Di Zeit – Yiddish Daily Newspaper, London, 1949 – Advertisements and Classified

I have a number of copies of Di Zeit (pronounced Di Tsayt), The Jewish Times, London’s daily Yiddish newspaper, in my collection. Di Zeit was founded in 1913 by Morris Myer, an immigrant from Roumania. Originally it was a newspaper for the Jewish working class, then it became a supporter of Zionism and the Poalei Tzion political party. By the 1930s it was a more general newspaper and published religious articles as well. Morris Myer died in 1944 and the newspaper was continued by his son, Harry Myer. However, the number of Yiddish speakers had declined and the paper closed in 1950.

This is the front page for April 6th, 1949. There are no photographs and the newspaper simply consists of a large sheet folded to make four pages:

Here is a collection of advertisements and announcements from 1949, all photographed by my daughter, Navah Maynard:

This advertisement is for a printed copy of the play “The Nazi’s Jewish Daughter” by Morris Katz. I have written previously about this here.

The place to stay in 1949 was the Cumberland Hotel in Bournemouth:

Here is an announcement for the Philpot Street Sfardish and Roumanian Synagogue.  This Shabbos at six o’clock, the Rabbi, Y. H. Zimmerman will give a droshe (sermon) for Shabbos Hagodol (before Pesach).

And here are the Shidduchim.  If you are looking for a “refined spinster” or a “young, English born wife, 29, with a five-year old boy”, or a “28 year-old young man in business”, look no further…..

For entertainment in 1949 you could go to the Yiddish Theatre at the Grand Palais in Commercial Road…

…or the Alexander Theatre in Stoke Newington:

Or you could stay home and listen to the wireless and even early 1949 television.  Here are the programs for the Home Service (For Schools at 2.00pm, BBC Theater Orchestra at 3.45pm, Twenty Questions at 8.30pm, Today in Parliament at 10.45pm), Light Program (Squadroneers Dance Orchestra at 1.15pm, Mrs Dale’s Diary at 4.00pm, Ann Shelton at 8.30pm, Harry Gold and his band at 10.30pm) and the Third Program (From our correspondent at 6.30pm).  Television in 1949 started at 11.00am with a demonstration film, with programming for the housewife at 3.00pm.