Sidney Frumkin is the Most Famous Jewish Matador From Park Slope

Bullfighter Sidney Franklin was born Sidney Frumkin in 1903 on Jackson Place off 16th Street near Seventh Avenue. He went on to become one of the top matadors in the world, and claimed some rather famous fans, including Ernest Hemingway.

“No history of bullfighting that is ever written can be complete unless it gives him the space he is entitled to,” Hemingway said about him.

How did this happen to a Jewish kid from Park Slope? At 19, Frumkin split for Mexico after a fight with his father, a police officer. While there, he asked a famous matador to teach him the sport. His first ever fight was in Mexico City in 1923, where he wowed the crowd. And it was uphill from there.

Read more: The famous bullfighter who came from Park Slope « Ephemeral New York; via Meet Sydney Frumkin, Park Slope’s Most Famous Jewish Bullfighter, Ever | DAILY SLOPE.