Блуждающие Звезды: Кино-Сценарий Bluzhdaiushchie Zvezdy: Kinostsenarii (Wandering Stars: Film Script)

Moscow (Москва): Kinopechat (Кинопечать), 1926. First edition. Softcover. Good to very good condition. Octavo. 80pp. Dark blue and white wrappers with constructivist typography on the front cover, housed in modern blue heavy paper portfolio with printed typographic design of original cover pasted to cover flap. Publisher's device on title page. This scarce published screenplay for the film adaptation of Sholem Aleichem's novel "Wandering Stars", by the acclaimed Russian-Jewish novelist, playwright and journalist Isaac Babel (1894-1940). The film was premiered in Kiev on January 4th 1927 and was directed by Grigori Gritscher-Tscherikower (1883-1945). It was produced by VUFKU studios, the national film studios of the Ukrainian SSR.

This book contains the entirety of the film's screenplay, accompanied by three striking b/w illustrations by Soviet artist and designer Alexander Bykhovskii (1888-1978), who likely also created the striking cover. The final three pages contain publisher's ads, listing other work on the topic of cinema.

The story tells of the love between Leibel, the son of a wealthy shtetl family, and Reizel, a poor cantor's daughter in Bessarabia. The two run off to join a traveling Yiddish theater group. They are later separated, with each becoming successful in their own right, only to eventually reunite in America. The work was first serialized and originally appeared in the Warsaw newspapers between 1909 and 1911. It has come to be seen as the third in an unofficial trilogy of novels by the writer, centering on musicians or performers, preceded by Stempenyu (1888) and The Nightingale (1889).

In 1925 the Moscow State Jewish Theater suggested that the Goskino (the Soviet State Film Studio) produce a film adaptation of Sholem Aleichem’s novel. The order was commissioned to Isaac Babel for translation and adaptation from the book's original Yiddish language to Russian, for the screenplay. During this period Babel had been working on other translations of Yiddish literature into Russian including the collected works of Sholem Aleichem and work by David Bergelson. According to Babel's foreword printed here, he faced a number of difficulties adapting the novel, including the modification of petty bourgeoisie motifs as well as the changes of film directors and their differing requirements. Because of certain elements in the script, of which the main committee of the Goskino did not approve, the film's production had to ultimately be switched to VUFKU studios in Odessa. In a letter during the period of production Babel apparently wrote: “I will have to be present on the set... if I am not there, the director will ruin everything" and later, upon hearing of further changes made by Gritscher-Tscherikower, wrote that "it is more profitable for me not to participate in this shameful production”. Regardless of Babel's opinion of the final product, the film was well received by Soviet audiences at the time.

Text in Russian. Portfolio with minor wear. Wraps partially restored with minor wear. Previous owner's names and date at top of title page, one near gutter. Light water staining along right half of bottom edge of first 30 pages, reappearing from pages 40 to end though along lower part of foredge, more pronounced on pages 75/76, and light fraying along foredge from pages 67 to 76. Block lightly age-toned. (Inventory #: 54867)