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Yosef "Yossi" Banai (; April 13, 1932 – May 11, 2006) was an Israeli actor, singer, songwriter, comedian, and theater director. He received the Israel Prize for Theater in 1998 and the in 2004. Banai was widely regarded as a prominent figure in Israeli performing arts.
Banai Dropping out of school in sixth grade. He would sneak into theater shows, began studying acting privately, and joined non-professional theater groups with friends and his brother Haim Banai.
During his military service in the Israel Defense Forces, Banai became one of the early members of the Lehakat HaNahal in 1951 and continued studying acting with Fanny Lovitch as a teacher. Although discouraged by Lovitch from pursuing a theater career, he continued his training and was later accepted into the acting school of the Habima Theatre. In his mid-twenties, Banai left Habima to work independently and spent time in Paris. After returning to Israel, he appeared on theater and entertainment stages and worked with several theater companies.
Banai had a long association with playwright Nisim Aloni, appearing in premieres of Aloni’s plays, and also appeared in works by Hanoch Levin and Yaakov Shabtai. Banai co-founded the Theater of the Seasons in 1963 with Aloni and Avner Hizkiyahu; the company staged plays by Aloni and adaptations of works by writers including Anton Chekhov, Nikolai Gogol, and Fyodor Dostoevsky before closing after three years. Banai also wrote and performed solo cabaret-style and wrote and directed comic sketches, including for the comedy trio HaGashash HaHiver, which included his brother Gavri. His stage appearances included roles in The Government Inspector, A View from the Bridge, and The Caucasian Chalk Circle. As a singer, Banai was known for performing French , including works by Jacques Brel and Georges Brassens, often in Hebrew translations by Naomi Shemer, who also composed original songs for him. Banai and Shemer helped introduce chansons, a genre that was not widely familiar in Israel at the time, to Israeli audiences.
His final stage role was as King David in Keter Barosh by Yaakov Shabtai at the Habima Theatre, for which he received the Best Actor award at the Israeli Theater Awards in 2004.
From his second marriage to Ilana, Banai had one son, Yuval Banai. From his second marriage to Aviva, he had two sons, Daniel and Ariel.
Banai died in Tel Aviv on May 11, 2006, at the age of 74 from cancer and was buried the following day in the Givat HaShlosha cemetery. Theaters across Israel held a minute of silence in his honor on the day of his death. Following his death, public figures and artists expressed admiration for his cultural role. Then-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert issued a government statement describing Banai as a figure of considerable talent in directing, theater, satire, film, and music, and noting that his voice played a central role in Israeli cultural life.
Banai had a broad influence on Israeli culture. He was widely recognized as a theater actor and was active in both dramatic and comedic roles, including portrayals of royal and noble characters. In addition to acting, he wrote sketches, including for other performers, contributing to the development of a comedic style that influenced later entertainers and added expressions to spoken Hebrew. Among the expressions associated with the "White Dung Beetle Trio" are "Working on us", "Is it radio?", and "The world is funny, so we laugh", which became widely used. His work was characterized by careful attention to language.
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