Yona Atari
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Yona Atari (; 4 December 1933 – 11 March 2019) was an Israeli singer and actress.


Biography

Born in Sana'a and the first out of eight children, Atari and her family moved to Israel when she was three months old. She was brought up in
Rehovot Rehovot (, / ) is a city in the Central District (Israel), Central District of Israel, about south of Tel Aviv. In it had a population of . Etymology Israel Belkind, founder of the Bilu (movement), Bilu movement, proposed the name "Rehovot ...
. Atari was sent by her mother to study music and theatre but her father forbade this since these pastimes were considered to be
idolatry Idolatry is the worship of an idol as though it were a deity. In Abrahamic religions (namely Judaism, Samaritanism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baháʼí Faith) idolatry connotes the worship of something or someone other than the Abrahamic ...
. At the age of 15, Atari moved to Tel Aviv where she resided in
Kerem HaTeimanim Kerem HaTeimanim (, lit. "Vineyard of the Yemenites") is a neighborhood in the center of Tel Aviv, Israel. The neighborhood is adjacent to the Carmel Market Carmel Market (, ''Shuk HaCarmel'') is an outdoor marketplace in Tel Aviv, Israel. ...
under the guidance of Nahum Nardi who introduced her to Esther Gamlielit. In 1950, she joined up with the Nahal Troupe and between 1951 and 1955, she studied acting at the
Habima Theatre The Habima Theatre ( ''Te'atron HaBima'', lit. "The Stage Theatre") is the List of national theatres, national theatre of Israel and one of the first Hebrew language theatres. It is located in Habima Square in the center of Tel Aviv. History ...
. In 1957, Atari joined up with Batzal Yarok before starring in a play written by
Haim Hefer Haim Hefer (; 29 October 1925 – 18 September 2012) was a Polish-born Israeli songwriter, poet, columnist, translator and writer. He wrote for numerous composers and musical artists, as well as for military bands. Several of his songs are consi ...
and
Dahn Ben-Amotz Dan Ben-Amotz (; April 13, 1924 – October 20, 1989) was an Israeli radio broadcaster, journalist, playwright, and author, as well as a former Palmach member. Despite having immigrated from Poland in 1938, he was often considered the epitome ...
. She also participated in a theatrical adaption of
Sammy Gronemann Sammy Gronemann ( Strasburg, Westpreußen, 21 March 1875 – Tel Aviv, 6 March 1952) was a German-born Zionist activist, author and satirist. Biography Samuel (Sammy) Gronemann was the son of the chief rabbi of Hannover. Gronemann was the chief j ...
’s ''King Solomon and the Shoemaker'' alongside
Rachel Attas Rachel Attas (; 24 July 1934 – 25 November 2004) was an Israeli actress, voice artist, and singer. Biography Attas was born in Tel Aviv, the first of five children. Her father emigrated from Thessaloniki while her mother was a Mizrahi Jew. B ...
and Illi Gorlitzky in 1964. She teamed up with the latter once again and they performed the song ''Concertina and a Guitar''. Atari began to focus more of her attention on acting and starred in adaptations of ''
The Dybbuk ''The Dybbuk'', or ''Between Two Worlds'' (, trans. ''Mezh dvukh mirov ibuk'; , ''Tsvishn Tsvey Veltn – der Dibuk'') is a play by S. An-sky, authored between 1913 and 1916. It was originally written in Russian and later translated into Yidd ...
'', ''
Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; ; ) is the daughter of Aeëtes, King Aeëtes of Colchis. Medea is known in most stories as a sorceress, an accomplished "wiktionary:φαρμακεία, pharmakeía" (medicinal magic), and is often depicted as a high- ...
'', ''
The Threepenny Opera ''The Threepenny Opera'' ( ) is a 1928 German "play with music" by Bertolt Brecht, adapted from a translation by Elisabeth Hauptmann of John Gay's 18th-century English ballad opera, '' The Beggar's Opera'', and four ballads by François V ...
'' and more. On television, Atari was a prominent cast member on ''
Rechov Sumsum ''Rechov Sumsum'' ( ; ) is the Israeli adaptation of the U.S. children's show ''Sesame Street''. The first three series of the show were a joint production of the Israeli Educational Television and the Sesame Workshop, a Worldwide American non-p ...
'' from 1983 until 1987.


Personal life

Atari was the older sister of radio personality
Shosh Atari Shosh Atari (; 24 November 1949 – 1 April 2008) was an Israeli radio presenter, television presenter and actress, born as Shoshana Atari (Hebrew: שושנה עטרי) in Rehovot.
and singer
Gali Atari Gali Atari (; born 29 December 1953) is an Israeli singer and actress. Atari won the Eurovision Song Contest 1979 which was held in Jerusalem, as part of Milk and Honey. Early life Atari was born as Abigail Atari (Hebrew: אביגיל עטרי) ...
. She was married to
El Al EL AL Israel Airlines Ltd. (), trading as EL AL (, "Upwards", "To the Skies", or "Skywards", stylized as ELAL; ) is the flag carrier of Israel. Since its inaugural flight from Geneva to Tel Aviv in September 1948, the airline has grown to serve ...
and Air Force pilot Uri Yaffe from 1960 until his death on June 10, 2012. They had two children, Dana and Oren.


Death

Atari died on 11 March 2019, in Tel Aviv following complications from
Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...
at the age of 85. Her coffin was put on display at the
Cameri Theatre The Cameri Theatre (, ''HaTeatron HaKameri''), established in 1944 in Tel Aviv, is one of the leading theatres in Israel, and is housed at the Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center. History The Cameri Theatre was founded with the purpose of promoting ...
for the funeral service before being laid to rest at
Yarkon Cemetery Yarkon Cemetery () is the main cemetery for the Tel Aviv Metropolitan Area of Israel. It is located within the Petah Tikva city limits, between the Yarkon River in the West, Highway 5 in the North, and the 491 road from East and South. History ...
.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Atari, Yona 1933 births 2019 deaths People from Sanaa People from Rehovot Yemeni emigrants to Mandatory Palestine Yemenite Jews in Israel Immigrants of the Fifth Aliyah Israeli people of Yemeni-Jewish descent Israeli Mizrahi Jews Israeli stage actresses Israeli television actresses Israeli film actresses Jewish Israeli actresses Jewish Israeli singers Jewish women singers Deaths from Alzheimer's disease in Israel Burials at Yarkon Cemetery 20th-century Israeli women singers 20th-century Israeli actresses 20th-century Israeli Jews 21st-century Israeli Jews 20th-century Yemenite Jews 21st-century Yemenite Jews 20th-century Mizrahi Jews 21st-century Mizrahi Jews