Very open, very unique person. Deborah Kedar (Photo: Maged Guzni)
"Deborah Kidder told me she was a little tired. I told her to take her time, that we're not in a hurry," he told Walla! Culture Actor Yiftach Katsur, who played Kedar's son in the Eskimo Lemon films, who passed away today at the age of 98.
"Deborah's death connects to the death of my private mother, who passed away two months ago, at the age of 94. My mother was vital and sharp and wanted to live. In a way, it connects me to the character of a bee," Katsur said. "Deborah was a lovely, wonderful woman and an exceptional actress. She called to console me over my mother's death two months ago, that was our last call. We agreed to meet. Too bad it didn't come out."
"On the human level, Deborah was a very open person, very unique. I loved her on a personal level. On the professional level, I think she managed to create an iconic character and for good reason. When I was in Japan with Eskimo, I was always told that my mother's character in the movie was 'a typical Japanese mother's character.' It just shows you the icons, the ability of a bee to make a universal character with things that every mother has. Funnily enough, it highlights the eternal generation gap, there is always a generation gap between parents and children. Deborah's character captured that interest, and also the snooty mom thing chasing you," he added.
"Deborah stood on stage until a very late age. She had the strength, vitality, inner strength and genes that allowed her to act in several plays and enjoy what she was doing in old age. When I talked to her on the phone, she said, 'Wow, I can't believe it, I'm 100 years old soon. I'm afraid of that number.' And she told me she was a little tired. I told her to take her time, that we weren't in a hurry. We all think we should take our time and not rush, but life flows and flows, and what we don't do today is no longer done. We talked about doing a show together, doing something together. It remained a glove that no one picked up in time. To think how much fun I lost that it didn't happen. I could really enjoy standing with her on stage. But we, as always, remember too late. May her memory be very blessed."
Kedar (Photo: Aviv Hofi)
Actress Lea Koenig also eulogized Kidder in a conversation with Walla! Culture: "It pains my heart that Deborah has gone, because she symbolizes Israeli culture. When I think about the way she has done here in Israel in culture, from beginning to end, about how much she has contributed, it makes me cry and say that it's a shame that this is how we have to end up. I'm very upset and my heart aches. She was a great partner, a smart, intelligent, graceful actress with great timing. Every good thing you can say about an artist - she was. That's how she ended. So my heart aches."
Kedar was born in 1924 in Lithuania and immigrated to Israel with her parents at the age of a few months. She began her career in the acting studio of the Habima Theater, and later also acted in other theaters such as the Cameri Theater and Beit Lisin. Among the plays in which she played "King Ubu", "The Bloody Wedding", "After the Fall", "Krum", "Numa Emek", "Philomena", "Chametz", "The Heiress", "The Merry Widows Club" and "The Mother-in-Law", and in the play "The Lover".
Kedar also starred extensively in Israeli cinema, such as the films "Maybe You'll Get Away", "The Prodigal Son", "The Eccentric", "A Gift from Heaven" and "Operation Jonathan". In 1978, Kidder played Benzi's mother in one of her most memorable roles in Eskimo Lemon, as well as in all the sequels. In 1993, in the film "Itzik Finkelstein's Revenge", for which she was nominated for an Ophir Award in the category of Best Supporting Actress. In 2014, at the age of 90, Kedar participated in the series "Zagori Empire". In 2009, Kedar received the Distinguished Citizen of Tel Aviv-Jaffa Award. In 2015, Kedar won the Best Supporting Actress award at the Ophir Awards for her performance in the film "Sandbirds".
Kedar is survived by a son and daughter, four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. The funeral service will take place at Habima Theater and more details about the funeral and funeral service will be announced later in the day.
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