Yaakov Agmon ( he, יעקב אגמון; June 24, 1929 – December 16, 2020) was an Israeli theater producer, manager, and director.

Biography

Yaakov Agmon grew up in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

, and was a member of the

Hashomer Hatzair Hashomer Hatzair ( he, הַשׁוֹמֵר הַצָעִיר, , ''The Young Guard'') is a Labor Zionist, secular Jewish youth movement founded in 1913 in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austria-Hungary, and it was also the name of the gro ...

youth movement. He later moved to

Kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

Harel Harel is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Alon Harel (1957-), Israeli law professor * Dan Harel (1955-), general in the Israeli Defense Force * David Harel (1950-), computer sciences professor * Eden ...

, where he was involved with the planning and organization of events for the kibbutz movement. He was married to the actress

Gila Almagor Gila Almagor Agmon ( he, גילה אלמגור אגמון; born Gila Alexandrowitz; July 22, 1939) is an Israeli actress, film star, and author. In Israel, she is known as "queen of the Israeli cinema and theatre". Biography Gila Alexandrowitz ( ...

. Agmon died from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

in the

Sheba Medical Center Chaim Sheba Medical Center at Tel HaShomer ( he, המרכז הרפואי ע"ש חיים שיבא – תל השומר), also Tel HaShomer Hospital, is the largest hospital in Israel, located in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat Gan at Tel HaSho ...

Ramat Gan Ramat Gan ( he, רָמַת גַּן or , ) is a city in the Tel Aviv District of Israel, located east of the municipality of Tel Aviv and part of the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. It is home to one of the world's major diamond exchanges, and man ...

on December 16, 2020 at the age of 91.

Theater and media career

Between 1956-1958, Agmon served as the director of the youth section in the

United Jewish Appeal The United Jewish Appeal (UJA) was a Jewish philanthropic umbrella organization that existed from its creation in 1939 until it was folded into the United Jewish Communities, which was formed from the 1999 merger of United Jewish Appeal (UJA), ...

and also as a columnist and the secretary of the Rimon weekly publication. In 1958, after a reorganization of the

Cameri Theatre The Cameri Theater ( he, התיאטרון הקאמרי, ''HaTeatron HaKameri''), established in 1944 in Tel Aviv, is one of the leading theaters in Israel, and is housed at the Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center. History The Cameri theater was found ...

, Agmon was appointed general director, a post he held for the next four years. In 1962 Agmon went to study in the United States and served as an advisor for the

America Israel Cultural Foundation The America-Israel Cultural Foundation (AICF) is a non-profit American foundation that supports cultural projects in Israel. History The America-Israel Cultural Foundation was established in 1939 to support the growth and development of a Jewish ...

. In 1964, Agmon established the Bimot Theatre. In 1978, he founded

Beit Lessin Theater Beit Lessin Theater ( he, תיאטרון בית ליסין, translit: ''Teatron Bet Lessin'') is a theater in Tel Aviv, Israel. History The theater was established in 1980 by Yaakov Agmon for the Histadrut. Over the years the theater has shown o ...

. From 1968, Agmon hosted a weekly radio talk show, ''She'elot Ishiyot,'' on

Israel Army Radio Army Radio ( he, גלי צה"ל lit. IDF waves) or Galei Tzahal, known in Israel by its acronym Galatz ( he, גל"צ), is a nationwide Israeli radio network operated by the Israel Defense Forces. The station broadcasts news, music, traffic report ...

. In 1995, Agmon was appointed general and artistic director of 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 order to pull the theatre out of a financial crisis. He retired from the position in 2005, failing to achieve this goal, after much criticism. In 2010, Agmon was appointed general manager of the Arabic-Hebrew theater of Jaffa.

Awards and recognition

In 2007, Agmon was awarded the Israeli theater award for his life's work.

References

External links

The America-Israel Cultural Foundation

Habima National Theatre

Beit Lessin Theatre

Cameri Theatre
{{DEFAULTSORT:Agmon, Yaakov 1929 births 2020 deaths Polish emigrants to Mandatory Palestine Israeli people of Polish-Jewish descent Polish Jews in Israel Israeli theatre directors Israeli theatre managers and producers People from Tel Aviv 20th-century Israeli Jews 21st-century Israeli Jews Deaths from pneumonia in Israel