Menuhin’s father issues a veiled threat

The recent death of violinist and conductor Yehudi Menuhin reminded me of an interesting episode that occurred in the early 1920s when I was still in my pre-teen years.

My Hebrew teacher, Moshe Menuhin (Yehudi's father), was in charge of the Central Hebrew School on Grove Street in San Francisco. It was at the time of the silent film era when admission for children was 5 cents. I was in the habit of scrounging the area in back of the American Theatre on Fillmore Street for rejected film clips, which I enjoyed viewing.

One day in the afternoon Hebrew class, I was inspecting several of the film clips when I was observed by Menuhin. He voiced his disapproval by stating, "You should pay more attention to classwork or you will land in Hollywood!"

Menuhin's prediction did not materialize, but even today I am a proficient reader of the Hebrew prayerbook.