Zvee Scooler (December 1, 1899 – March 25, 1985) was a Russian-born American actor and radio commentator. He was born in Kamenets-Podolsky (now Ukraine) and his original surname was Shkolyar. He came to the United States in 1912. He performed in both Yiddish and English, on the stage, television, and film. He first joined Maurice Schwartz's Yiddish Art Theater in 1921 -- his debut was in the first American performance of S. Ansky's classic play The Dybbuk -- and remained with the company for 25 years. He is probably best known for his roles in Fiddler on the Roof, playing Mordcha, the innkeeper in the Broadway musical (he was the only actor to appear in every performance of the musical's entire seven-year-run) and the rabbi in the film version. He appeared as Duddy's grandfather in the 1974 film "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz." Another of his more notable roles was that of Boris' father in Woody Allen's Love and Death.
He was known as the Grammeister (Master of the Rhyme) on WEVD, a Yiddish radio station in New York City. Every Sunday, from the 1930s until his death, Scooler presented a ten-minute segment on the radio show, Forward Hour, which was news and commentary in rhyme.Yiddish Radio ProjectYiddish Radio Project "Vacation in the Mountains"
He died in New York City on March 25, 1985, at age 85, and was buried at Cedar Park Cemetery, in Paramus, New Jersey.
Filmography Year Title Role Notes1932 Uncle Moses Charlie 1965 Andy Mr. Chadakis 1968 No Way to Treat a Lady Old Man Uncredited1969 A Dream of Kings Zenoitis 1971 Fiddler on the Roof Rabbi 1973 Lady Ice Jeweler 1973 The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob Le rabbin New-yorkais Uncredited1974 The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz Grandfather 1975 Hester Street Rabbi 1975 Love and Death Father 1977 Thieves Old Man 1978 King of the Gypsies Phuro 1979 Boardwalk Rabbi 1981 The Chosen Bal Koreh 1983 Enormous Changes at the Last Minute Pa 1984 Over the Brooklyn Bridge Rebbe (final film role)
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