Page 184 - big friday
P. 184
were taken by bus to the army induction camp. Their waiting relatives were invited to
make their way to the camp gate where they would be able to meet them.
M usic lovers – especially jazz enthusiasts – were invited on Saturday to the Panorama
café on the beachfront. "Ogen, the famous composer", began appearing there on May 15,
performing classical and light music in the afternoon and evening.
S ports fans had been forced over the previous months to make do with fragmented top
league tournaments. In May, 1948, only youth tournament games were held in the Gush
Dan region. On Saturday, May 15, a full tournament of 6 games was held. The clubs –
HaPo’el, Maccabi, HaShahar, and Nordea (a cover name for Beitar) – were from Tel Aviv,
Ramat Gan, and Petach Tikva.
In Petach Tikva, athletic competitions were held for young sportsmen, and in honor of
the occasion they were held jointly by the local HaPo’el and Maccabi clubs.
Where to tonight?
O n Friday towards evening, a complete blackout was announced throughout the
new State of Israel. This order, along with the first bombardments of Tel Aviv, did not
prevent thousands of people from taking to the streets on Saturday night for cultural
and entertainment activities, or to sign on the National Voluntary Loan which had been
announced a week prior to the establishment of the state.
As the Sabbath ended, six large tents were set up in central locations and near banks.
The bank clerks and organizers of the Loan hoped to raise 5 million pounds for security
needs. They signed up thousands of Tel Aviv residents who stood in long lines to join those
offering aid to the new state. At the request of the residents of the HaTikva neighborhood,
a special seventh tent was set up in the middle of the neighborhood.
In Haifa, all banks were open on Saturday night for the same purpose.
A t HaBima Theater in Tel Aviv, a large gathering was organized on Saturday evening
by the Tel Aviv Workers' Council. The guest of honor was the new Minister of Foreign
Affairs, Moshe Shertok, who was received with thunderous applause by the 1,000 or so
participants. His speech was relayed by speakers to a substantial crowd that exceeded
the capacity of the hall and ended up standing in the streets around the theater. "There
is much work, and little time," declared Shertok, considered the number two figure after
Ben-Gurion; the man who – with great success - had led the political struggle in the UN
and in the United States, and who had returned just a few days previously from his long
absence overseas. He continued, "We are faced with tremendous opportunity, but also
acute danger."
Tel Aviv offered a nice assortment of plays and movies on May 15. The HaBima
theater company was away, putting on a series of performances in the United States.
Its auditorium was meanwhile hosting the Israel National Opera for a performance of
Massenet's Thaïs; the Workers' Theater, Ohel, held two showings of the play "Deep Roots";
the Cameri Theater had two showings of J.B. Priestley's "An Inspector Calls"; the satirical
182 The Friday That Changed Destiny
make their way to the camp gate where they would be able to meet them.
M usic lovers – especially jazz enthusiasts – were invited on Saturday to the Panorama
café on the beachfront. "Ogen, the famous composer", began appearing there on May 15,
performing classical and light music in the afternoon and evening.
S ports fans had been forced over the previous months to make do with fragmented top
league tournaments. In May, 1948, only youth tournament games were held in the Gush
Dan region. On Saturday, May 15, a full tournament of 6 games was held. The clubs –
HaPo’el, Maccabi, HaShahar, and Nordea (a cover name for Beitar) – were from Tel Aviv,
Ramat Gan, and Petach Tikva.
In Petach Tikva, athletic competitions were held for young sportsmen, and in honor of
the occasion they were held jointly by the local HaPo’el and Maccabi clubs.
Where to tonight?
O n Friday towards evening, a complete blackout was announced throughout the
new State of Israel. This order, along with the first bombardments of Tel Aviv, did not
prevent thousands of people from taking to the streets on Saturday night for cultural
and entertainment activities, or to sign on the National Voluntary Loan which had been
announced a week prior to the establishment of the state.
As the Sabbath ended, six large tents were set up in central locations and near banks.
The bank clerks and organizers of the Loan hoped to raise 5 million pounds for security
needs. They signed up thousands of Tel Aviv residents who stood in long lines to join those
offering aid to the new state. At the request of the residents of the HaTikva neighborhood,
a special seventh tent was set up in the middle of the neighborhood.
In Haifa, all banks were open on Saturday night for the same purpose.
A t HaBima Theater in Tel Aviv, a large gathering was organized on Saturday evening
by the Tel Aviv Workers' Council. The guest of honor was the new Minister of Foreign
Affairs, Moshe Shertok, who was received with thunderous applause by the 1,000 or so
participants. His speech was relayed by speakers to a substantial crowd that exceeded
the capacity of the hall and ended up standing in the streets around the theater. "There
is much work, and little time," declared Shertok, considered the number two figure after
Ben-Gurion; the man who – with great success - had led the political struggle in the UN
and in the United States, and who had returned just a few days previously from his long
absence overseas. He continued, "We are faced with tremendous opportunity, but also
acute danger."
Tel Aviv offered a nice assortment of plays and movies on May 15. The HaBima
theater company was away, putting on a series of performances in the United States.
Its auditorium was meanwhile hosting the Israel National Opera for a performance of
Massenet's Thaïs; the Workers' Theater, Ohel, held two showings of the play "Deep Roots";
the Cameri Theater had two showings of J.B. Priestley's "An Inspector Calls"; the satirical
182 The Friday That Changed Destiny
