Menashe Skulnik (Yiddish: מנשה סקולניק, May 15, 1890 – June 4, 1970) was an American actor, primarily known for his roles in Yiddish theater in New York City.
Skulnik was also popular on radio, playing Uncle David on The Goldbergs for 19 years. He made many television and Broadway appearances as well, including successful runs in Clifford Odets's The Flowering Peach and Harold Rome's The Zulu and the Zayda.
Skulnik knew exactly what he was in comedy: "I play a schlemiel, a dope. Sometimes they call me the Yiddish Charlie Chaplin, and I don't like this. Chaplin's dope is a little bit of a wiseguy. He's got a little larceny in him. I am a pure schlemiel, with no string attached." Skulnik was dubbed the "East Side's Chaplin" by the New York Evening Journal in 1935.
Here is Skulnik in a rare TV appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1966. Enjoy!
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