Zvee Scooler

Zvee Scooler (December 1, 1899 – March 25, 1985) was an American actor and radio commentator born in Kamenets-Podolsky, in what is now Ukraine. His original surname was Shkolyar. He immigrated to the United States in 1912 and built a career spanning stage, television, film, and radio, performing in both Yiddish and English.

Scooler's theatrical career began in earnest in 1921 when he joined Maurice Schwartz's Yiddish Art Theater. His debut with the company was in the first American performance of S. Ansky's The Dybbuk, and he remained with the Yiddish Art Theater for 25 years. His Broadway career extended from 1928 to 1964, with credits including The Command Performance and Fiddler on the Roof.

His role in Fiddler on the Roof stands as one of his most recognized achievements. Scooler played Mordcha, the innkeeper, in the Broadway production, and holds the distinction of being the only actor to appear in every performance across the show's entire seven-year run. He later brought a different dimension to the same property by portraying the rabbi in the film adaptation. His film work also included the role of Duddy's grandfather in the 1974 production The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz and Boris's father in Woody Allen's Love and Death.

Alongside his stage and screen work, Scooler was a fixture on New York radio. He was known as the Grammeister, meaning Master of the Rhyme, on WEVD, a Yiddish-language station in New York City. Every Sunday from the 1930s until his death, he delivered a ten-minute segment on Forward Hour, presenting news and commentary composed entirely in rhyme.

Scooler died in New York City on March 25, 1985, at the age of 85. He was buried at Cedar Park Cemetery in Paramus, New Jersey.