Issy Bonn

Issy Bonn (born Benjamin Levin; 21 April 1903 – 21 April 1977) was a British comedian, singer, actor, and theatrical agent. His signature song was "My Yiddishe Momme".

Biography Benjamin Levin was born into a Jewish family in Whitechapel, London, the son of a butcher. As a boy, he started singing and entertaining, but his family disapproved of his interest in the music hall and he was sent to Canada to live with relatives. When he returned, he joined an existing comedy and singing group, the Three Rascals, and made his first radio appearance on the show in 1935, billed as "The Hebrew Vocal Raconteur".

Issy Bonn made over a thousand radio broadcasts on programmes such as Variety Bandbox, and reputedly had a repertoire of over 500 songs. He appeared in the films I Thank You in 1941, and Discoveries in 1939, where he played Mr. Schwitzer. He made his first recordings in 1942, for the Rex label, and later recorded for Decca and Columbia. He toured Europe with the Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA), and after the Second World War wrote and starred in his own road shows including The Big Broadcasts and The Melody Lingers On. went out of fashion, but he continued to appear on radio, television, and in pantomimes, and toured, often with the popular trumpeter Eddie Calvert. He later retired from performing and became a theatrical agent, and a producer of variety shows around the country.

He died on his 74th birthday, in London.