Eran Litvin sent me a newspaper clipping from "Tesha Ba-erev” (Nine in the Evening) on the Shamir Brothers exhibition in 1940. (Gabriel Shamir's files contained a clipping on this exhibition from "Davar"). Among other things mentioned in the press clip was a children's magazine called "Ach Same'ach” "(Surely, rejoice" Deuteronomy 16,15).

I'd never heard of it, so I turned to Dr. Mordechai Naor, a former editor of "Kesher" magazine. Motke referred me to a researcher and she referred me to Prof. Zohar Shavit, who referred me to Yael Dar. Yael knew of the magazine and suggested that I read a book by Uriel Ofek "Hebrew children's literature". I found the book at Beit Ariella and listed in its index was "Ach Same'ach”, but the pages of the magazine weremissing. I found another volume which included a one and a half page description of the magazine stating that the editor was Levin Kipnis, the illustrators - Shamir Brothers and the publishers - Shamir Brothers in partnership with the linoleum blocks engravers (they used the pseudonym - M. Green). Only two magazines were issued in 1940 before it ceased to exist.

How can I find the two issues of this children’s magazine? Yael Dar suggested that I check with the Uriel Ofek Center at Beit Berl. After two weeks they came back and said that they could not find them.

I went online and found that Motke Naor's wife, Leah Naor, published a book on Levin Kipnis. I spoke with her but she did not know this children's magazines and, while on the phone, checked in the bibliography of Levin Kipnis' work where it was not mentioned. She suggested that I contact the Levin Kipnis center at Levinsky College, even though all that they have should be listed in the bibliography. At the Kipnis Center they suggested I try Tziona Kipnis, his daughter- in- law. "Yes”, she said: “I have the two magazines". I asked if I could come and photograph them and she said: "Come today." I went to the nursing home in Ramat Hasharon, where she lives with her husband Shay. I photographed the two magazines (one was falling apart). I asked her to have them scanned professionally but she would not let them out of her home. I offered to drive her - with the magazines – to Shenkar Institute for them to be scanned in her presence, and so it was.

It bothered her that these children's magazines were not included in the bibliography that she worked on with Eliyahu Cohen for twelve years. After thumbing through the book the puzzle was solved. The magazines appears twice in the bibliography – not under its name "Ach Same'ach” but under the title of the cover story of each of the published issues. Issue one – "The fall of Haman", issue Two – "The friendship on the Jordan."

Shay Kipnis told me that his father used many pseudonyms. One of them was Shamir, based on his home town in the Ukraine: Osumar.

After a brief discussion between the son and the daughter- in- law it was agreed that the ownership of the two magazines will be recorded by Shenkar as Kipnis Family Collection.

Later in the visit they showed me Kipnis' own graphic work, mostly for the cover sof his own books. I suggested that Tziona take these with her to Shenkar where they would also be scanned by them. She agreed.

A few months later, Yael Dar interviewed me (over the phone) about how I found the "Ach Same'ach” magazines for an article she was writing in the literary supplement of “Haaretz”. She had a theory that Shamir brothers, as publishers, did not intend to make it a regular weekly children magazine but came out with only two magazine issues for the Purim holiday. I told her that this made sense given that during the British mandate period some papers/magazines came out with a single or two issues only ( There was no need for license for a single issue). I have seen single issue papers/magazines of political and humorous nature at the Lavon Institute and the Mehlman Library of Tel Aviv University.

Yael Dar's article "Got to Be Happy," appeared in “Haaretz” on Purim, February 28, 2009 [According to Yael Dar, "Ach Same'ach” was the first children's magazine printed in colour. One of the issues was re-issued a year later (only changing the date).

Yoram Shamir 2009