him as, in the words of the Cambridge History of English and American Literature, "the acknowledged reformer of the Yiddish stage". It premiered at the Thalia Theatre in New York on September 21, 1900, and became a classic of the Yiddish repertoire.
Cast
Michal Michalesko – Hershele Dubrovner Gustav Berger – Satan Berta Gersten – Pesa Esta Saltzman – Tsipa Max Bozyk – Leyzer Badkhn (Hershele's father) Leon Schachter – Khatskl Drakhme Lucy Gehrman – Dobe Shifra Lehrer – Freyde Joshua Zeldis – Motl
See also
Yiddish cinema Jacob Gordin
References