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Sholom Secunda was one of the most prolific composers for the Yiddish musical theater. Among the thousands of songs and liturgical pieces he composed, he wrote two of the most popular songs ever to come out of the Yiddish theater: "Dona Dona" (1941) and "Bay Mir Bistu Sheyn" (1937) Both found huge American audiences once they were translated into English. Folksinger Joan Baez made "Dona Dona" popular in the 1960s, and "Bay Mir Bistu Sheyn" found a global audience thanks to Sammy Kahn's translation into English. Unfortunately for Secunda, he had sold the rights to the song to his publisher, and thus lost out on millions in royalties.