Louis Gilrod

Louis Gilrod (1879-1930), was an actor and lyricist for the Yiddish theater.

Louis Gilrod was born in the village of Ruizana, near Ulanov, Podolia/Poltava region of the Ukraine. At 12 his father brought him to the United States and left him with an uncle in Newark, New Jersey who engaged him in the hairdressing business. He was, however, drawn to the stage; at 17 he founded a drama club and began to write lyrics. Actors started to notice him and brought him to New York where he became a professional lyricist. The Yehudah Katzenelenbogen Company (later absorbed into the Hebrew Publishing Company) and other music publishers paid him to write Yiddish parodies of currently popular American songs of Tin Pan Alley.

Two of his early successes were Got un zayn mishpet iz gerekht and Kum, Yisrolikl, aheym. He wrote the libretto to the operetta Dos pintele yud (The essential Jew) (New York, 1909), and for The Golden Bride in 1923. He also played small roles at the Thalia and Windsor Theatres and in vaudeville, for which he wrote one-acters. He worked regularly at the National, the Irving Place Theatre, the Lyric Theater in Brooklyn and in 1926 at the public theater. After that ill health forced him to retire from the stage. The last show for which he wrote lyrics was Dos freylekhe yesoymele of 1930.

His wife, Paula Weiss, played in Yiddish vaudeville.

He died in New York March 12, 1930.

Birth and Death Data: Born September 10, 1879 (Ukraine), Died March 12, 1930

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1904 - 1927

Roles Represented in DAHR: lyricist, songwriter, composer, speaker, author, baritone vocal, translator

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 151-154 of 154 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Brunswick 1508W-1510W 10-in. 10/16/1925 Ibergemacht Aaron Lebedeff Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Edison 9460 10-in. 4/10/1924 Es geiht vie geshmirt Morris Goldstein Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Zonophone 5708 10-in. 1905 Isrulik kum aheim Solomon Small Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble lyricist  
Zonophone Z-280 10-in. 5/11/1911 Das siderel Simon Paskal Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
(Results 151-154 of 154 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Gilrod, Louis," accessed November 21, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/112944.

Gilrod, Louis. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 21, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/112944.

"Gilrod, Louis." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 21 November 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/112944

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