PROMINENT AMERICANS
The following is a partial list of prominent American Jews, mainly olim but also those who live in the US, who have made valuable contributions to various spheres of Israeli society, both before and after independence.

LAND RECLAMATION

Before independence:
Moses Alexander of New York, founded the Ohale Moshe neighborhood in Jerusalem in 1901.

Lee Berman, a leader of the Chicago Ahuza which bought land in the Galilee that became the settlement of Sarona, in 1920, was appointed the settlement’s first administrator.

Moshe Furmansky, led the first aliyah of the American branch of Hashomer Hatzair from the US in 1931, and became a member of Mishmar Haemek.

Saadia Gelb made aliyah in 1947 and settled in Kfar Blum (which was partially founded by Americans in 1943), and became one of those who embodied the pioneering spirit of the halutzim.

Nathan Goldberg of the Bronx was chairman of the Gan Haim Corp. in the early 30s, to purchase land for the planting of citrus plantations in Palestine.

Eliezer Joffe, led one of the earliest arrivals of American heHalutz that helped to found Poriya. Later, he became one of the founders of Nahalal (1921) where he was appointed director of the Tnuva agricultural cooperative company.

Jacob Lipman was a soil expert and member of the Jewish Agency. In 1927, he took part in a commission that surveyed the soil of Palestine.

Israel Matz, who moved to Palestine from New York, was one of its strongest backers.

Dr. Louis Melnick, though a resident of Los Angeles, sold land in the Carmel region of Haifa (1935), thus helping to develop that city and its suburbs.

Emanuel Neumann founded the Committee of Palestine Survey (1943) to invest in various water projects.

Baruch Ostrovsky was a socialist member of Ahuza in New York that purchased a plot of land north of Tel Aviv that later became the town of Raanana. He became the town’s first mayor.

Bernard Rosenblatt and Elias Passman were leaders in the American Zion Commonwealth Co. which, in the 1920s, purchased the plots of land that later became Balfouriya, Ramat Yishai, Kiryat Ata, Afula, and Herzliya.

Julius Rosenwald, head of Sears Roebuck and one of the financial backers of Palestinian agronomist Aaron Aaronsohn’s experimental agricultural station in Atlit in 1909.

After independence:
Ben Ami Carter, made aliyah in the mid 60s as leader of the Black Hebrew Israelites who claimed descent from the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel.

Judy Gross, chairwoman of the Hebron Fund which helps to develop the Jewish community of Hebron and all of Judea, Samaria, and Gaza.

David HaIvri, Land of Israel activist, hosts the Revava.org website.

Rabbi Shlomo Halberstam founded the Hasidic Kiryat Bobov neighborhood in Bat Yam.

Rabbi Yekutiel Halberstam founded the Hasidic Kiryat Sanz neighborhood in Netanya.

Grand Rabbi Levi Yitzkhak Horowitz, the son of Palestinians, established in the early 80s, the Bostoner Hasidic community in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Nof. His son, Rabbi Moshe Shimon Horowitz established, and now leads, the Bostoner community in Betar Ilit.

Miriam Levinger, wife of YESHA leader Rabbi Moshe Levinger, one of the pioneers in the revival of the Jewish community of Hebron.

Baruch Marzel, pro-Land of Israel activist resulting in his arrest and incarceration numerous times by the Israeli police on orders from the Israeli government.

Dr. Irving Moskowitz, successful businessman in Los Angeles who has worked to strengthen the Jewish presence in Israel’s heartland and Jerusalem in particular.
Anita Tucker, Gush Katif activist, brutally expelled from her home under orders of PM Sharon in 2005.

POLITICS

Before independence:
Meir Bar Ilan, leader of the American branch of Mizrahi, moved to Palestine in 1926 and became one of the leading representatives of the Palestinian Mizrahi in the Vaad Leumi.

Louis Lipsky, prominent American Zionist leader and political ally of Chaim Weizmann, helped in the enlarging of the Jewish Agency to include non-Zionists.

Golda Meir, one of the most prominent leaders of the Histadrut, made aliyah in 1921 along with her husband, Morris Myerson. In 1969, she was elected Prime Minister.

Morris Rothenberg, a founder of the Jewish Agency, was cochairman of its International Council (1933, 1935).

Abba Hillel Silver, who, as president of the Zionist Organization of America, was one of the most outspoken Zionists during and after the Holocaust. In 1947, he became an honorary citizen of Ramat Gan. One of his most famous quotes was, “Zionism is not refugeeism.”

Felix Warburg, businessman, member of the banking firm of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. in New York, was a non-Zionist member of the Jewish Agency, involved in the economic development of Palestine as well as the Hebrew University. The settlement Kfar Warburg was named after him.

Meir Weisgal, organized the Jewish Agency’s American office in New York of which, in 1947, Zionist leader Arthur Lourie was Director.

After independence:
Steven Adler, National Labor Court Judge.

Shimon Agranat was appointed to the Israeli Supreme Court in 1950 and became Chief Justice in 1965.

Moshe Arens, former Foreign Minister under Prime Minister Shamir.

Yehudah ben Meir, psychologist, member of the National Religious Party, served as Deputy Foreign Minister under Prime Minister Shamir.

Cheryl Ben Tov, former Mossad agent who, under the alias of “Cindy”, helped to capture the traitor Mordchai Vanunu in Rome. Her father was the founder of Allied Discount Tires.

Marsha Caspi, mayor of Savyon.

Ron Dermer, political consultant in Israel. His brother is, and his father was, mayors of Miami Beach.

Marcia Freedman, former Knesset member, served as member of the Independent Socialist Faction.

Raanan Gissin, senior adviser to Prime Minister Sharon.

Dore Gold, Israeli statesman and diplomat to the UN.

Eve Harow, spokeswoman for YESHA communities, a resident of Ephrat.

Meir Kahane, a rabbi from New York, founder of the Jewish Defense League in New York, which soon spread nationwide, settled in Israel in 1970 where he founded Kach. He was one of the most prominent figures in Hebron.

Bruce Kashdan, diplomat, Foreign Ministry official.

Shlomo Riskin, Rabbi of Ephrat.

Shmuel Sackett, one of the leaders of Manhigut Yehudit.

Dovid Shir’el, a resident of Hebron, is a Manhigut activist and creator of its website.

David Wilder, spokesman for the Jewish community of Hebron.

THE ECONOMY

Before independence:
Justice Louis Brandeis of the US Supreme Court, though he did not make aliyah, was an active Zionist and champion of private enterprise both in Palestine and the US. The settlement Ein Hashofet was established and named after him, ironically, by the American branch of the socialist Hashomer Hatzair movement.

Abraham Dickenstein founded the investment company Ampal-America Israel Corp. (1942).

Eliahu Shama, a Syrian Jewish merchant who lived for a while in the US, made aliyah in 1919 and established the Jerusalem Trading Center.

Robert Szold, along with Israel Brodie, established the American Economic Committee for Palestine (1932).

After independence:
Stanley Fischer, governor of the Bank of Israel.

Moshe Goldberg, former president of the AACI, later to become corporate secretary of America Israel Paper Mills.

Jonathan Kolber, financier and president of Claridge, Israel.

Mordechai Kreiner, Vice President of marketing at Supersol supermarkets.

Martha Meisels, consumer advocate.

Ed Mlavsky, a leading figure in Israel’s high-tech industry.

Don Patinkin, founded the Economics Dept. of the Hebrew University.

HEALTH

Before independence:
Dr. Louis Cantor, pioneer in sanitation.

Lilian Cornfeld was Palestine’s foremost nutritionist and culinary expert in the 30s.

Dr. Israel Kligler, bacteriologist.

Henrietta Szold, founder of Hadassah in the United States (1912). In 1913, this organization sent two nurses – Rose Kaplan and Rachel Landy – to lay the groundwork for Hadassah’s health and sanitation work in Palestine. During the Mandate, Szold was elected to the Vaad Leumi (1930), and established the Dept. of Social Welfare. She also led the Youth Aliyah organization (1934) to rescue Jewish children from Nazi Germany. The settlement of Kfar Szold (1935) was named after her.

Philanthropist Nathan Straus, after whom the town of Netanya was named (1929), though he did not make aliyah, was active in Palestinian society. He founded the Nathan and Lina Straus Health Center in Jerusalem (1929) of which, Dr. Ephraim Michael Bluestone, former director of Hadassah and son of Joseph Bluestone, was made chairman.

After independence:
Dr. David Appelbaum, internationally respected Emergency Room Director of the Shaare Tzedek Hospital in Jerusalem when he was killed by an Arab suicide bomber at a café in Jerusalem in 2003. His death inspired a group of American doctors to make aliyah.

Prof. Howard Cedar, an expert in gene regulation and Israel Prize winner.

Dr. Nathan Faltz, leading surgeon.

Phyllis Glazer, nutritionist.

Prof. Shimon Glick, expert on medical ethics.

Harriet Sher, co-owner of Great Shape/YMCA Exercise Studio.

RELIGION AND EDUCATION

Before independence:
Albert Einstein visited the Hebrew University in 1923, was long involved with its development. Upon the death of Chaim Weizmann in 1952, he was approached to succeed him as president of Israel. He politely turned down the request.

Louis Ginzburg, expert on Jewish law, in the US, became the first lecturer on Halakhah at the Hebrew University.

Rabbi Judah Magnes became first Chancellor of the Hebrew University.

Jacob Schiff, head of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. was one of the major financial backers of the Technion in Haifa before World War I.

The Slobodka Yeshiva, established in 1925 in Hebron, was American-supported and –funded and many American students who had already made aliyah, came to study there. Several were murdered by Arabs in the massacre that took place in the city in 1929 - Zeev Berman Halevy (NY), Aharon David Epstein (Chicago), Haim Krasner (Brooklyn), Aharon David Sheinberg (Memphis TN), Yaacov Weksler (Chicago), Benjamin Hurwitz (NY).

Rabbi Jacob David Willowski of Slutzk, “Chief Rabbi” of Chicago, who settled in Israel in 1904 and founded a yeshivah in Safed.

After independence:
Carl Alpert, vice-chairman of the Technion’s Board of Governors.

Prof. Yisrael Aumann, winner, Nobel Prize for Economics.

Pinchos Churgin founder of Bar Ilan University in Ramat Gan. Those academics and scholars who assisted in its foundation were Rabbi Dr. Joseph H. Lookstein (later Bar-Ilan Chancellor), Rabbi Zemach Zambrowsky, Rabbi M. Kirshblum, Prof. Saul Lieberman, Rabbi Prof. Emanuel Rackman (later to become Bar-Ilan president), and philanthropists Philip, Max and Frieda Stollman of Detroit.

Abraham Feinberg established the Feinberg Graduate School of the Weizmann Institute of Science.

Rabbi Moshe Greenberg, professor of Bible Studies at Hebrew University.

Barbara Levine, initiator of the TALI School System which specializes in teaching all aspects of religious Judaism to a largely secular student body.

ARCHAEOLOGY

Americans had been involved in Palestinian archaeology since 1838 when the gentile Edward Robinson did scientific research in the country.

Before independence:
Cyrus Adler, a Jew from Arkansas, came to Palestine in 1890 as Antiquities Commissioner for the proposed Columbian Exposition in Chicago to collect local archaeological exhibits.

Nelson Glueck, prominent American archaeologist, director of the Jerusalem branch of the American School of Oriental Research, conducted excavations in both western and eastern Palestine from the 30s to the 50s.

Prof. Richard Gottheil of Columbia University headed the American School of Archaeology in Jerusalem beginning in 1909.

After independence:
Judith Green, prominent archeologist.

HEBREW vs. YIDDISH

In the early years of the Zionist movement when most of the pioneers in Palestine came from Eastern Europe, there was a constant debate over whether the national language of the Jews should be Yiddish or Hebrew, the original language of the land. The activities of Eliezer ben Yehudah notwithstanding, many of the new immigrants continued to speak the Yiddish of their parents, especially the Americans, most of whom were of East European parentage. It was only years later that Hebrew became the norm among American olim.

Before independence:
Peretz Hirschbein and Halpern Leivick, socialist Yiddish writers became champions of the kibbutz movement upon their visits to Palestine in 1929 and 1937 respectively.

Dorothy Ruth Kahn, Hebrew author who immigrated in the early 30s and wrote about the realities of Palestinian life.

Jessie Sampter, Hebrew poet, who established a vegetarian convalescent home in Givat Brenner in 1929.

Yehoash, Yiddish poet, lived for a while in Palestine in 1914 and translated the Bible into Yiddish.

Chaim Zhitlowsky was a Yiddish critic and commentator. He was also an activist for Poalei Tzion since his visit to Palestine just before the war and one of the leading organizers of the Jewish Legion.

After independence:
Scholem Asch, Yiddish writer, made aliyah in 1956 and after his death the following year, the Scholem Asch Museum in Bat Yam was founded in his memory.

Avraham Avi-Hai, author and Zionist leader.

Tzvi Fishman, former Hollywood screenwriter, a ba’al tshuva who made aliyah in 1984 and has become a scholarly writer on Judaica, often in collaboration with another American, Rabbi David Samson, dean of the Maale Erev Institutions. Awarded the Israel Ministry of Education Prize for Jewish Culture and Creativity.
Caroline Glick, journalist, contributor to the Jerusalem Post.

Reuven Grossman, novelist.

Yossi Klein Halevy, author and journalist, a senior fellow at the Shalem Center in Jerusalem.

David Pinski, Yiddish writer and playwright, settled in Haifa in 1949. His home became a center of Yiddish culture in Israel.

Chaim Potok, author of “The Chosen”.

Naomi Ragen, acclaimed novelist.

ART

Before independence:
Hy Mayer, animator, created short animation films of Palestine during World War I.

After independence:

Yaacov Kirschen, cartoonist for the Jerusalem Post.

Leo Osheroff, founder of Arta art supply store.

ENTERTAINMENT AND THE PERFORMING ARTS

Though most Americans involved in the entertainment industry did not make aliyah, they still contributed greatly to the Palestinian cultural scene. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, MGM, RKO, and Universal did a brisk business in Palestine, employing local representatives to distribute their films to the local theaters. American entertainers also made contributions to the local film industry.

Before independence:
Leonard Bernstein conducted his first Israeli concert in 1947; thereafter, he often made guest appearances with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Other musicians who often collaborated with the Orchestra since its founding in 1936 included Emanuel Feuerman, Leopold Godowsky, and Pierre Monteaux.

Edis de Phillipe founded the Palestine Opera (1947).

Elsa Dublon moved to Palestine in 1936 and became an accomplished choreographer.

Leopold Jessner was often, a guest director at Habimah.

Jascha Heifetz, violinist, was a frequent performer in Israel beginning with a concert in Tel Aviv in 1925.

Meyer Levin, journalist, wrote the screenplay for the first Palestinian feature film in 12 years “My Father’s House” (1947).

Irma Lindheim, writer, founded the Kedem Film Co. (1934) along with other local theater personalities at the time. She later became the second president of Hadassah.

Paul Muni, Oscar-winning actor, performed the role of Emile Zola at the Habimah Theater in 1938.

Edward Norman founded the America-Israel Cultural Foundation (1939) for the promotion of American Jewish artists in Palestine and Palestinian Jewish artists in America.

Cantor Yoselle Rosenblatt arrived in Palestine in 1933 to provide the musical accompaniment to the film “My People’s Dream”. He died shortly afterwards and was buried on the Mount of Olives.

Maurice Samuel, writer and Zionist activist, provided the narration for the Palestinian films “Land of Promise” (1935) and “A Day in Degania” (1942).

Maurice Schwartz, Yiddish actor, was guest director at the Ohel Theater directing the play “Yoshe Kalb” in 1937.

Richard Tucker, American cantor, life-long Zionist, provided the musical background for the 1946 Palestinian film “Behind the Blockade”.

Jacob Weinberg, composer and pianist. His performances were sometimes heard on the Palestine Broadcasting Service – Kol Yerushalayim.

Adolf Zukor, head of Paramount. Long involved in Palestinian/Israeli affairs, in 1935, he persuaded Paramount’s musical director Boris Moros to provide the musical background for the Palestinian film “Land of Promise”. Zukor’s brother was Rabbi Arthur Liebermann who had recently made aliyah from Berlin.

After independence:
Mike Burstyn, popular actor and entertainer. Famous for his Kuni Lemml character in the 70s.

Joseph Cedar, film director, graduate of the Film School in Maale Adumim, directed the highly-successful “Campfire”, and “Beaufort” which won him the Best Director award at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Kirk Douglas starred in the first Hollywood feature to be filmed in Israel, “The Juggler” (1953).

Amos Elkana, composer.

Richard Farber, composer and writer.

Yishai Fleischer, station manager of Arutz Sheva Radio.

Eytan Fox, film director. Openly gay, his films usually deal with gay subject matters. One of his most popular and successful films, “Yossi & Jagger”, dealt with homosexuality in the Israeli army during the Lebanon War.

Sharon Genish, originally from Los Angeles, spokesmodel for Versace.

Elihu Katz, professor of communications, known as the father of Israeli television.

Zvi Keren, composer and musicologist.

Otto Klemperer, famous orchestra conductor who made aliyah in 1970.

Serge Koussevitzky, maestro, who often performed in Israel. In the early 50s, Leonard Bernstein created the Serge Koussevitzky Music Collection at the National Library in Jerusalem.

Liz Magnes, jazz pianist.

Artur Rubinstein, American pianist, often played concerts in Israel whose proceeds went to the establishment of the Artur Rubinstein Chair of Musicology at the Hebrew University. The Rubinstein Forest outside of Jerusalem was named in his honor and this was where his remains were reinterred one year after his death.

David Sarnoff, chairman of NBC, became the first Honorary Fellow of the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot. While on a visit to Israel in 1951, he proposed to Ben Gurion that he help to create Israel’s own television broadcasting system.

Jodi Schenck, artistic director of the Guild Theater in Raanana.

Eitan Schwartz, winner of an Israeli TV reality show, TV personality, public relations.

Tuvia Singer, rabbi and anti-missionary activist, host of “The Tuvia Singer Show” on Arutz Sheva Radio. Known as the “Chief Rabbi of Newstalk Radio”.

Paul Smith, actor, starred in many films, most notably “Exodus” and “Popeye”.

Stanley Sperber, conductor.

Sam Spiegel, Hollywood producer and life-long Zionist, the Sam Spiegel Film School in Jerusalem was named after him, paid for through part of his estate.

Steven Spielberg, American producer and director, long involved in film projects in Israel, the Spielberg Film Archive of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem is one of the foremost film archives in the Middle East.

Isaac Stern, former president of the America-Israel Cultural Foundation, performed many concerts in Israel including a tour during the First Gulf War when a total of 39 missiles were bombarding Tel Aviv.
The Kabbalah Centre, established in Jerusalem, in 1922 and then in Los Angeles under Phillip Berg in 1969, recently began to look into buying property in the town of Rosh Pina near the Kabbalah capital of Safed. Through the dissemination of its teachings by such celebrities as Roseanne Barr and especially Madonna (both of whom also looked into buying property in Israel), Kabbalah achieved great popularity in Hollywood and Hollywood Kabbalists have maintained close spiritual, if not physical ties, to Israel. Other present or former high-profile devotees include: David and Victoria Beckham (LA residents as of this writing), Sandra Bernhard, Naomi Campbell, Laura Dern, Sarah Ferguson Duchess of York (US resident), David Geffen, Jeff Goldblum, Linda Gray, Jerry Hall, Goldie Hawn, Paris Hilton, Diane Keaton, Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore, Lindsay Lohan, Courtney Love, Alanis Morissette, Gwyneth Paltrow, Guy Ritchie, Winona Ryder, Britney Spears, Barbra Streisand, Elizabeth Taylor.

SPORTS

Americans have participated in Palestinian sports competitions before, during and since, the first Maccabiah was held in 1932 in which 10 American athletes participated.

Before independence:
The Benny Leonard Club was founded in 1923 and for many years, it was the foremost club for champion Palestinian boxers.

The Palestine American Athletic Club was established in 1932 as an umbrella organization of American sportsmen in Palestine.

In the first Maccabiah, Sybil Koff won four titles in track and field in the first Maccabiah. David White won the title for broad jump. In the 1935 games, Lillian Copeland won titles in shot put, discus, and javelin as did Yudy Finkelstein. Marty Frieden and Jim Sandler were prominent in the high jump as were Harry Hoffman and Abe Rosenkranz in track and field.

After independence:
Tom Almadon, goalkeeper for Macabi Haifa.

David Mark Berger, weightlifter, died in the 1972 Olympics massacre in Munich.

David Bluthenthal, originally from Los Angeles, one of the most prominent player for the Maccabi Tel Aviv basketball team, he lifted the team to the Euroleague Championship in 2004.

Tal Brody, made aliyah during the 1968 Macabiah. He led Israel to the European basketball championship.

Rony Gaffney, left-back for Betar Jerusalem.

Nat Holman, introduced basketball to Israel in the early 50s.

Steve Krulevitz, played #1 for the Israel Davis Cup Team (1978-1980).

Leonard Krupnick, defender for B’nei Sakhnin.

LaVon Mercer, African-American basketball player. Played for Hapoel, and later Maccabi, Tel Aviv, and lifted Maccabi to the Euroleague Finals in the late 80s.

Aulcie Perry, Israel State Cup Champion for Macabi Tel Aviv (1976-1981), an African-American convert to Judaism.

OTHER FIELDS

Alan Beer, was a leader in the gay and lesbian community in Israel who organized the first Gay Pride Parade in Jerusalem. He was murdered in the bombing of bus #14 in 2001.

David Breslau who, along with labor leader Herman Pomeranze, and Akiva Skidell, organized in 1952, the Hitahdut Olei America, a civic organization which advocated the option of dual nationality and job placement for American olim among other activities. It later became known as the Association of Americans and Canadians in Israel (AACI).

Rabbi Yehoshua Fass and Tony Gelbart, founders of Nefesh b’Nefesh who, as of this writing, has succeeded in bringing 10,000 American olim to Israel.

Rabbi Israel Goldstein, rabbi of Yeshurun Synagogue in New York, head of Keren Hayesod, made aliyah in 1961.

David Hartman, established the Shalom Hartman Institute.

Eliezer Jaffe, a leader in social work.

Martin Karp, long-time director of the LA Jewish Federation’s Israel Office.

Prof. Col. Irving Kett, professor of civil engineering and technology and Cal State LA, long and distinguished military career who engaged in two tours of duty in Israel as an American officer. Head of AFSI in the San Fernando Valley. Owns homes in Northridge and Netanya.

Rabbi Alexander Linchner, founder of Boys Town in Jerusalem in 1949, to teach new immigrant youths new skills to compete in Israeli society.

Yaacov Matek was a founder of Kibbutz Sasa and the pioneer of the school for seeing eye dogs.

Fredi Rembaum, LA Federation director of Israel-overseas relations, instrumental in developing the Tel Aviv/Los Angeles Partnership along with Herb Glaser who became its chairman.

Alice Seligsberg became Executive Director of the Palestine Orphan Committee (1919). After her death (1941), the Seligsberg Vocational High School for Girls was founded in her memory.

Dr. Hillel Shuval, leading environmentalist and campaigner for religious pluralism. His wife, Dr. Judith Shuval, is a prominent sociologist.

Hanoch Smith, pollster.

Ezra Stein, executive director of G’dud Ha’Ivri which works with the IDF in preventing Arab terrorists from entering Jewish communities.