Shaike Ophir

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Shaike Ophir
שייקה אופיר
Shaike Ophir performing with actress Ziva Rodann in 1951
Born
Yeshayahu Goldstein

(1928-11-04)November 4, 1928
Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine
DiedAugust 17, 1987(1987-08-17) (aged 58)
Tel Aviv, Israel
Occupations
  • Actor
  • comedian
  • playwright
  • screenwriter
  • director
  • mime
Years active1947-1987
Children2, including Karin Ophir

Shaike Ophir (

mime.[1][2]

Early life

Yeshayahu (Shaike) Goldstein-Ophir was born in

Ashkenazi Jewish
ancestry in the city goes back to the mid-19th century.

He studied acting as an adolescent, but left school in the 1940s to enlist in the

1948 Arab-Israeli War
he escorted convoys to the besieged city of Jerusalem, and took part in naval battles.

Career

Thanks to his comic skills he was accepted to the Chizbatron, an IDF entertainment troupe. In the 1950s, he made a name for himself as a multi-talented performer. He had even recorded a few hit songs during this period.

Shaike Ophir and his first wife, Ohela Halevi, 1954

During the late 1950s and early 1960s Ophir occasionally guest-starred in American TV shows such as

Academy Award the same year. He also starred in other Ephraim Kishon films, including Ervinka, Blaumilch Canal and The Fox in the Chicken Coop, and the 1973 Moshé Mizrahi film Daughters, Daughters. In 1977 he starred opposite Melanie Griffith in The Garden
.

In 1985, Ophir starred in a stage adaptation of Janusz Korczak's children's novel King Matt the First, where he played seven different roles. The play was very successful and ran for three years. Over this period Ophir was diagnosed with lung cancer, to which he succumbed in 1987. Ophir was a theatrical director for HaGashash HaHiver. He also directed the Israeli movie Hamesh Ma'ot Elef Shahor, and wrote the screenplay for 4 Israeli movies. He wrote and performed many sketches and comedy routines, many of which are still popular in Israel today. He also did a series of Arabic-instruction TV programs that ran through the 1980s.[3]

He also appeared in the Chuck Norris film, The Delta Force.

Sign at Ophir's house in Tel Aviv

Personal life

Ophir was married twice and had four children, two from each spouse. His daughter, Karin Ophir, is also an actress. Shaike Ophir, a heavy smoker, died from lung cancer in 1987.

Filmography

Awards and commemoration

The Israeli Film Academy award is named the "Ophir Award" in his honor.[2]

References

  1. ^ The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre: Europe, Don Rubin
  2. ^ a b "Shaike Ophir". Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  3. ^ קופפר, רותה (2019-09-02). "תפקיד חייו: החיים הסודיים של שייקה אופיר". כלכליסט - www.calcalist.co.il. Retrieved 2023-12-04.

External links

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