He had the face of a Native American tribe, a voice that ranged from baritone to bass combined with cigarettes, and a never-ending love for sports and acting Tel Aviv. • At 71, an Israeli passed away

• With Brazilian Salva and singer Gal Costa

  Photo:

  Brazilian Devia

Whenever I saw or met Eli Israeli, I saw in front of me an Indian tribe head. He had such a broad face of Wild West Indians, a big mouth that produced such a beautiful, rolling smile. And that's before he even opened his mouth.

Guy Bucatti, who accompanied Eric Einstein musically, defined Eli's voice "between baritone and bass, combined with quite a few cigarettes," which made this resonance box memorable and the soundtrack of the IDF waves for decades, and in fact the epitome of Israel's voice The seedy and the serious.

Although he died tired and sick of 71 - as long as his strength was at his waist, until a few years ago, he was one of the youngest adolescents in the soul who moved around here. Happy and passionate life, challenging the gears of life riding Harley-Davidson, all that implies - boots, belts, buckles, fashionable bags, a spectacular leather jacket or jeans, a real Woodstock boy who dived with Selva on the beaches of Ras Muhammad , Who surfed in waves in Herzliya, and refused to grow up. This is how he would also go into the studio.

Pushing the door with energy, pounding boots and a pile of belongings on his arm, most notably the recordings, tapes, or discs he brought home after making the lineup earlier that evening. Because he liked simple life, this is how an Israeli tried to organize his life, which sometimes went into personal dizziness, and put it back on track. The studio was the stable land he needed. The connection between love for football and basketball with Brazilian music and South American culture, made him a pioneer in bringing the "half and a half", the IDF basketball program, which covered the basketball league here with other colors and smells, with Eitan Green and Shimon Amsalem floating around.

It was a completely different soundtrack from the one in which basketball was broadcast by then, mostly by Gideon Hood, a myth in itself. Although Israel has never concealed his sympathy for Hapoel Tel Aviv, he did not make assumptions when broadcasting or asking questions behind the microphone in "Doing Sports" in the GFL. He was naive and mostly devoid of connections for decision makers and very gossipy to deal with contemporary manipulative media. He was sentenced to ugly removal from the building on Judea Naval Street, where he served for more than 40 years.

When I was 24, I drove on Sunday morning. The car was filled by the brass voice of Eli Israeli, who opened his morning program in the passage on newspaper headlines. With a traffic light, I froze, because he suddenly read Tori, "The Crimson Color," about Hapoel Tel Aviv's winning championship, during the Stone Age. Remember my youthful kindness, and wish you proper rest.