Yona Atari ( he, יונה עטרי; December 4, 1933 – March 11, 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. Atari was sent by her mother to study music and theatre but her father forbade this since these pastimes were considered to be idolatry. At the age of 15, Atari moved to Tel Aviv where she resided in

Kerem HaTeimanim Kerem HaTeimanim ( he, כֶּרֶם הַתֵּימָנִים, lit. "Vineyard of the Yemenites") is a neighborhood in the center of Tel Aviv, Israel. The neighborhood is adjacent to the Carmel Market. History Kerem HaTeimanim was established ...

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 ( he, תיאטרון הבימה ''Te'atron HaBima'', lit. "The Stage Theatre") is the 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 ( he, חיים חפר 29 October 1925 – 18 September 2012) was a Polish-born Israeli songwriter, poet and writer. He wrote for numerous composers and musical artists, as well as for military bands. Several of his songs, including "H ...

and Dahn Ben-Amotz. She also participated in an theatrical adaption of Sammy Gronemann’s ''King Solomon and the Shoemaker'' alongside Rachel Attas 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'' (russian: Меж двух миров �ибук}, trans. ''Mezh dvukh mirov ibuk'; yi, צווישן צוויי וועלטן - דער דִבּוּק, ''Tsvishn Tsvey Veltn – der Dibuk'') is a play by ...

'', ''

Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...

'', ''

The Threepenny Opera ''The Threepenny Opera'' ( ) is a " 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 Villon, with mu ...

'' and more. On television, Atari was a prominent cast member on ''

Rechov Sumsum ''Rechov Sumsum'' (Hebrew: רחוב סומסום, literally: ''Sesame Street'') is the Israeli adaptation of the U.S. children's show '' of the same name''. The first three series of the show were a joint production of the Israeli Educational Tel ...

'' from 1983 until 1987.

Personal life

Atari was the older sister of radio personality Shosh Atari and singer

Gali Atari Gali Atari ( he, גלי עטרי; born December 29, 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 in Rehovot, Israel, to Je ...

. She was married to

El Al El Al Israel Airlines Ltd. (, he, אל על נתיבי אויר לישראל בע״מ), trading as El Al (Hebrew: , "Upwards", "To the Skies" or "Skywards", stylized as ELAL; ar, إل-عال), is the flag carrier of Israel. Since its inaugura ...

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 March 11, 2019, in Tel Aviv following complications from Alzheimer's disease at the age of 85. Her coffin was put on display at the Cameri Theatre for the funeral service before being laid to rest at

Yarkon Cemetery Yarkon Cemetery ( he, בית העלמין ירקון) 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 ...

References

External links

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