Elihu "Elye" Tenenholtz was born in the Russian hamlet of Azran, near the city of Rovne, in 1887 and came to the US at the age of ten. His first appearance in amateur Yiddish theatricals occurred in 1903, in staged readings of the works of Yiddish author Sholom Aleichem, the first person to do that. He augmented his theater appearances by writing for and editing a Yiddish satirical magazine under the pen-name "Moishe McCarthy". In 1916 he made the leap to the professional Yiddish stage and, befriended by the great doyenne Bessie Thomashevsky, helped her pen her memoirs, the first publication documenting a Yiddish actor's life. By 1920 he was appearing on both the Yiddish art stage with Maurice Schwartz and on Broadway, quickly rising to the top leadership of the Hebrew Actors' Union, the first arts union in America. In 1925 he co-founded a theater company with Celia Adler, half-sister of Luther Adler and "Method" teacher Stella Adler. In 1926 he was summoned to Hollywood and given a five-year contract at MGM. Like most Jewish actors, when he arrived in Hollywood he changed his name (choosing to bifurcate it into "Tenen Holtz"). During that time he regularly appeared in films alongside such stars as Greta Garbo, Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Jean Harlow and Marion Davies and under directors like King Vidor and Victor Fleming. This period would prove to be Tenenholtz's most prolific and would account for the majority of the 50+ films in which he would appear.
Elihu "Elye" Tenenholtz was born in the Russian hamlet of Azran, near the city of Rovne, in 1887 and came to the US at the age of ten. His first appearance in amateur Yiddish theatricals occurred in 1903, in staged readings of the works of Yiddish author Sholom Aleichem, the first person to do that. He augmented his theater appearances by writing for and editing a Yiddish satirical magazine under the pen-name "Moishe McCarthy". In 1916 he made the leap to the professional Yiddish stage and, befriended by the great doyenne Bessie Thomashevsky, helped her pen her memoirs, the first publication documenting a Yiddish actor's life. By 1920 he was appearing on both the Yiddish art stage with Maurice Schwartz and on Broadway, quickly rising to the top leadership of the Hebrew Actors' Union, the first arts union in America. In 1925 he co-founded a theater company with Celia Adler, half-sister of Luther Adler and "Method" teacher Stella Adler. In 1926 he was summoned to Hollywood and given a five-year contract at MGM. Like most Jewish actors, when he arrived in Hollywood he changed his name (choosing to bifurcate it into "Tenen Holtz"). During that time he regularly appeared in films alongside such stars as Greta Garbo, Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Jean Harlow and Marion Davies and under directors like King Vidor and Victor Fleming. This period would prove to be Tenenholtz's most prolific and would account for the majority of the 50+ films in which he would appear.
While in Hollywood he helped jump start its fledgling Yiddish theater, founding a popular Yiddish theater company that included other transplanted Yiddish actors including Muni Weisenfreund (aka Paul Muni, father and son Rudolph Schildkraut and Joseph Schildkraut. When his contract at MGM ended, he moved over to Warner Brothers where he made films with Leslie Howard under the direction of Michael Curtiz. By the late 1930s the only calls he got were from Poverty Row studios, so Tenenholtz moved to nearby Monrovia and opened a chicken ranch. Though he would occasionally go back in front of the camera, he retired from film. By the time TV emerged, he landed a few roles on shows such as Perry Mason (1957) and Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955). He died in 1971.
External links
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/nm0392669
Wikipedia: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7699700
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Filmography (Movies)
Henry Goes Arizona
Character:Boris - a Ranch Hand (uncredited)
Release Date:08/12/1939
Mutiny on the Blackhawk
Character:
Release Date:31/07/1939
Bridal Suite
Character:Hotel Runner at Train Station
Release Date:26/05/1939
Let Freedom Ring
Character:Hunky (uncredited)
Release Date:24/02/1939
Cipher Bureau
Character:Simon Herrick
Release Date:25/10/1938
International Crime
Character:Starkhov
Release Date:23/04/1938
Nothing Sacred
Character:Tearful Waiter (uncredited)
Release Date:25/11/1937
British Agent
Character:Lenin
Release Date:15/09/1934
The Notorious Sophie Lang
Character:Bystander (uncredited)
Release Date:20/07/1934
Hollywood Mystery
Character:Benjamin Vogel
Release Date:20/06/1934
Money Means Nothing
Character:Mr. Silverman
Release Date:14/06/1934
Dinner at Eight
Character:Butler (uncredited)
Release Date:22/12/1933
The Chief
Character:Bald Henchman at Cabin
Release Date:03/11/1933
Big Executive
Character:Pawnbroker
Release Date:19/10/1933
Bombshell
Character:White - Lola's Agent (uncredited)
Release Date:13/10/1933
Broadway to Hollywood
Character:Booking Agent
Release Date:15/09/1933
Hard to Handle
Character:Tailor (uncredited)
Release Date:28/01/1933
Whistling in the Dark
Character:Herman
Release Date:21/01/1933
Faithless
Character:Diner Proprietor
Release Date:15/10/1932
Cock of the Air
Character:Tall Waiter
Release Date:23/01/1932
Devotion
Character:Waiter
Release Date:25/09/1931
Sporting Blood
Character:Gus, Bald Gambling Mobster (uncredited)
Release Date:08/08/1931
Laughing Sinners
Character:Poker-Playing Salesman
Release Date:30/05/1931
Gentleman's Fate
Character:Tony
Release Date:07/03/1931
All Teed Up
Character:Senator Brown
Release Date:16/04/1930
Whispering Whoopee
Character:Mr. Holtz
Release Date:08/03/1930
The Kibitzer
Character:Meyer
Release Date:11/01/1930
Lilies of the Field
Character:Paymaster
Release Date:05/01/1930
House of Horror
Character:Brown
Release Date:28/04/1929
The Duke Steps Out
Character:Jake, Duke's manager
Release Date:19/03/1929
Show People
Character:Casting Director
Release Date:20/11/1928
The Ol' Gray Hoss
Character:Man with Sooty on Face
Release Date:19/10/1928
The Cardboard Lover
Character:Albine
Release Date:02/09/1928
Detectives
Character:Orloff
Release Date:09/06/1928
The Trail of '98
Character:Mr. Bulkey
Release Date:20/03/1928
Bringing Up Father
Character:Ginsberg Feitelbaum
Release Date:18/03/1928
The Garden of Eden
Character:Headwaiter at Palais de Paris (uncredited)
Release Date:04/02/1928
The Latest from Paris
Character:Abe Littauer
Release Date:04/02/1928
The Law of the Range
Character:Cohen
Release Date:21/01/1928
Frisco Sally Levy
Character:Isaac Solomon Lapidowitz
Release Date:02/04/1927
Long Pants
Character:Minor Role (uncredited)
Release Date:26/03/1927
The Demi-Bride
Character:Gaston
Release Date:19/02/1927
Upstage
Character:Sam Davis
Release Date:06/11/1926
Exit Smiling
Character:Tod Powell
Release Date:06/11/1926
Salome of the Tenements
Character:Banker Ben (as Elihu Tenenholz)
Release Date:23/02/1925
Television Appearances
Images
