Yiddish Vaudeville and the Cigar Box Fiddle

Story by Shane Speal  (Originally published in Uncle Enos Magazine, Spring 2007) 

In all my research, one of the most fascinating side-streets I’ve discovered is the tradition of one-string cigar box violins used in early 1900’s Yiddish Vaudeville.   Let’s take a look at some of its history.

Yiddish Vaudeville was known for the revues, skits and one-act sketches, and they held prominence in places such as the Second Avenue theaters in New York City.  Today the only visible evidence of that glorious past in lower Manhattan is a series of plaques featuring the names of Yiddish theater celebrities that adorn the sidewalk outside the Second Avenue Deli. None of the old theaters remain. Even the famous Yiddish Art Theater, which provided more sophisticated, literate dramatic works than the light entertainment of the popular Yiddish theater, is now an East Village cineplex.

But back in the day, it was an amazing place to experience.  The shows were alive and astonishing…and often hilarious.  One of the favorite gimmicks used by performers was a jug band style Klezmer music played on one-string cigar box fiddles, rubber hose horns and other homemade instruments.  Larry Fine of the Three Stooges was known as a virtuoso on the one-string before making the big time with the Brothers Howard.

Four years ago, I got an email from a Fiddlin’ Lew Sellinger who told me about his Uncle Charlie, another one-string cigar box violinist from the Vaudeville Era.  He said his uncle called the instrument a “Broomalin” because the neck was made with a broom handle and could make the instrument cry like a gorgeous soprano and sound like a human voice! 

Charles Sellinger lived in New York City and was part of the Vaudeville scene prior to World War II.  In addition to playing the one-string Broomalin, he also played musical saw and a rubber hose “Flexotone” trumpet of his own design. 

Lew writes, “I remember my Uncle Charlie visiting us in Brooklyn and my mother was always confirming what a bad influence he was.  Well, what do you expect with a background of being an expert in making crème de menthe in his bathtub while all the roughnecks were making beer and gin?”  Apparently, the entire family was musical; Charlie’s brother Maxie and their cousin Annie Kretchman were ragtime pianists.  Lew keeps the tradition today, playing folky music in the Catskill Mountains.

Unfortunately, that’s all the information along with this picture (left) I received from Lew…just a small glimpse into a very unique individual from back in the day.  

By the way, in the last email Lew sent, he told of a brand new cigar box violin…one he built with his daughter.  They practiced up on it and took it out to a jam at a local pizza shop.  Needless to say, the others looked at Lew like he was crazy.  I guess he still has a little of Uncle Charlie in him after all!