Show - — T TOPOL The Star Nobody Knows en amotion-pictur- e pro- duction unit arrived at the border of Yugoslavia not long ago to film sequences of “Fiddler on the Roof” immigration officials refused to let the star enter the country Reason: the movie is based on a Broadway musical that tells the history of a traditional Jewish community Chaim Topol the star is an Israeli citizen and Yugoslavia has a friendly 167 lationship with Arab nations A unit manager however coolly told the authorities that not only had Topol’s presence been approved in advance but that if Yugoslavia wanted the $4 million that was budgeted to be spent there on the production the border bureaucrats had exactly five minutes to decide if Topol was free to enter and start work It took the officials less than two minutes to check out the facts and make up their minds Topol entered Who is this Topol who plays the lead a patriarch named Tevye in this quick-thinki- nine-and-a-ha- lf ng million-doll- ar movie and who is expected to gain an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his portrayal? Though his name is far from a household word in America he is one of the world's top actors At 35 he already holds an Academy Award nomination for his work in an Israeli film ‘‘Sallah’ He has made a record And a poll of the “most popular” person in Israel recently came out this way: No 3 Premier Golda Meir No 2 Defense Minister Moshe best-selli- ng Dayan No 1 Topol When I met Toped on location for “Fiddler” a thunderstorm had soaked the set Unperturbed Topol invited me into a rickety barn built for one scene waved me to a seat on some straw and said “1 hope you don't mind my dressing room” Topol was bom 35 years ago in Tel Aviv to a Russian father and a Polish mother He worked as a printer served in the Israeli army and later joined varipus theatrical groups In Haifa he played in the Israeli production of “Fiddler” Today Topol has the quality of a patriarch in real life as well as in the role he is playing His screen “wife” and “daughters” all treat him like their father on stage as well as off coming to him with their problems asking for advice Even his own father goes to him for advice And of course he is adored by his real wife former actress-balldancer Galia his two daughters Xhat 13 and Adi son Omer four and his who visit him on the set almost every afternoon Topol knew he would marry Galia the minute they met “We were both in the army at the time and met on an army truck heading for Jerusalem” He took one look at the attractive dark-hairgirl and whispered to his buddy who sat next to him “She’s mine Stay away from her” She finished her army service nine months before Topol finished his and returned to her kibbutz They were married a short time later Topol became interested in acting after he entered the Israeli army “I et eight-year-o- ld ed used to imitate everybody particularly — until I became a he recalled His mimsergeant-majoricry was so impressive that he was asked to perform in the army and before long he was teaching as well as acting Upon his return to the kibbutz it didn't take him long to discover that being a mechanic as he was trained to be had its limitations “We used to do everything I worked in the dining room loaded trucks harvested in the fields and once a year went out and sheared the sheep I tried to enjoy what I was doing but it was not a natural way for me I wanted to be on my own” In 1957 Topol became one of the founders of The Green Onion satirical group To Topol his profession means more than an opportunity to make money and live well It is also an obligation to help others get started in the business and support them as long as necessary He has in short become a father-figur- e not only to his own family but to hundreds of hopefuls the sergeant-maj- or !” show-busine- ss Although Topol could now afford it he does not live extravagantly He has an apartment above his office in Tel Aviv He also has a flat in a lower neighborhood in London and a small house in Haifa “I don't like the usual luxuries” he said No wine No cigars No expensive cars He wears suits only when necessary The Topols have a nanny in their home but Galia does all the cooking and most of the cleaning Part of the father-imag-e Topol radiand ates is due to his middle-clas- s self-confiden- ce Hairy Problem Hospital administrators have been caught unprepared to A Fair Trade When John and Yolanda Demetriou needed a place to live closer to their campus they had more ingenuity than money He is a cancer research Now they offered to trade it for a house in town — if one could be found despite the acute housthree-wa- y deal their ing shortage In a farm went to another who in return found a condemned dwelling and offered the renovating services of the inventive to the landlord In return for filing it up so it would be taken off the “condemned” list the Demetrious occufor six months Much of py it rent-fre- e the work was done by Yolanda and her sister Elena DJmateL “Fixing the roof wasn’t really very difficult” the sisters insist Would they try for a similar deal again? “Definitely as long as there's a fixed up themselves couple-without-fun- ds De-metrio- assistant at Southern Illinois University iu Caibondale 111 and she is a student there They had been commuting a long distance from a farm that they had housing shortage” us cope with a growing source of contamination— the long hair sideburns moustaches and beards of their personnel An effective covering must be designed to contain the excess yet still “make the ears available for glasses and stethoscope” suggests “Pharmacy Times” New-Ol- d to his understanding He seldom if ever shouts has seemingly unlimited patience and is respected by his coworkers For the film he rushed up and down a flight of stairs into the attic of an old building singing “If I Were a Rich Man” —giving it everything he had each time—for eight hours straight Instead of grumbling he laughed it off with “After two months of this I won't need any make-u- p to age me!” The admiration his children feel for him is evident in their devotion not only at home but to his career In London they must have seen “Fiddler” 50 times Each time Topol made sure he did some special business onstage like sticking his finger in a glass of milk and winking at his children in the audience They all have decided they want to follow his example and become actors Norman But when director-producoldest wanted Jewison daughter Topol's to be in the film Topol turned him down “When she is 18 the can decide for herself” Spoken like a father-imager e! —PEER J OPPENIIEIMER indicate an upswing in tobogganing as a family sport The reason says Hoegh is togetherness “As winter sports go there isn't much true family involve- - Sport The first American toboggan run was built in 1887 in Saratoga N Y The sport caught on fust On a milder safer scale even the ladies loved it Long before then however there was a type of toboggan on the scene According to historian Bruce Hoegh about 12000 years ago neolithic man fashioned such a vehicle from wood strips and animal skins and used it to haul supplies The name for the modem toboggan probably came from (he North American Indians either from the Algonquin “obabaggan” or the Micmac “tobaakan” Recent statistics The ladies loved it be done in a group but it is still an individual activity In snowmobiling the driver is really the only one who is doing something In ment Skiing can tobogganing everyone gets into the act clinging together” V |