His parents were Alter Yablonik, a road paver, and Riva-Lei Shillingoff, and he received a traditional Jewish religious education in cheder and yeshiva.
In 1920 he left home to join a Yiddish theatre group, the Kovner Fareynikte Trup (United Troupe of Kovno) traveling around the cities and towns of Lithuania, Poland and Germany.
[2][3] In 1924 he emigrated to North America and began performing in theatres in Toronto, Montreal and Los Angeles, finally settling in New York City.
He wrote, directed and produced a show, Der Payatz ("The Clown"), which brought him much success and acclaim, and he popularized the role through weekly appearances on Yiddish radio in New York.
In 1947, after the end of the Second World War, he toured displaced persons (DP) camps in Germany, Austria and Italy, giving over 100 performances for 180,000 homeless Jewish refugees.