Berta Gersten (; August 20, 1892 – September 10, 1972), was a Polish-American Yiddish theatre and film actress. In 1954, Gersten made her English-language film debut in The Benny Goodman Story and her Broadway debut in The Flowering Peach.
Biography Gersten was born Berta Gerstenman on August 20, 1893 in Kraków, Grand Duchy of Kraków (present-day Poland) to Orthodox Jewish parents Abraham Gerstenman, a religious and Hebrew teacher, and Mesha Gerstenman (née Timberg).
In 1899, the family immigrated to New York City where Gersten's father worked as a courthouse translator and her mother as a dressmaker for actresses. Her acting debut happened because her mother was working for an actor who needed a child for a production. In 1918 she was recruited by Maurice Schwartz's Yiddish Art Theatre troup performing notable Yiddish works and dramatic classics like Chekhov Ibsen and Shakespeare in Yiddish. Stayed with the theatre for 25 years frequently in leading roles with Jacob Ben-Ami.
A film adaptation of the play Mirele Efros was made in the United States in 1939. It was directed by Josef Berne with Gersten in the title role and Ruth Elbaum as Shaindl. It was made in Yiddish with English subtitles."Mirele Efros". National Center for Jewish Film. jewishfilm.org. Retrieved 2017-04-14.
Gersten acted in Yiddish plays, but in 1954 she took a role in an English-speaking play "The World of Sholom Aleichem" on Broadway. She was known for acting in the theatre, but she played Benny's mother in the 1956 film The Benny Goodman Story. This was her only Hollywood film appearance. Other significant Broadway productions of The Flowering Peach (1955), A Majority of One (1959), and Sophie (1963) included Gersten in the cast. Her lasting acting role was in My Father's Court in 1971.
Death and legacy
On July 10, 1911 Gersten married to Irwin H. Fenn (né Isaac Hershel Finkel; died 1960), a professor of mathematics and physics at Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute. The couple had one son, the photojournalist Albert Fenn. Gersten was the daughter-in-law of the Yiddish theater actress Annetta Schwartz and Moishe Finkel, an actor, theatre director and manager.
During the last years of her life Gersten lived with Ben-Ami. On September 10, 1972 Gersten died at Montefiore Hospital. Gersten is included in the 1971 work Notable American Women, 1607–1950; A Biographical Dictionary.
Stage and screen Screen Year Title Role Notes 1932 Yiskor 1938 A Brivele der mamen 1939 Mirele Efros Mirele Efros 1950 God, Man and Devil Pesye 1954 The Benny Goodman Story Dora Goodman English-language film debut Stage Year Title Role Venue Notes 1954–1955 The Flowering Peach Esther Belasco Theatre 1959–1960 A Majority of One Shubert Theatre (1959); Ethel Barrymore Theatre (1959–1960) Understudy for Gertrude Berg 1963 Sophie Mama Winter Garden Theatre Based on the life of Sophie Tucker 1971 My Father's Court
Notes
References
External links Mirele Efros at IMDB".