Reuven Ben-Yosef
Encyclopedia
Reuven Ben-Yosef was an Israeli poet
on May 31, 1937.
His childhood was spent in Manhattan
, where he attended P.S.187 and later, the High School of Music and Art
, where he became a professional jazz
musician
. He went on to complete his secondary education at Westwood High School
in New Jersey
and attended Oberlin College
in Ohio
before serving in the U.S. Army
in Heilbronn
, Germany
.
During 1957-59 he published poetry
in American literary magazines and The New York Times
.
Before he left America to emigrate to Israel
he published his first book of poetry, the last he wrote in English, The Endless Seed.
During the Yom Kippur War
he was with the first military units to launch the counter-offensive in the southern sector of the Golan Heights and was on front-line duty for 145 days.
In the summer of 1976 he moved to Jerusalem. He supported his family by translating and teaching creative writing to high-school students.
When the Lebanon War
broke out in 1982, he was again called to duty and sent to the front for 41 days.
In 1996 he started a small publishing house called Sifre Bitzaron.
He died of lung cancer
on March 9, 2001. He left his brother James Reiss
, his sister Lucinda Luvaas, his wife, Yehudit, three children and seven grandchildren.
He wrote 19 books of Hebrew poetry
, two novels, two books of essays, and a writer’s diary. After his death, his wife published a book, In Memory of Reuven Ben-Yosef, which included critical articles by his colleagues (2002).
Poems and Articles translated into: English
, French
, Spanish
, Italian
, Arabic
, Hungarian
, and German
.
Biography
Ben-Yosef was born Robert Eliot Reiss, the son of Joseph and Cecilia Reiss, in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on May 31, 1937.
His childhood was spent in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, where he attended P.S.187 and later, the High School of Music and Art
The High School of Music & Art
The High School of Music & Art, informally known as "Music & Art", was a public alternative high school at 443-465 West 135th Street, New York, New York, USA that existed from 1936 through 1984, and then merged into the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing...
, where he became a professional jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
. He went on to complete his secondary education at Westwood High School
Westwood Regional High School
Westwood Regional Jr./Sr. High School is a five-year comprehensive regional public high school that serves students in eighth through twelfth grade from Borough of Westwood and the Township of Washington, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Westwood Regional School...
in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and attended Oberlin College
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
before serving in the U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
in Heilbronn
Heilbronn
Heilbronn is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is completely surrounded by Heilbronn County and with approximately 123.000 residents, it is the sixth-largest city in the state....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
During 1957-59 he published poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
in American literary magazines and The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
.
Before he left America to emigrate to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
he published his first book of poetry, the last he wrote in English, The Endless Seed.
During the Yom Kippur War
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to 25, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria...
he was with the first military units to launch the counter-offensive in the southern sector of the Golan Heights and was on front-line duty for 145 days.
In the summer of 1976 he moved to Jerusalem. He supported his family by translating and teaching creative writing to high-school students.
When the Lebanon War
1982 Lebanon War
The 1982 Lebanon War , , called Operation Peace for Galilee by Israel, and later known in Israel as the Lebanon War and First Lebanon War, began on 6 June 1982, when the Israel Defense Forces invaded southern Lebanon...
broke out in 1982, he was again called to duty and sent to the front for 41 days.
In 1996 he started a small publishing house called Sifre Bitzaron.
He died of lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
on March 9, 2001. He left his brother James Reiss
James Reiss
-Biography:James Reiss grew up in the Washington Heights section of New York City and in northern New Jersey. He earned his B.A. and his M.A. in English from the University of Chicago....
, his sister Lucinda Luvaas, his wife, Yehudit, three children and seven grandchildren.
He wrote 19 books of Hebrew poetry
Hebrew poetry
Hebrew poetry is poetry written in the Hebrew language. It encompasses such things as:* Biblical poetry, the poetry found in the poetic books of the Hebrew Bible* Piyyut, religious Jewish liturgical poetry in Hebrew or Aramaic...
, two novels, two books of essays, and a writer’s diary. After his death, his wife published a book, In Memory of Reuven Ben-Yosef, which included critical articles by his colleagues (2002).
Awards
- Twice awarded The Jewish Book Council of AmericaJewish Book CouncilThe Jewish Book Council, founded in 1944, is an organization encouraging and contributing to Jewish literature. The goal of the council, as stated on its website, is "to promote the reading, writing and publishing of quality English language books of Jewish content in North America". It is the only...
(1969, 1975) - Moznaim Prize (1978)
- N.Y.U. Neuman Prize (1979)
- Peter Shiprert Prize (1982)
- Bar-Ilan University Prize (1986)
- Keren Hayasod Prize (1990)
- Prime Minister Levi Eshcol Prize (1996-97)
Poems, stories, essays in periodicals
Molad, Moznaim, Amot, Apirion, 77, Bitzaron, Mibifnim, Maariv, Yediot, Haaretz, Davar, Al-Hamishmar, Ariel, Nativ, Psifas, Afikim and others and in the United States literary magazines such as Midstream, which recently published an article by the poet Esther Cameron and some of his poems translated into English.External Links
- http://www.ithl.org.il/author_info.asp?id=52
Poems and Articles translated into: English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
, and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
.