Harry, Eddie recalled

When it rains, it pours. That’s the feeling here with all the works that have lately touched on the Harry Truman-Eddie Jacobson friendship and the impact it had on world history, via Truman’s 1948 recognition of the newborn state of Israel.

First came Mark Weston’s “Harry and Eddie” play, starring Ed Asner and presented by the Jewish Community Center in April. Last month, HarperCollins published Allis and Ronald Radosh’s book, “A Safe Haven: Harry S. Truman and the Founding of Israel.” And this month, “Eddie,” another dramatization of the Truman-Jacobson relationship by Marvin Starkman and Bob Feinberg, will be staged at The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah. (See related stories.)

This is evidence that the local legend about Jacobson’s influence on Truman has resonated with Jews and other Americans nationwide.

“Eddie” was written with the cooperation of descendants of Truman and Jacobson, who are scheduled to talk about the men after the performance of the play June 25. It should be fascinating for students of Jewish and American history.

Insofar as they illuminate the values of friendship, loyalty and respect for Jewish history, we wish all of these works success in the marketplace.

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